Optimize Building Energy Design Using Large Scale Simulation

Take a journey into the realm of large scale building energy simulation. Fix simulates over 1 million single family residential buildings in Toronto's climate using Python scripting, the EnergyPlus virtual environment, and Amazon EC2 computational resources. The goal of this thesis is to provide a more complete picture of how building design parameters can impact lifetime energy consumption. The best and worst 1% performers are analyzed, with the conclusion that certain parameters dominate lifetime energy consumption in buildings. The dominant parameters include some surprises, which can inform the building design profession.