by Jbs123108 b3 — January 2, 2008—The Chartered Institution of Building Services Engineers (CIBSE) has launched the Design Compass—an online tool to assist building design professionals to incorporate weather and climate change-related information into a clearly defined framework.
The Design Compass provides a common methodology and frequently updated database where professionals can find information to help them deal with the challenge of the changing climate and the need to adapt to and mitigate against it.
CIBSE says the compass provides a consistent pathway linked to the RIBA Plan of Work, a widely recognized design process. It guides the user on the use and selection of present and future weather/climate information, as well as links to existing CIBSE guidance and other useful sources of information. The tool also provides the opportunity for users to input their suggestions for future CIBSE guidance and to provide references to other information they believe could be beneficial to others.
While the CIBSE Design Compass follows the stages of the Plan of Work, experienced professionals have the choice to either follow it or access the information provided according to their own methodology. At the same time, it offers assistance to new designers to achieve best practice by following a recognizable and structured methodology.
The Design Compass is the result of a Knowledge Transfer Partnership project, which was a collaboration between CIBSE and the UK Climate Impacts Programme and was co-funded by Technology Strategy Board, CIBSE, and EPSRC.
