Buildings are more than the sum of their parts; their creation, operation, and eventual dismantling are pivotal moments where choices are made that can either further intensify our carbon footprint or lead us toward a more sustainable future.
With buildings accounting for a staggering 39% of global energy-related carbon emissions, decarbonizing the building sector has become an absolute necessity to help negate the devastating impacts of climate change.
To aid with this, new tools like Enscape Impact are helping architects make informed, sustainable-based decisions by integrating building performance analysis into the design workflow.
Building performance analysis with Enscape Impact
With access to simple-to-use building performance and analytics technology, you can make better design decisions that lead to more sustainable and energy-efficient environments.
Enscape Impact provides fast energy modeling simulation for the early stages of design. You can now evaluate your creations' sustainability much earlier in the design process and instantly calculate and compare key performance metrics, such as peak cooling and heating loads, as you design. It’s also possible to see the data manifested within the render, making it easier to comprehend and communicate the impact of design decisions.
Developed in partnership with global climate tech company IES, the tool integrates IES energy modeling capabilities with the Enscape functionality you already know and love. It's enhanced with energy efficiency information, simulated energy use, and carbon emissions indicators to guide your early design decisions.
Adding a layer of analysis to your design workflow
Immediate, intuitive, and integrated
Enscape Impact offers architects a fast and intuitive way to assess a design's environmental impact. You can now make data-based evaluations of your buildings' efficiency with minimal interruptions to your design flow. What used to be a separate phase, often detached from real-time design iterations, is seamlessly woven into the architectural process.
Accessible data-driven design decisions
Even those unfamiliar with energy modeling and performance analysis can engage meaningfully with sustainable building design. Educational tooltips within Impact will guide you through the analytical process, making the learning curve as gentle as it is informative.
Enscape Impact can also become the educational companion for practical learning of building performance practices and add sustainability to projects created in the academic environment. The add-on is included with our educational license at no additional cost.
Effortless and reliable
Effortless does not mean inaccurate; on the contrary, the insights provided by Enscape Impact are powered by the APACHE engine, developed by global climate tech company IES. Over the last 30 years, they have built a solid reputation as the leading global innovator in integrated performance-based building analysis.
Widely regarded as the best whole-building energy simulation engine in the world, the powerful APACHE engine performs dynamic thermal simulations to provide detailed insights into a building’s performance.
The simulation results within Enscape Impact are currently showing a variance of 12% compared to IES’s own Virtual Environment (VE) software, which is widely used in the industry for building performance simulation. While we’re pleased with this level of accuracy, we're now working to reduce the variance further, aiming to bring it down to single figures.
💡Additional resources: Dive deeper into how Enscape Impact calculates results in this Knowledge Base article and see a product demo in this on-demand webinar.
Easy to interpret
The Enscape Impact interface is designed to provide you with clear, visual representations of the energy use within your designs, from peak loads and total carbon emission to more complex data sets. This intuitive representation is an invaluable asset that you can use to indicate the sustainability status of your designs to clients and stakeholders.
A workflow companion for sustainability
Tightly integrated with all supported Enscape host applications (Revit, SketchUp, Vectorworks, Archicad, and Rhino), Enscape Impact is designed as a workflow companion to the Enscape core product for Windows. Rapid analysis supports quick exploration and evaluation and nurtures the iterative process at the heart of great architectural work.
More efficient and effective collaboration
Enscape Impact is not only for architects and designers but also serves the AEC community at large. BIM managers and engineers benefit from more efficient and effective collaboration. They can engage with architects earlier in the design process, shaping solutions that are not only aesthetically pleasing but fully aligned with the project's sustainability goals.
An accessible and affordable solution
For those considering integrating Enscape Impact into their workflow, Enscape offers a cost-effective solution with robust modeling accuracy and affordable licensing models. The tool’s minimal hardware requirements make it accessible, avoiding the need for high-spec equipment.
The importance of prioritizing performance
In an increasingly eco-conscious market, green architecture isn’t just ethical—it’s also a competitive advantage. The building performance component allows architects to set a new standard in the industry, creating spaces that don’t just stand out for their aesthetics but are also appreciated for their minimal environmental impact and reaching sustainability standards.
The decisions made in the early stages of a project have long-lasting consequences. Use Enscape Impact to your advantage: prioritize building performance, design smarter, and build better.
💡Additional resource: How to Use Enscape Impact for Building Performance Analysis
Try Enscape Impact
Enscape Impact is more than just the latest addition to our suite of architectural visualization tools. It’s an innovative approach to visualizing building performance that eliminates the disconnect between energy modeling and design creativity, putting the power of sustainable design in the hands of architects.
Join the global call to transform the AEC landscape and help reduce carbon emissions in the built environment. Take advantage of the opportunity to try Enscape Impact and learn how to incorporate energy analysis into your design workflow and build a more sustainable future.
Please note that Enscape Impact is an add-on to the Enscape real-time visualization and design workflow tool. To try it, you will need an active Enscape license.
