# A Methodology to Improve Energy Efficiency and Sustainability in Urban Environments
## 5 Active and Passive Building Interventions  
In the final phase of the study, to further develop the methodology and design an energy requalification project, a specific building within the study area was chosen. The selection aimed to allow for more comprehensive considerations, particularly in terms of implementable solar active solutions. Among the buildings in the study area, the office building was chosen for further analysis. To begin the energy requalification project, a detailed energy diagnosis of the office building was conducted using EDILCLIMA--EC720 software [49]. This software was chosen because it could bring results about the energy diagnosis of the buildings. In this case, the building's energy performance class was very low, highlighting the need for energy improvements/requalification measures to enhance energy efficiency (Figure 14). Figure 14: (a,b) Existing building: (c) energy performance class. Figure 13: (a) Spatial data visualization; (b) information of the starting.osm file and information supplemented with the total solar potential value for each building. The value of the building's overall non-renewable energy performance index, representing the annual non-renewable primary energy requirement for all provided services by the technical systems, amounts to 249.08 kWh/m\({}^{2}\) annually. The building's energy performance, which represents the qualitative index of the energy requirements to maintain internal comfort, indicates how effectively the building thermally insulates the internal environments in both summer and winter compared to the outside. In this case, the energy performance class was determined to be low for both seasons, indicating a need for energy improvement measures. Additionally, in this case, the main geometric parameters were calculated, with a focus on identifying the usable area for installing new systems. The facade has a distinct configuration due to the presence of pilasters, which create shading on the adjacent surfaces, which are positioned on a recessed plane. The building, dating back to the 1960s-70s, possesses the following characteristics:  
* Eight floors above ground with reinforced concrete frames and floors;
* Flat tiled roof (absent in a section of the roof given by a protruding body);
* Facades characterized by external reinforced concrete walls without plaster with variable sections, and with pilasters characterized by a marked vertical trend; among these, the presence of single-glazed iron windows and glass doors on the ground floor can be highlighted;
* Three lifts, with the capacity for four people. Based on the analyses and simulations conducted in the previous phases, several regenerative interventions were designed to improve the energy performance of the office building. These interventions include the following:  
1. External Envelope: The introduction of an external envelope involves adding a layer of 120 mm thick rock wool insulation. Around the pilasters, the insulation thickness is reduced to 60 mm. 2. Windows and Doors Replacement: The existing windows and doors will be replaced to enhance thermal performance and reduce heat loss. 3. Photovoltaic Modules: Custom-made photovoltaic modules will be installed on both the roofs and facades of the building. On the south facade, the installation area was carefully determined, considering the shading caused by adjacent trees. Additionally, panels will be placed at a 57\({}^{\circ}\) angle above each window to provide additional protection from the sun and horizontal rainfall. The obstacle given by the adjacent bodies causes a variable shadow in the lower strip of the west facade that reaches up to the upper elevation of the roof of the adjacent body (12.76 m). Therefore, the portion above this height was considered for the insertion of the panels. On the roof, panels will be mounted on two large metal sheet structures to optimize the space, oriented towards the south. These interventions collectively result in significant improvements in the energy performance of the building.