Revit simulation application in evaluating fenestration strategies towards energy conservation in Malaysian intermediate terraced houses

With the population growing and keeping up with the pace of urbanisation in Malaysia, the terraced residence was constructed to address new social and economic necessities. Modern terraced house is an ideal typology of housing for high-density development. However, these houses, especially intermediate units, often lack natural ventilation, with just two or three façades accessible for openings on the front and rear façades, causing sluggish and inefficient air exchange in the house. As a result, modifications on the fenestration as the application of passive design solutions are required to improve indoor thermal comfort and energy conservation. This research determines the different types of fenestration placement in Malaysian terraced houses as well as analyses how different types of fenestrations in terraced houses affect the energy consumption. This research utilises Revit modeling software to develop a series of prototypes of intermediate terrace houses incorporated with different fenestration treatments. The developed prototypes are tested by conducting building simulation to record findings of building energy performance based on annual and monthly energy consumption. This study concludes that the design of fenestration of terraced house façade effectively reduce energy consumption, thus contributes towards formulating future energy-efficient terraced houses with improved thermal comfort.