Energy Modeling Software

Information from energy simulation software is critical in the design of energy-efficient commercial buildings. Modeling helps architects and building designers quickly identify the most cost-effective and energy-saving measures. This page highlights some of the available software.

EnergyPlus — An award-winning new-generation building energy simulation program from the creators of BLAST and DOE-2. EnergyPlus models heating, cooling, lighting, ventilating, water, and other energy flows in buildings.

OpenStudio — A free plugin for the Google SketchUp 3D drawing program. The plugin makes it easy to create and edit the building geometry in your EnergyPlus input files.

ENERGY-10™ — An award-winning PC-based design tool that helps architects and building designers quickly identify the most cost-effective, energy-saving measures for small commercial and residential buildings.

RADIANCE — UNIX freeware for lighting design and rendering, developed by the U.S. Department of Energy and the Swiss federal government.

DOE-2 — An hourly, whole building energy analysis program that calculates energy performance and life-cycle cost of operation.

Additional software is listed in a comprehensive directory with information about more than 300 tools.