About

BUILT FOR THE FUTURE.

"Our goal is to provide research experience that focuses on green buildings and reducing the environmental impact of the built environment."

BUILT

The Building Science Lab to Advance Teaching (BUILT) is a building science research lab geared towards undergraduate students, located in Portland State University's School of Architecture. The lab is equipped with computers, sensors, design-simulation software, and fabrication tools for the research and analysis of existing building performance and the testing of proposed designs.

BUILT was created to address the pressing need for future architecture and engineering professionals to have a robust education in the STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) discipline of building science. Understanding how buildings use energy and other resources is critical to the design and engineering of green buildings.

The lab also encourages the more-rapid integration of building science strategies, materials, and systems by conducting student-led simulations or post-occupancy analysis of existing buildings and applying this research to projects currently under design through collaboration with professional practitioners. Students taking engineering and architecture classes in environmental design, building technology, and even architectural history will have an opportunity to use the equipment in the lab for assigned research projects related to monitoring how buildings work, including lighting levels, thermal comfort, and energy use.

WHY...

According to the U.S. Department of Energy, the operation of buildings consumes 41 percent of the primary energy and is responsible for 40 percent of carbon dioxide emissions in the United States. These numbers exclude the significant environmental impact of manufacturing, transporting, installing, maintaining, and eventually demolishing materials used in building construction. While other sectors have been reducing energy use and carbon emissions over the last 30 years, commercial buildings have increased their energy use per square foot by over 8 percent. Furthermore, the total square footage of these buildings has increased by almost 60 percent over the same time period. In addition, the energy intensity of certified green buildings can vary dramatically, leading many building science experts to conclude that the traditional green-building rating systems may not suffice to ensure the lowest possible energy usage in new and retrofit buildings.

BUILT responds to the urgent need for students to have green building research experiences that reduce the environmental impact of our built environment. The combination of interdisciplinary courses, student-led research, and active learning promotes skills critical for the profession as we move toward a more collaborative and sustainable future...

Corey Griffin
Associate Professor of Architecture & BUILT Founder

THE BUILT MISSION

BUILT CONSTRUCTION

BUILT is dedicated to:
1) Preparing future architects and engineers to reduce the environmental impact of buildings through design informed by interdisciplinary research

2) Exposing a wider range of students in introductory level courses to the importance of their interactions with buildings in reducing energy use and carbon emissions

3) Expanding active learning in undergraduate building courses through interdisciplinary, hands-on quantitative research

4) Providing resources and training for faculty members to develop research-based design exercises for their courses

5) Encouraging the more rapid integration of green building strategies, materials, and systems through collaboration with professional practitioners