Abstract:
Most people spent over 85% of their lives inside buildings. In case, one of the determinants of
human performance in indoor environment is Thermal quality. These realities of modern life and
the increasing need to better understanding created the opportunities to study and improve the
health of building occupants (i.e., Solar radiation, comfort and shading strategies). The aim of
this thesis was to assess the effectiveness of Envelope and human thermal comfort. The study
focused on the impact of Envelope on occupants�۪ thermal comfort in three office buildings in
Addis Ababa city. The assessment was conducted using methodologies such as subjective
evaluation, experiment and computer simulation. The result showed that, the ranking of indoor
thermal environmental conditions slightly differed between female and male, and between
perimeter and interior zone. with large window facades, the indoor temperature gradually rises up
and affects occupant�۪s comfort and productivity. Afterwards, the guideline was tested through
innovative methodology of using light simulation and critical solar angle analysis which led to
solar responsive geometric configuration of facade. This component basically responds to
particular thermal discomfort period of the day, which in this study called ���critical time�۪.
Generally, the study concerned with the role of building skins (windows, solar shadings) in
relation to Solar radiation and the importance of adaptive solar shading as this plays an Important
role in Sub tropical climates, like Addis Ababa where the facade has a direct impact on the thermal
comfort and Indoor environmental quality. Current window size and building facades mostly used
in case buildings were resulted with various complaints. Therefore, as core concept of
Architectural design, it is crucial that designers understand solar radiation strategies, shading, and human Thermal comfort.
