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Dr. Belinda Lopez-Mesa
University of Zaragoza

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0 Engineering Design
0 Sustainable Cities
0 Sustainable Construction
0 Building renovation/retrofit
0 Low energy Architecture

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Journal article
Published: 27 May 2021 in Sustainability
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3D city models are a useful tool to analyze the solar potential of neighborhoods and cities. These models are built from buildings footprints and elevation measurements. Footprints are widely available, but elevation datasets remain expensive and time-consuming to acquire. Our hypothesis is that the GIS cadastral data can be used to build a 3D model automatically, so that generating complete cities 3D models can be done in a short time with already available data. We propose a method for the automatic construction of 3D models of cities and neighborhoods from 2D cadastral data and study their usefulness for solar analysis by comparing the results with those from a hand-built model. The results show that the accuracy in evaluating solar access on pedestrian areas and solar potential on rooftops with the automatic method is close to that from the hand-built model with slight differences of 3.4% and 2.2%, respectively. On the other hand, time saving with the automatic models is significant. A neighborhood of 400,000 m2 can be built up in 30 min, 50 times faster than by hand, and an entire city of 967 km2 can be built in 8.5 h.

ACS Style

Carlos Beltran-Velamazan; Marta Monzón-Chavarrías; Belinda López-Mesa. A Method for the Automated Construction of 3D Models of Cities and Neighborhoods from Official Cadaster Data for Solar Analysis. Sustainability 2021, 13, 6028 .

AMA Style

Carlos Beltran-Velamazan, Marta Monzón-Chavarrías, Belinda López-Mesa. A Method for the Automated Construction of 3D Models of Cities and Neighborhoods from Official Cadaster Data for Solar Analysis. Sustainability. 2021; 13 (11):6028.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Carlos Beltran-Velamazan; Marta Monzón-Chavarrías; Belinda López-Mesa. 2021. "A Method for the Automated Construction of 3D Models of Cities and Neighborhoods from Official Cadaster Data for Solar Analysis." Sustainability 13, no. 11: 6028.

Journal article
Published: 24 October 2020 in Journal of Building Engineering
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Southern Europe has an old housing stock and has the challenge, as the rest of European Union Member States, to transform it into a decarbonized one, by means of transforming the existing buildings into Nearly Zero Energy Buildings (nZEB). Member States have a large margin of discretion when defining the requirements for nZEB. In this paper, the nZEB requirements for the renovation of residential buildings in Portugal and Spain are studied in detail (unlike the usual more general comparative studies) for a specific building typology with poor energy performance. This is done by checking whether an existing residential building, renovated with different combinations of improvements of the envelope and active systems in two comparable cities in each of these two countries, fulfills the requirements or not, and by comparing the results of CO2 emissions reductions. One of the improvements of the envelope considered are those necessary to fulfill the compulsory major renovation requirements in both countries to check how much we are already approaching to the decarbonization of the residential sector. The results show that nZEB standards applied to the renovation of typical multi-family buildings of 1961–1980 in both countries will significantly contribute to the descarbonization of the building stock for this type of building typology, with reductions of 80–96% of CO2 emissions for Portugal and 71–94% for Spain, if they are applied. However, some aspects of the regulations could possibly be improved such as more restrictive requirements for the current regulations for major renovations in Portugal or the way energy from renewable sources is ensured in Spain, among others.

ACS Style

Marta Monzón-Chavarrías; Belinda López-Mesa; Jaime Resende; Helena Corvacho. The nZEB concept and its requirements for residential buildings renovation in Southern Europe: The case of multi-family buildings from 1961 to 1980 in Portugal and Spain. Journal of Building Engineering 2020, 34, 101918 .

AMA Style

Marta Monzón-Chavarrías, Belinda López-Mesa, Jaime Resende, Helena Corvacho. The nZEB concept and its requirements for residential buildings renovation in Southern Europe: The case of multi-family buildings from 1961 to 1980 in Portugal and Spain. Journal of Building Engineering. 2020; 34 ():101918.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Marta Monzón-Chavarrías; Belinda López-Mesa; Jaime Resende; Helena Corvacho. 2020. "The nZEB concept and its requirements for residential buildings renovation in Southern Europe: The case of multi-family buildings from 1961 to 1980 in Portugal and Spain." Journal of Building Engineering 34, no. : 101918.

Journal article
Published: 10 July 2020 in Sustainability
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Two renovation strategies were considered and compared in this paper for the energy renovation of social housing in condo buildings built in 1945–1969, situated in residential estates that have been declared urban areas of interest. One of the strategies, named here the image conservation approach, consists of renovating the building with very efficient solutions, except for the brick-facing walls, which will only have insulation in the existing cavities. The other strategy, the image coordination approach, consists of renovating the whole building with efficient solutions, including external insulation for existing brick-facing walls, and drawing up coordination plans for each of the residential estates in order to guarantee a coordinated new image of the residential estates. By means of three case studies in the city of Zaragoza and four scenarios of improvement, the two strategies are compared regarding the regulation compliance, the energy use, the emissions reduction, the thermal comfort, and the cost-effectiveness of the measures. The results show that the image coordination approach is the best strategy in regard to the studied aspects, achieving a 69%–79% reduction of CO2 emissions and a 75%–97% reduction of heating use, as well as being the only one capable of transforming these buildings into nearly zero energy buildings (nZEBs).

ACS Style

Belinda López-Mesa; Marta Monzón-Chavarrías; Almudena Espinosa-Fernández. Energy Retrofit of Social Housing with Cultural Value in Spain: Analysis of Strategies Conserving the Original Image vs. Coordinating Its Modification. Sustainability 2020, 12, 5579 .

AMA Style

Belinda López-Mesa, Marta Monzón-Chavarrías, Almudena Espinosa-Fernández. Energy Retrofit of Social Housing with Cultural Value in Spain: Analysis of Strategies Conserving the Original Image vs. Coordinating Its Modification. Sustainability. 2020; 12 (14):5579.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Belinda López-Mesa; Marta Monzón-Chavarrías; Almudena Espinosa-Fernández. 2020. "Energy Retrofit of Social Housing with Cultural Value in Spain: Analysis of Strategies Conserving the Original Image vs. Coordinating Its Modification." Sustainability 12, no. 14: 5579.

Journal article
Published: 10 December 2019 in Informes de la Construcción
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En el sector de la construcción se han desarrollado numerosos sistemas de calificación de sostenibilidad. En este documento distinguimos entre aquellos que pretenden que las empresas que luchan por mejorar su sostenibilidad obtengan una base objetiva para comunicar sus esfuerzos, como LEED, y aquellos que evalúan el impacto medioambiental de los productos durante el ciclo de vida, como ATHENA Impact Estimador. Denominamos a los primeros, sistemas de evaluación basada en el esfuerzo y a los segundos, sistemas de evaluación basada en datos. Este trabajo revisa el estado del arte de estos sistemas y evalúa su efectividad comparando los indicadores utilizados con los estándares establecidos por el the Technical Committee (TC) 350 of the European Committee for standardization (CEN). Observamos que un 62% de los indicadores sociales y económicos propuestos por el CEN/TC 350 no son considerados por los sistemas de evaluación basados en datos mientras que los sistemas de evaluación basados en el esfuerzo tienen en cuenta aproximadamente la mitad de estos indicadores.

ACS Style

P. Huedo Dorda; B. López-Mesa; E. Mulet. Análisis de sistemas de valoración de la sostenibilidad en la edificación en relación con la norma CEN/TC 350. Informes de la Construcción 2019, 71, 321 .

AMA Style

P. Huedo Dorda, B. López-Mesa, E. Mulet. Análisis de sistemas de valoración de la sostenibilidad en la edificación en relación con la norma CEN/TC 350. Informes de la Construcción. 2019; 71 (556):321.

Chicago/Turabian Style

P. Huedo Dorda; B. López-Mesa; E. Mulet. 2019. "Análisis de sistemas de valoración de la sostenibilidad en la edificación en relación con la norma CEN/TC 350." Informes de la Construcción 71, no. 556: 321.

Journal article
Published: 01 August 2019 in Building and Environment
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ACS Style

Beatriz Palacios-Munoz; Bruno Peuportier; Luis Gracia-Villa; Belinda López-Mesa. Sustainability assessment of refurbishment vs. new constructions by means of LCA and durability-based estimations of buildings lifespans: A new approach. Building and Environment 2019, 160, 1 .

AMA Style

Beatriz Palacios-Munoz, Bruno Peuportier, Luis Gracia-Villa, Belinda López-Mesa. Sustainability assessment of refurbishment vs. new constructions by means of LCA and durability-based estimations of buildings lifespans: A new approach. Building and Environment. 2019; 160 ():1.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Beatriz Palacios-Munoz; Bruno Peuportier; Luis Gracia-Villa; Belinda López-Mesa. 2019. "Sustainability assessment of refurbishment vs. new constructions by means of LCA and durability-based estimations of buildings lifespans: A new approach." Building and Environment 160, no. : 1.

Building components and buildings
Published: 25 April 2019 in The International Journal of Life Cycle Assessment
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Service life strongly affects results of building LCA and is considered equivalent to that of its structure. Quantitatively obtaining this parameter is a complex task that remains unsolved in the literature. This paper provides a methodology to estimate the service life of a building and quantitative data related to the environmental impact of demolition plus new construction and refurbishment, considering the potential service life and the ability of refurbishment to extend it. This paper focuses on reinforced concrete structures, specifically on beams, as service life of buildings is taken as that of its structure. Firstly, a methodology to estimate the service-life value to conduct the LCA is provided. The applied methodology is based on the definition of different scenarios that include four different approaches to reinforced concrete beam interventions in the long term. The methodology can be extended to a complete building structure. Secondly, LCA of demolition plus new construction and refurbishment in different scenarios are carried out. Finally, the complete methodology is applied to a case study. Concrete structures have a potential service life much longer than the minimum value prescribed in the codes, in this case study, more than five times. Reinforced concrete is subject to degradation and aging with time and several models existing to assess the effects. In addition, a structure can be refurbished, which strongly affects its service life. These different strategies when applied to a case study result in differences of up to 65% in non-renewable primary energy consumption in a 250-year period. Embodied energy and CO2 per year of buildings which are not constant values. The appropriate strategy for a specific case study must be taken into account to select the value of service life in LCA. Reinforced concrete is a highly impacting material, but also a material with a long potential service life. This durability is not considered in the LCA if the service life value is restricted to the minimum one prescribed in the codes. Demolishing a structure (and therefore, a building) that can last 250 years after just 50 or 80 is a highly impacting action. Refurbishment can ensure this durability and even extend it.

ACS Style

Beatriz Palacios-Munoz; María Belinda López Mesa; Luis Gracia-Villa. Influence of refurbishment and service life of reinforced concrete buildings structures on the estimation of environmental impact. The International Journal of Life Cycle Assessment 2019, 24, 1913 -1924.

AMA Style

Beatriz Palacios-Munoz, María Belinda López Mesa, Luis Gracia-Villa. Influence of refurbishment and service life of reinforced concrete buildings structures on the estimation of environmental impact. The International Journal of Life Cycle Assessment. 2019; 24 (11):1913-1924.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Beatriz Palacios-Munoz; María Belinda López Mesa; Luis Gracia-Villa. 2019. "Influence of refurbishment and service life of reinforced concrete buildings structures on the estimation of environmental impact." The International Journal of Life Cycle Assessment 24, no. 11: 1913-1924.

Journal article
Published: 31 July 2018 in Engineering Structures
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This work provides the Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) of four commonly used strengthening techniques of reinforced concrete beams. Firstly, it provides a simplified methodology to size the strengthening, overcoming the need of extensive knowledge in structures. Secondly, it provides the application of LCA to the selected techniques. The method improves the applicability of LCA to buildings, analyzes the environmental differences between techniques, and reveals the importance of the anchoring method as well as the enormous benefit in reusing building structures. Results obtained for conventional beams are displayed in tables ready to use in LCAs with broader boundary systems.

ACS Style

B. Palacios-Munoz; L. Gracia-Villa; I. Zabalza-Bribián; B. López-Mesa. Simplified structural design and LCA of reinforced concrete beams strengthening techniques. Engineering Structures 2018, 174, 418 -432.

AMA Style

B. Palacios-Munoz, L. Gracia-Villa, I. Zabalza-Bribián, B. López-Mesa. Simplified structural design and LCA of reinforced concrete beams strengthening techniques. Engineering Structures. 2018; 174 ():418-432.

Chicago/Turabian Style

B. Palacios-Munoz; L. Gracia-Villa; I. Zabalza-Bribián; B. López-Mesa. 2018. "Simplified structural design and LCA of reinforced concrete beams strengthening techniques." Engineering Structures 174, no. : 418-432.

Journal article
Published: 01 April 2018 in Sustainable Cities and Society
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Paying attention to the constructed city and renovating buildings are two objectives of current European policies. This article develops a system of physical performance indicators to detect multi-family housing estates that perform worse in energy efficiency, airborne sound insulation against outside noise and accessibility terms. Indicators were developed in close cooperation with the local Administration for residential estates and on a district scale, and allowed the buildings in worse conditions to be detected. The results are graphically represented on urban plans. Indicators are presented by a case study of social housing states in the city of Zaragoza for the 1939–1979 period.

ACS Style

Marta Monzón; Belinda López-Mesa. Buildings performance indicators to prioritise multi-family housing renovations. Sustainable Cities and Society 2018, 38, 109 -122.

AMA Style

Marta Monzón, Belinda López-Mesa. Buildings performance indicators to prioritise multi-family housing renovations. Sustainable Cities and Society. 2018; 38 ():109-122.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Marta Monzón; Belinda López-Mesa. 2018. "Buildings performance indicators to prioritise multi-family housing renovations." Sustainable Cities and Society 38, no. : 109-122.

Journal article
Published: 30 March 2018 in Informes de la Construcción
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No hay literatura científica sobre la interacción entre los procesos de subsanación de patologías acústicas en la edificación y las condiciones de habitabilidad de viviendas. En este artículo, los autores deducen, en primer lugar partiendo de casos de reclamaciones relacionadas con rehabilitación acústica de viviendas de Cataluña, las principales interferencias de la rehabilitación acústica de la vivienda mínima en las condiciones de habitabilidad. Posteriormente realizan un análisis del grado de interferencia usando como caso de estudio las viviendas sociales de Aragón del periodo 1939-1975 antes y después de una rehabilitación acústica teórica. Se constata que las soluciones de rehabilitaciones acústicas pueden tener consecuencias inoportunas en lo que respecta a los parámetros de habitabilidad de las viviendas. Asimismo, se observa que algunas de estas viviendas antes de una hipotética intervención ya son deficitarias en este sentido, por lo que se plantea la necesidad de una revisión de la normativa de habitabilidad para el parque de vivienda mínima.

ACS Style

F. Daumal; M. Monzon; B. López-Mesa. La necesidad de conciliar la normativa de habitabilidad con la rehabilitación acústica de la vivienda mínima. Informes de la Construcción 2018, 70, 241 .

AMA Style

F. Daumal, M. Monzon, B. López-Mesa. La necesidad de conciliar la normativa de habitabilidad con la rehabilitación acústica de la vivienda mínima. Informes de la Construcción. 2018; 70 (549):241.

Chicago/Turabian Style

F. Daumal; M. Monzon; B. López-Mesa. 2018. "La necesidad de conciliar la normativa de habitabilidad con la rehabilitación acústica de la vivienda mínima." Informes de la Construcción 70, no. 549: 241.

Journal article
Published: 01 August 2017 in Energy and Buildings
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ACS Style

Monzón Marta; López-Mesa Belinda. Simplified model to determine the energy demand of existing buildings. Case study of social housing in Zaragoza, Spain. Energy and Buildings 2017, 149, 483 -493.

AMA Style

Monzón Marta, López-Mesa Belinda. Simplified model to determine the energy demand of existing buildings. Case study of social housing in Zaragoza, Spain. Energy and Buildings. 2017; 149 ():483-493.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Monzón Marta; López-Mesa Belinda. 2017. "Simplified model to determine the energy demand of existing buildings. Case study of social housing in Zaragoza, Spain." Energy and Buildings 149, no. : 483-493.

Journal article
Published: 16 May 2017 in Advances in Building Energy Research
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There is an important mismatch, or gap, between the predicted and actual measurements of the impacts that are produced, mainly during the use phase of buildings. In this study, the authors estimated the weight of the different explanatory variables used to define the model for predicting the impacts in the evaluation of the dependent variables considered: ‘CO2 equivalent emissions’ and ‘primary energy consumption’. The study explores the extent to which the intervention of high- or low-energy users (depending on their purchasing power) influences the impacts of the use phase linked to the envelope, ‘user interaction’ being considered as a variable that modifies the impact predicted by the model. The results obtained show that, without taking the user into account, climate zone is the variable with the greatest influence, since it accounts for over 80% of the variation in heating consumption in the use phase. However, on analysing the influence of the user in zones with a continental climate, the results varied with respect to the predicted value, from 5% in the case of low-energy users up to more than 53% when they are very high-energy users

ACS Style

Patricia Huedo; María Belinda López Mesa; Elena Mulet. Analysis of the influence of different variables on the impacts related with the envelope of buildings for residential use, with estimation of the interaction of the user. Advances in Building Energy Research 2017, 12, 289 -313.

AMA Style

Patricia Huedo, María Belinda López Mesa, Elena Mulet. Analysis of the influence of different variables on the impacts related with the envelope of buildings for residential use, with estimation of the interaction of the user. Advances in Building Energy Research. 2017; 12 (2):289-313.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Patricia Huedo; María Belinda López Mesa; Elena Mulet. 2017. "Analysis of the influence of different variables on the impacts related with the envelope of buildings for residential use, with estimation of the interaction of the user." Advances in Building Energy Research 12, no. 2: 289-313.

Book chapter
Published: 18 March 2017 in Sustainable Development and Renovation in Architecture, Urbanism and Engineering
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Nowadays cities include degraded, or even vulnerable, areas that need public efforts to be made to reintegrate them into the city. These areas contain dwellings that are now longer attractive for the market, and a selective depopulation phenomenon occurs that can expose their inhabitants to more than probable social exclusion. In addition, residential buildings accumulate physical degradation, like high energy consumption, lack of accessibility or exterior noise. Some of these areas are social housing estates built during Spain´s postwar period, which are currently embedded in cities, but are often not properly integrated into them. Public economic investment should focus on the most disadvantaged buildings. Therefore, collecting data about diagnosing the building sector is a priority for Public Authorities [1]. This communication conducts a study on existing mappable indicators for prioritizing the refurbishment of social housing estates in the Spanish city of Zaragoza and for diagnosing any possible gaps in these indicators.

ACS Style

Marta Monzón; María Belinda López Mesa. Using Mappable Indicators for Prioritizing the Refurbishment of Social Housing. A Case Study of Zaragoza (Spain). Sustainable Development and Renovation in Architecture, Urbanism and Engineering 2017, 215 -224.

AMA Style

Marta Monzón, María Belinda López Mesa. Using Mappable Indicators for Prioritizing the Refurbishment of Social Housing. A Case Study of Zaragoza (Spain). Sustainable Development and Renovation in Architecture, Urbanism and Engineering. 2017; ():215-224.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Marta Monzón; María Belinda López Mesa. 2017. "Using Mappable Indicators for Prioritizing the Refurbishment of Social Housing. A Case Study of Zaragoza (Spain)." Sustainable Development and Renovation in Architecture, Urbanism and Engineering , no. : 215-224.

Journal article
Published: 01 February 2016 in Environmental Impact Assessment Review
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ACS Style

Patricia Huedo; Elena Mulet; María Belinda López Mesa. A model for the sustainable selection of building envelope assemblies. Environmental Impact Assessment Review 2016, 57, 63 -77.

AMA Style

Patricia Huedo, Elena Mulet, María Belinda López Mesa. A model for the sustainable selection of building envelope assemblies. Environmental Impact Assessment Review. 2016; 57 ():63-77.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Patricia Huedo; Elena Mulet; María Belinda López Mesa. 2016. "A model for the sustainable selection of building envelope assemblies." Environmental Impact Assessment Review 57, no. : 63-77.

Journal article
Published: 30 March 2015 in Informes de la Construcción
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ACS Style

María Belinda López Mesa; F. Kurtz; M. Monzón. Obsolescencia de la envolvente térmica y acústica de la vivienda social de la postguerra española en áreas urbanas vulnerables. El caso de Zaragoza. Informes de la Construcción 2015, 67, m021 .

AMA Style

María Belinda López Mesa, F. Kurtz, M. Monzón. Obsolescencia de la envolvente térmica y acústica de la vivienda social de la postguerra española en áreas urbanas vulnerables. El caso de Zaragoza. Informes de la Construcción. 2015; 67 (Extra-1):m021.

Chicago/Turabian Style

María Belinda López Mesa; F. Kurtz; M. Monzón. 2015. "Obsolescencia de la envolvente térmica y acústica de la vivienda social de la postguerra española en áreas urbanas vulnerables. El caso de Zaragoza." Informes de la Construcción 67, no. Extra-1: m021.

Journal article
Published: 28 January 2013 in Informes de la Construcción
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ACS Style

P. Huedo; B. López-Mesa; María Belinda López Mesa. Revisión de herramientas de asistencia en la selección de soluciones constructivas sostenibles de edificación. Informes de la Construcción 2013, 65, 77 -88.

AMA Style

P. Huedo, B. López-Mesa, María Belinda López Mesa. Revisión de herramientas de asistencia en la selección de soluciones constructivas sostenibles de edificación. Informes de la Construcción. 2013; 65 (529):77-88.

Chicago/Turabian Style

P. Huedo; B. López-Mesa; María Belinda López Mesa. 2013. "Revisión de herramientas de asistencia en la selección de soluciones constructivas sostenibles de edificación." Informes de la Construcción 65, no. 529: 77-88.

Journal article
Published: 31 May 2012 in Informes de la Construcción
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ACS Style

María José Ruá; María Belinda López Mesa. Certificación energética de edificios en España y sus implicaciones económicas. Informes de la Construcción 2012, 64, 307 -318.

AMA Style

María José Ruá, María Belinda López Mesa. Certificación energética de edificios en España y sus implicaciones económicas. Informes de la Construcción. 2012; 64 (527):307-318.

Chicago/Turabian Style

María José Ruá; María Belinda López Mesa. 2012. "Certificación energética de edificios en España y sus implicaciones económicas." Informes de la Construcción 64, no. 527: 307-318.

Original articles
Published: 01 April 2012 in Journal of Engineering Design
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This work analyses the influence of several design methods on the degree of creativity of the design outcome. A design experiment has been carried out in which the participants were divided into four teams of three members, and each team was asked to work applying different design methods. The selected methods were Brainstorming, Functional Analysis, and SCAMPER method. The ‘degree of creativity’ of each design outcome is assessed by means of a questionnaire offered to a number of experts and by means of three different metrics: the metric of Moss, the metric of Sarkar and Chakrabarti, and the evaluation of innovative potential. The three metrics share the property of measuring the creativity as a combination of the degree of novelty and the degree of usefulness. The results show that Brainstorming provides more creative outcomes than when no method is applied, while this is not proved for SCAMPER and Functional Analysis.

ACS Style

Vicente Chulvi; Elena Mulet; Amaresh Chakrabarti; María Belinda López Mesa; Mª Carmen González-Cruz. Comparison of the degree of creativity in the design outcomes using different design methods. Journal of Engineering Design 2012, 23, 241 -269.

AMA Style

Vicente Chulvi, Elena Mulet, Amaresh Chakrabarti, María Belinda López Mesa, Mª Carmen González-Cruz. Comparison of the degree of creativity in the design outcomes using different design methods. Journal of Engineering Design. 2012; 23 (4):241-269.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Vicente Chulvi; Elena Mulet; Amaresh Chakrabarti; María Belinda López Mesa; Mª Carmen González-Cruz. 2012. "Comparison of the degree of creativity in the design outcomes using different design methods." Journal of Engineering Design 23, no. 4: 241-269.

Journal article
Published: 13 July 2010 in Research in Engineering Design
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Design methods have been studied by researchers for decades. Academia considers their impact on industry to be insufficient. The objective of this research is to understand the use and impact of design methods in the context of a specific company, Volvo Car Corporation (VCC), by describing the behaviour of engineers in relation to methods, to assist in the future development of design methods and tools. We mainly concentrate on concept selection methods because of their relevance in this company. The data presented is the result of qualitative research carried out during 4 years at VCC, where the authors were located as researchers. The research shows that many methods are employed besides those with an academic name, that some in-company methods used contain improvements to methods researched by academia, that some modifications to academic methods lead to unreliable results, and that there is a lack of objectivity in method modification. For these reasons, the authors suggest further research on understanding the principles of successful and unreliable modification of concept selection methods.

ACS Style

Belinda López-Mesa; Nicklas Bylund. A study of the use of concept selection methods from inside a company. Research in Engineering Design 2010, 22, 7 -27.

AMA Style

Belinda López-Mesa, Nicklas Bylund. A study of the use of concept selection methods from inside a company. Research in Engineering Design. 2010; 22 (1):7-27.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Belinda López-Mesa; Nicklas Bylund. 2010. "A study of the use of concept selection methods from inside a company." Research in Engineering Design 22, no. 1: 7-27.

Original articles
Published: 29 June 2009 in Journal of Engineering Design
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Studying the effects of idea-finding design methods experimentally can provide some light into their degree of usability. An experiment was carried out to study the effects that different stimuli proposed in idea-finding methods have on the design process and outcomes of four design teams, and to compare these effects with those produced by the problem-solving characteristic of the team members. Protocol analysis and outcome-based analysis were carried out. The results of the analysis show that stimuli can have a greater effect on the design activity than the influence of the designers’ problem-solving styles in the conditions of the experiment. Stimulus with SCAMPER questions favours refinement of solutions, by using a solution as a frame and the questions as sub-frames. Stimulus with images (related in shape and function with the designed object, and displayed in intervals of time) leads teams to be in a continuous flux of generation of partial solutions.

ACS Style

Belinda López-Mesa; Elena Mulet; Rosario Vidal; Graham Thompson. Effects of additional stimuli on idea-finding in design teams. Journal of Engineering Design 2009, 22, 31 -54.

AMA Style

Belinda López-Mesa, Elena Mulet, Rosario Vidal, Graham Thompson. Effects of additional stimuli on idea-finding in design teams. Journal of Engineering Design. 2009; 22 (1):31-54.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Belinda López-Mesa; Elena Mulet; Rosario Vidal; Graham Thompson. 2009. "Effects of additional stimuli on idea-finding in design teams." Journal of Engineering Design 22, no. 1: 31-54.

Journal article
Published: 30 April 2009 in Building and Environment
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In this paper, the environmental impacts of two types of slab systems are studied. The first type, a concrete-based one-way spanning slab, is the most common solution in residential buildings in Spain. The second type, a hollow core slab floor, is increasingly becoming more used in buildings, but is not being broadly used in residential buildings as yet. The study is undertaken through the Life Cycle Analysis methodology, applying the EPS 2000 method. The assessment shows that the environmental impact of a building structure with precast concrete floors is 12.2% lower than that with in situ cast floors for the defined functional unit. © 2008 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved

ACS Style

María Belinda López Mesa; Ángel Pitarch; Ana Tomás; Teresa Gallego. Comparison of environmental impacts of building structures with in situ cast floors and with precast concrete floors. Building and Environment 2009, 44, 699 -712.

AMA Style

María Belinda López Mesa, Ángel Pitarch, Ana Tomás, Teresa Gallego. Comparison of environmental impacts of building structures with in situ cast floors and with precast concrete floors. Building and Environment. 2009; 44 (4):699-712.

Chicago/Turabian Style

María Belinda López Mesa; Ángel Pitarch; Ana Tomás; Teresa Gallego. 2009. "Comparison of environmental impacts of building structures with in situ cast floors and with precast concrete floors." Building and Environment 44, no. 4: 699-712.