Influence of Architectural Design Variables on Cost of Energy Consumption In Office Buildings in Minna

Abstract

The prime objective of the study is to investigate the influence of architectural design variables on the cost of energy consumption in office buildings in Minna. The study is restricted to office buildings within Minna metropolis. Data was collected through field survey and computation from architectural plans. A random sample of 30 buildings form the basis of the study. Descriptive analysis was used to compute the mean, maximum, minimum and modes for all the variables. Partial correlation coefficient of the dependent and the independent variables explored the strength of association between the variables and detected collinearity among the variables. Regression analysis determined the strength of the relationship between dependent and independent variables. Multiple regression analysis using the ‘stepwise’ regression procedure determined the extent to which the design parameters acting together explained the variation of the dependent variable. It was established that design variables like floor areas, shape, height, perimeter, orientation, shading and extent of glazing have significant effect on cost of energy consumption in office buildings. The conclusion derived from the study is that the designer during the design stage will have control of about 62.6% of energy consumption cost of the building. Therefore, it is recommended that designers should control these parameters from inception in order to produce energy conscious buildings with minimal running costs.