BcChart

A Tool for Assessing Bioclimatic Design Potential in Early Building Design Stages

About BcChart

As bioclimatic design becomes increasingly important in creating energy-efficient buildings, the demand for comprehensive and user-friendly analysis tools continues to grow. BcChart is designed to meet this need by providing in-depth bioclimatic potential analysis based on EnergyPlus Weather files. It supports researchers and building designers in optimizing building performance by aligning design strategies with local environmental conditions.

What sets BcChart apart is its ability to directly incorporate solar radiation data, offering a more accurate assessment of passive solar heating potential, ventilation potential, thermal mass effects, and evaporative cooling. This makes BcChart a reliable and insightful tool for sustainable building design.

BcChart has been adopted by institutions worldwide, reflecting its global relevance in bioclimatic design and research. Some of the universities and institutions using the tool include:

  • Tianjin University, China
  • Curtin University, Perth, Australia
  • University of Coimbra, Portugal
  • Federal University of Santa Catarina, Brazil
  • Metropolitan Autonomous University Mexico City, Mexico
  • University of Guadalajara, Mexico
  • Shiv Nadar University, India
  • National Institute of Technology Hamirpur, India
  • The Institute of Environment, Habitat and Energy (INAHE-CONICET), Argentina

Download

BcChart runs in macro-enabled MS Excel. It consists of four consecutive spreadsheets that guide the user from input data to the interpretation of results.

BcChart tool is distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives license.

For any questions, please contact luka.pajek@fgg.uni-lj.si.

BcChart version 3.0 (5 MB in size)

Download BcChart v3.0
How to cite this tool:
Pajek, L., Košir, M. (2025). BcChart: A tool for assessing bioclimatic design potential in early building design stages (Version 3.0). University of Ljubljana, Faculty of Civil and Geodetic Engineering. https://kske.fgg.uni-lj.si/en/bcchart/