Potential for energy savings in retrofitting of an office building in São Paulo / Brazil

The aim of this study is to identify the most effective strategies  to  improve  energy  performance  of  an  existing  typical  office  building  in  the  city  of  São Paulo/Brazil,  by  simulating  the  results  of  various  retrofit  interventions  in  EnergyPlus.  Appropriate lighting  levels  were  determined  and  the  potential  of  natural light was simulated. Various air conditioning systems were simulated, comparing the performance of VRF (variable refrigerant flow) split systems with and  the  use  of  economizer.  The  building  envelope  was  treated  to  reduce  solar  heat  gain,  specially through  the  glazing  facades.  The  work  dealt  with  different arrangements of external louvers, to achieve the  ideal  combination  of  horizontal  and  vertical  shading devices. The conclusion shows an enormous potential  for  improvement  on  the  performance  of  existing buildings in one of the biggest cities on the planet.