Enscape Impact is a building performance analysis component integrated into Enscape. It allows architects and designers to conduct real-time energy performance assessments during early stages of design, assisting in making informed decisions that enhance sustainability and efficiency. Enscape Impact integrates seamlessly with existing Enscape workflows, allowing users to conduct real-time energy performance assessments directly within the design environment. This integration ensures that sustainability considerations are embedded into the design process from the outset, enhancing both efficiency and environmental performance without disrupting established workflows.

Enscape Impact can be accessed from within the Enscape Viewport User Interface (UI) toolbar.

The first time you click on the Impact button and open the sidebar, you will be prompted to head to the settings tab in order to start the analysis. You will have to fill in the necessary information there before the analysis starts.

Under the settings tab, the first field is Location. This is a mandatory field. If you CAD project is geolocated, that location will show up here automatically. However, if there is no information, you can simply type in the location in the search bar and select your desired location.

The second mandatory field is the Building Type. There are a few standard options to choose from depending in which category your building stands.

The third mandatory field is the Build Year of the building. Here, you have to choose a date when the building was constucted.

The fourth field asks you for the Last Renovation date of the building. This field is not mandatory.

The Impact Analysis Dashboard gives you the analysis based on your project design and input. It is important to make sure the project is set to its True North. The solar impact will be calculated based on the true orientation of the building and not the sun settings saved in Enscape. The following two images compare varying results of the same model where one is located in Boston and the other in Los Angeles.

Peak Loads refer to the highest levels of energy consumption in a building. Typically occurring during periods of maximum demand. It is essentially a sum of heating energy, cooling energy, internal gains and solar gains. It helps determine the capacity needed for systems like HVAC (Heating, Ventilation, and Air Conditioning) to ensure they can handle these peak demands efficiently.

Total Carbon Emission reflects the carbon dioxide emission resulting from various building activities, particularly related to energy consumption. High CO2 levels contribute to climate change and are a key focus in sustainability efforts. 

Energy Use Intensity quantifies a building’s energy consumption per unit area (e.g. per square meter). It helps assess a building’s efficiency and compare it to industry benchmarks. A lower EUI indicates better energy efficiency.

Energy End Use refers to the specific purposes or applications for which energy is consumed within a building. This information helps identify opportunities for energy savings through more efficient technologies or behaviors.

Impact also provides you with the option to visualize your building analysis in your project model. To enable this, you simply have to go the settings tab.  Under Visualization, toggle False Color on. This will transform your Enscape view mode to white and will apply colors to your model reflecting the color scales on the left side bar. 

Once False Color is active, you will be able to choose between four visualization modes:

Peak Loads, Heating Energy, Cooling Energy and Solar Gains. The quick comparison above represents these visual modes with their color scales. All closed spaces are calculated and complete rooms are visualized through use of transparency applied on your complete project model.

Impact runs on the IES Apache technology. The weather data used for building location is extracted from Ashrae Weather Data Center. If you want to learn more, check out the Enscape Impact Video Tutorial.