Integrating Thermal Images with HBIM for the Sustainable Evaluation of a Historic Building: Case Study of Rowheath Pavilion, Bournville

Sustainable management of built heritage is a complex process made more difficult by the need to maintain significance and comply with any associated protections. Historic Building Information Modelling (HBIM), an information management and modelling process, has the potential to assist with this. This paper investigates how a pre-existing Historic Building Information Modelling (HBIM) model can be used to assist the energy-efficient interventions at the historic Rowheath Pavilion in Bournville, England. Two potential methods (HBIM and building energy modelling integration and HBIM and thermal image integration) are evaluated against their outputs and the available resources. Subsequently, the paper presents a case study wherein a thermal image survey was undertaken at Rowheath Pavilion and the resulting images were integrated with the pre-existing HBIM model. The apparent thermal performance of the pavilion was qualitatively evaluated. The described method was easy to apply and repeat. The integration of thermal images combined with the visualisation capabilities of HBIM resulted in the identification of energy inefficiencies and allowed the Rowheath staff to implement immediate small-scale changes to improve the sustainability of the pavilion.