Byonghu Sohn

This study presents a comprehensive case of green remodeling applied to a local fire station in Seoul, South Korea. The project aimed to improve energy performance through an integrated upgrade of passive systems (exterior insulation, high-performance windows, and airtightness) and active systems (electric heat pumps, energy recovery ventilation, and rooftop photovoltaic systems), while maintaining uninterrupted emergency operations. A detailed analysis of annual energy use before and after the remodeling shows a 44% reduction in total energy consumption, significantly exceeding the initial reduction target of 20%. While electricity use increased modestly during winter due to the electrification of heating systems, gas consumption dropped sharply by 63%, indicating a shift in energy source and improved efficiency. The building’s airtightness also improved significantly, with a reduction in the air change rate. The project further addressed unique challenges associated with continuously operated public facilities, such as insulating the fire apparatus garage and executing phased construction to avoid operational disruption. This study contributes valuable insights into green remodeling strategies for mission-critical public buildings, emphasizing the importance of integrating technical upgrades with operational constraints to achieve verified energy performance improvements.

The primary approach to green remodeling for windows in existing buildings involves the removal of old windows and the installation of high-performance replacements. However, this process typically requires an extended construction period and incurs additional costs related to demolition and waste management. To address these challenges, a green remodeling double-skin window technology has been developed, which involves adding new windows to the existing ones without removal. This study quantitatively analyzes the energy performance of the green remodeling double-skin window system and applies the findings to energy simulations for actual commercial facilities, providing foundational data for carbon emission reduction in the building sector. The key findings are as follows: To assess the annual energy consumption reduction achieved by applying the green remodeling double-skin window system, public commercial facilities built before 2000 were selected as case studies. To verify the simulation results against actual carbon emissions in existing commercial facilities, additional energy consumption from equipment, which is not reflected in ECO2, was incorporated based on statistical data. The findings showed that the actual carbon emissions were approximately 14% higher than the standard emissions for commercial facilities between 2017 and 2019, indicating the simulation results for the existing building were reasonably accurate. Furthermore, the application of the green remodeling window system is predicted to reduce carbon emissions by approximately 32% in the target building.