Abstract & Overview
A building envelope is the physical interface between the conditioned i.e. inside and unconditioned i.e. outside environment of a building. As India has a tropical climate, heating or cooling is required throughout the year to make indoor environment comfortable. By designing envelope according to the climate, making suitable material choices, fenestration and shading devices sizes, the load on the mechanical heating and cooling can be reduced. This paper reviews the various components of building envelope and its effect on annual heating and cooling loads of the office buildings in various climatic zones of India. It also recommends the various design considerations to be preferred while designing envelope of office buildings.