At the U.S. Department of Energy and Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, we have developed a vision for future buildings a century from now. Established with the collective views of our forward-thinking stakeholders, the framework will help guide the evolution of the U.S. building stock.
Watch the video Explore the evolution of future buildingsOccupants
- Personalize comfort provision Portable or wearable devices integrate with central and local systems to personalize indoor environments, reducing the need for space heating and cooling while maintaining comfort and air quality.
- Learn occupant behavior and expectations Building applications exchange data and learn occupant behavior and expectations to tailor energy and resource consumption to actual needs.
- Quantify and improve health and wellbeing The aggregated health benefits are quantified via biometric data of building occupants, while preserving personal privacy
- Healthy and Productive
- Resilient and Resourceful
- Self-Learning and Monitoring
- Connected
- Adaptable

1Provide unique, automatic control points

2Increase "Quality Adjusted Life Year"

3Increase productivity by 10 times

Building Systems
- Consist of modular systems Modular systems can easily reconfigure and upgrade to accommodate various needs and adapt to function or condition changes, such as weather.
- Embrace intelligent envelopes Building envelopes embrace responsive and dynamic materials to provide more complex functions such as generating energy, collecting water, controlling light, regulating indoor temperature, or filtering air.
- Composed of programmable and interoperable components Building components generated from integrated design and manufacture process support easy interconnection, update, and extensibility.
- Healthy and Productive
- Resilient and Resourceful
- Self-Learning and Monitoring
- Connected
- Adaptable

4Embody zero GHG emission

5Interoperate among building equipment, between buildings, and with utilities

Utilities
- Integrate centralized and decentralized networks Common critical infrastructure —such as power, water, and waste—relies on a combination of centralized and decentralized networks for generation, distribution, storage, and treatment.
- Connected to transact services and resources Buildings are connected to share or trade building services and utility resources, such as energy generation and storage, demand flexibility, waste heat recovery, water purification, onsite waste treatment, and localized air-cleaning.
- Prepared for non-resource situations Taking advantage of low-tech and distributed solutions and relying on local resources, buildings can operate in low- or non-resource situations under extreme environmental conditions and during catastrophic events.
- Healthy and Productive
- Resilient and Resourceful
- Self-Learning and Monitoring
- Connected
- Adaptable

6Operate with Zero GHG emission

7Reduce peak load by 50% and transact the remainder

8Operate 100% critical functions without grid

Community
- Adapt to changing needs Multifunctional buildings accommodate the needs of changing demography (e.g., aging population) and provide services to enhance work-life balance.
- Connected by multimodal transportation network A multimodal transportation network efficiently connects buildings with reduced land use for automobile circulation and parking, leaving more space for pedestrians as well as green space that performs onsite ecological functions.
- Measure and disclose holistic performance Buildings' holistic performance, including embodied energy, impact on health, and life cycle assessment are measured, tracked, and recognized in the marketplace.
- Healthy and Productive
- Resilient and Resourceful
- Self-Learning and Monitoring
- Connected
- Adaptable

9Reconfigure functions with Zero GHG emission

10Commute with Zero GHG emission

11100% disclose total cost of ownership

Environment
- Fully harvest onsite resources Buildings fully harvest resources available onsite before utilizing infrastructure sources for heating, cooling, lighting, and electricity.
- Tied to health influencers Buildings are tied to the broader cycle of the region, including water cycles, nutrient load, manufacturing, and other factors that affect our health.
- Monitor environmental impacts Buildings constantly sense and control their outflows–such as water, heat, and air—and monitor the aggregated impact on the micro- and macro-environments.
- Healthy and Productive
- Resilient and Resourceful
- Self-Learning and Monitoring
- Connected
- Adaptable

12Maintain or improve biodiversity of building site

13Consume 80% less imported water

14100% Track consumptions and emissions
