Welcome to the Tools section of the Whole Building Design Guide. These pages offer information on a variety of desktop or Web-based tools used in the building industry.
| Tool | Version | |
|---|---|---|
| Athena Impact Estimator for Buildings | 5.4.01 | Software tool designed to evaluate whole buildings and assemblies based on internationally recognized life cycle assessment (LCA) methodology |
| Building Assessment Tool | 1.9.1 | The BAT provides a means to collect, validate, and update the information needed for auditors to conduct Facility Energy Audits and Facility Condition Assessments, as well Resilience aspects in a database structure. |
| Building for Environmental and Economic Sustainability | 2.1 | BEES allows designers, builders, product manufacturers, and consumers to select cost-effective, environmentally-preferable building products based on consensus standards and designed to be practical, flexible, and transparent. |
| Building Life-Cycle Cost | 5.3-21 | The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) developed the Building Life Cycle Cost (BLCC) Programs to provide computational support for the analysis of capital investments in buildings. |
| COMcheck™ | 4.1.5.5 | Software allowing building design professional to determine whether projects meet the requirements of the IECC and ASHRAE Standard 90.1, as well as several state-specific codes. |
| Corrosion Prevention and Control Checklists (coming soon) | 2.0 | This page is under construction. Thank you for your patience as we work to bring this page back online. |
| Corrosion Prevention and Control Checklists (coming soon) | This page is under construction. Thank you for your patience as we work to bring this page back online. | |
| Corrosion Toolbox (coming soon) | This page is under construction. Thank you for your patience as we work to bring this page back online. | |
| Corrosion Toolbox (coming soon) | This page is under construction. Thank you for your patience as we work to bring this page back online. | |
| Energy Escalation Rate Calculator | 2024 Dataset | This tool computes an average annual escalation rate for a specified time period, which can be used as an escalation rate for contract payments in energy savings performance contracts and utility energy services contracts. |
| ENERGY STAR Portfolio Manager® | Online | EPA's online energy management and tracking tool enables organizations to measure and track the energy and water performance of any building over time. |
| EnergyPlus™ | 22.2.0 | EnergyPlus™ is a whole building energy simulation program that engineers, architects, and researchers use to model both energy consumption and water use in buildings. |
| Facility Energy Decision System | 8.1 | The Facility Energy Decision System (FEDS) is an easy-to-use building energy efficiency software tool that quickly and objectively identifies energy efficiency improvements to maximize life-cycle savings. |
| Hazus | 6.1 | Hazus is a nationally applicable standardized methodology that contains models for estimating potential losses from earthquakes, floods, hurricanes, and tsunamis. |
| Hourly Analysis Program | 6 | HAP is a powerful tool for designing systems and sizing system components as well as modeling annual energy performance and energy costs. |
| ISO Corrosivity Category Estimation Tool (ICCET) | -- | |
| Life-Cycle Energy Performance Framework for Cities | 1.0 | The Framework provides policymakers a tool to look across building codes, incentive and utility programs, and post-occupancy/operations policies, to identify potential policies and triggers that can be deployed to impact building energy use. |
| MPI Decision Tree | Tools to simplify creating customized coatings specifications for both architectural painting and restoration/repainting projects. | |
| REScheck™ | 4.7.2.1 | Software allowing building design professional to determine whether residential projects meet the requirements of the IECC, as well as several state-specific codes. |
| RoofNav | 4.1.2 | RoofNav is an online tool providing access to the most up-to-date FM Approved roofing products and assemblies. |
| Sound Insulation Estimator | 1.0 | Sound Insulation Estimator is a tool to aid in the selection of sound insulating materials and the approximate material and labor costs associated with installation. |
| SpecsIntact | 5.4 | An automated system for preparing standardized facility construction specifications used worldwide by USACE, NAVFAC, and AFCEC. |
| Structural Load Data Reference Tools for DoD UFC 3-301-01 (coming soon) | Reference tools providing site-specific structural wind, snow, frost penetration, and earthquake loading data for DoD locations. Portions of this page are under construction. Thank you for your patience as we work to bring this page back online. | |
| Sustainable Facilities Tool | Online | The Sustainable Facilities Tool (SFTool.gov) is an interactive website that shows users how to build, buy, and operate green. |
| TRACE® 3D Plus | 6.10. 289 | TRACE® 3D Plus allows the latest HVAC systems and controls to be modeled quickly, precisely and with the intricacies of today's many building applications. |
| Window Glazing Analysis Response and Design | 6.2 | Developed for GSA by Applied Research Associates (ARA), WINGARD calculates and graphically displays the response of window systems subjected to blast loads. |
