- Author
- Bukowski, R. W.
- Title
- Use of Predictive Tools and Software in a Building Regulatory Environment.
- Coporate
- National Institute of Standards and Technology, Gaithersburg, MD
- Report
- CIB 2004,
- Book or Conf
- CIB World Building Congress 2004 (CIB 2004): Building for the Future in conjunction with Indoor Air Quality, Ventilation and Energy Conservation in Buildings, 5th International Conference (IAQVEC 2004) and Multipurpose High-Rise Towers and Tall Buildings, 6th International Conference (HTB). Proceedings. CIB T5S5 Performance Evaluation Tools. May 1-7, 2004, Toronto, Canada, 1-8 p., 2004
- Keywords
- regulations | computer programs | validation | verification
- Abstract
- The ubiquitous nature of computers in modern society has resulted in the widespread development and use of software to automate previously manual procedures. Further, advancements in the technical understanding of even highly complex phenomena such as fire have been embodied in predictive tools and models that can be used in engineering analysis of the performance of materials and systems in their context of use. The ability to predict structural and fire performance has enabled performance-based building regulation now in place or being developed in many countries. The growing use of these (often proprietary) software products in regulated environments raises a number of issues that need to be addressed to avoid legal challenges and to limit liability of regulators and standards developers. These include mandatory references to proprietary software; validation, documentation, and version control of software used in design; engineering design methods as Standards of Practice; and professional qualifications of software users. The paper also addresses the design of software to identify key assumptions that represent bounding conditions on regulatory approval and to quantify uncertainties and appropriate safety factors to be applied. The purpose of this paper is to identify these issues and to present some suggestions on how they may be addressed to meet the needs of regulators.