Case Study: ECOstudioXV delivers passive cooling for Macrolaboratory with IESVE from Integrated Environmental Solutions

ECOstudioXV - Customer Case Study

ECOstudioXV commissioned Integrated Environmental Solutions (IES) to help assess how a 100% passive laboratory building in Xochitepec, Morelos, Mexico, could stay comfortable in a very hot, humid climate without HVAC. The challenge was to apply lessons from historic regional buildings to a modern lab and target an internal temperature around 28°C, despite external temperatures reaching 36°C with 68% relative humidity, using IESVE for the analysis.

Integrated Environmental Solutions used IESVE—especially ModelIT, MacroFlo, ApacheSim and SunCast—to test around 60–70 simulations of passive strategies including building form and orientation, solar shading, natural and cross ventilation, thermal mass, lighting and materials. The result was a robust environmental strategy that achieved passive internal temperatures of 29°C, just 1°C above the original target, and gave ECOstudioXV confidence to pursue even lower temperatures on the next project, with a goal of 26°C.

ECOstudioXV

Xavier Valladares

Director