Heritage and Sustainable Development | 2026
Authors: Ascanio-Villabona J.G.; Vivas-Buitrago D.; Palomino-Prieto O.; Tarazona-Romero B.E.; Duran-Sarmiento M.A.; Jaimes-Quintero K.T.
DOI: 10.37868/hsd.v8i1.1648
Journal: Heritage and Sustainable Development
Year: 2026
Publisher: Research and Development Academy
Document Type: Article
Open Access: All Open Access; Gold Open Access; Green Open Access
Cited by: 0
The influence of window-to-wall ratio (WWR) on energy consumption for lighting and visual comfort in a social housing building in Bucaramanga, Colombia, was investigated. Using parametric simulations in Design Builder, WWR between 0% and 100% were modeled in 10% increments, while structural and climatic conditions were kept constant. The results show that WWR values below 30% do not meet the minimum illuminance levels requires by Colombian regulations, while values above 70% lead to over-illumination and glare. The optimal range is between 40% and 60%, ensuring that regulations are met in most rooms. Monthly lighting energy consumption is reduced by up to 65% (approximately 650 kWh per year), and lighting uniformity is optimized. These results confirm that WWR regulation is an effective, reproducible, and cost-effective passive design strategy for increasing energy efficiency and living quality in social housing in warm climates. © The Author 2026. Published by ARDA. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/) that allows others to share and adapt the material for any purpose (even commercially), in any medium with an acknowledgement of the work's authorship and initial publication in this journal.
Daylighting; Energy consumption in housing; Energy simulation; Glazing; Prefabricated housing; Visual comfort; Window-to-wall ratio (WWR)