Assessment of effective usage of daylighting strategies in selected university libraries

Abstract

The use of daylighting has traditionally been a desirable building feature and a hallmark of good design. In educational facilities, daylighting has frequently been acknowledged as a practical source of energy savings and visual comfort. Efficient use of daylighting in library buildings has a positive impact on the wellbeing and productivity of users. However, the effectiveness of daylighting strategies requires a balance between visual comfort, energy savings, and the preservation of library collections. This paper employs qualitative method through desktop reviews for the international case studies and physical observation for assessing the selected Nigerian case studies. The Hebei University of Science and Technology Library, University of Birmingham's Library, Hezekiah Oluwasanmi Library (Obafemi Awolowo University), Kenneth Dike Library (University of Ibadan) were purposively selected to examine daylighting strategies used in the selected university library buildings and assess how effective these strategies are. The case studies were assessed in line with 5 daylighting strategies namely; building orientation, building form, window design and placement, shading devices and skylight on a scale of 1-5 where 1 is very bad usage and 5 is very good usage. The study revealed that building orientation in each case was rated "very good", building form was effectively employed in all four case studies, the window placement of all case studies was rated between very good and good and the use of shading devices and skylight was used in 3 of the case studies. To achieve proper or effective daylight in the design of university libraries, architects and other stakeholders should consider building orientation, building form, window design and placement, shading devices and skylights.