Prof.

OBrien

Assignment 1

ENVE4105

Using a graphical layout program of your choice (e.g., PowerPoint, Publisher, InDesign, Visio), create an infographic for
visualizing building performance data. Try to answer one specific question about building performance. The topic is
open; some ideas to get your mind on-track include:

How has the energy breakdown between residential, commercial, and industrial buildings changed over the
decades?
Have buildings become more energy efficient? Does this matter considering they are getting bigger (on a per
person basis)?
How have the portions of heating and cooling changed over time vs. lighting?
How much solar array area would be required to supply each Canadian with enough electricity to offset their
housing energy?
What technologies are used for windows in Canadian homes? For heating and cooling?

The infographic must fit on 8.5 by 11 inch paper and include 0.5 inch margins on all sides; use portrait orientation. It
should be in colour, but readable if printed in grayscale. It must contain the following elements:
1. The subject name/title in 36-pt (1 tall), Arial font.
2. Your full name in 12-pt font in the bottom-right corner.
3. Obey copyright/plagiarism rules. If you reference any other works (including images), discretely include them on
the infographic in 8-pt font.
4. No more than 150 words total, excluding the above three items.
5. Diagrams, graphs, images, and/or photographs.
Using a major database for building performance, e.g., SHEU
(http://oee.nrcan.gc.ca/publications/statistics/sheu07/index.cfm?attr=0 ), NRCan Energy Use Handbook
(http://oee.nrcan.gc.ca/publications/statistics/handbook2010/handbook2013.pdf), Canadian Housing Database (see
cuLearn), Building Energy End-Use Analysis and Data Centre (http://www.cbeedac.com/search/index.php), US Building
Energy Data Book (http://buildingsdatabook.eren.doe.gov/default.aspx) provide a useful analysis and communicate it
effectively assuming your target audience has a high school education or greater. It is very important to use the right
type of graphs. Poor choice of graphs and bias is all too common in the media.
Evaluation: submissions will be graded based on their ability to clearly communicate the topic and on technical
correctness and scientifically appropriate use of analysis and/or graphs. However, students are encouraged to be
creative, since select infographics will be posted in a display case outside the main office of the Department of Civil and
Environmental Engineering.
Tips:

See hall on Floor 3 of Mackenzie Building around the corner from the CEE office for last years assignment
submissions (different topic).
Keep it graphic-heavy; text-light (no more than 150 words)
Make it self-explanatory
Examples may help communicate complex concepts
Avoid making your infographic too visually busy
All text and figures should be clearly legible from a 1-meter viewing distance
Avoid pixelated, grainy images
Check examples on visual.ly or infographic.org for inspiration
See: http://www.visual-literacy.org/periodic_table/periodic_table.html or http://www.coolinfographics.com/

Print your infographic (grayscale is fine) and submit in class on the due date. Also submit the PDF to the designated
space on cuLearn by the due date (please use a high resolution for possible future scaling; but try to keep file size under
5 MB).