ISO 15927-4-2005 PDF

Full title and description

Hygrothermal performance of buildings — Calculation and presentation of climatic data — Part 4: Hourly data for assessing the annual energy use for heating and cooling. This part of ISO 15927 specifies a method for constructing a reference year of hourly meteorological data suitable for assessing the mean annual energy for heating and cooling in buildings and for presenting those reference years for use in building energy simulation and assessment.

Abstract

ISO 15927-4:2005 defines procedures to select and assemble hourly meteorological data into a reference year representative of average conditions for evaluating annual heating and cooling energy use. It clarifies limitations (not intended for constructing extreme or semi‑extreme years) and excludes requirements for meteorological instrumentation and observation methods.

General information

• Status: Published (International Standard, confirmed).
• Publication date: 2005-07 (Edition 1, 2005).
• Publisher: International Organization for Standardization (ISO).
• ICS / categories: 07.060; 91.120.10.
• Edition / version: 1 (2005).
• Number of pages: 5 (ISO published edition).

Scope

The standard covers methods for constructing a single-year (reference year) sequence of hourly weather parameters appropriate for assessing average annual energy use for heating and cooling of buildings. It specifies sources of meteorological data, procedures for selecting representative months and assembling them into a reference year, and the presentation format for reference-year data. The procedures are explicitly not intended for producing extreme or semi‑extreme weather years (e.g., for moisture damage studies or analyses of unusually cold years). Meteorological instruments and observation techniques are outside the scope.

Key topics and requirements

• Definitions and symbols relevant to climatic data for building energy assessment.
• Identification and recommended sources of meteorological input data (long‑term records and station selection).
• Procedure for selection of representative months and construction of a reference year from hourly data.
• Presentation and formatting of reference-year hourly data for use in simulation tools.
• Limitations: not suitable for constructing extreme or semi‑extreme years; instrumentation and observation methods not specified.
• Normative references and brief bibliography for related calculation methods and data sources.

Typical use and users

Used by building energy modelers, HVAC and building services engineers, weather data compilers, researchers in building physics and energy performance, developers of building simulation software, standards bodies preparing weather files and reference datasets, and energy assessors preparing annual heating/cooling estimates. The standard is applied when a representative hourly weather file is required for long‑term average energy calculations rather than for extreme-event or short-term contingency analyses.

Related standards

ISO 15927 is a multi‑part series; related parts include ISO 15927‑1 (monthly means of single meteorological elements), ISO 15927‑5 (data and methods for design heat load for space heating), and ISO 15927‑6 (accumulated temperature differences / degree‑days). Work to revise or replace ISO 15927‑4 has been registered as an approved work item (AWI) to produce a second edition, indicating ongoing maintenance of the series.

Keywords

hygrothermal performance, climatic data, reference year, hourly data, weather file, building simulation, heating energy, cooling energy, meteorological data, ISO 15927.

FAQ

Q: What is this standard?

A: ISO 15927‑4:2005 is Part 4 of the ISO 15927 series; it specifies a method to construct and present an hourly reference year of meteorological data for assessing average annual heating and cooling energy use in buildings.

Q: What does it cover?

A: It covers selection of meteorological data sources, methods to choose representative months, assembling those months into a reference year of hourly values, and formats for presenting the reference years. It does not cover meteorological instrumentation or methods for creating extreme weather years.

Q: Who typically uses it?

A: Building energy modelers, HVAC designers, simulation software developers, researchers, energy assessors, and organizations producing standard weather files and reference datasets for long‑term energy assessments.

Q: Is it current or superseded?

A: The 2005 edition was reviewed and confirmed as current by ISO; however, an Approved Work Item (AWI) has been registered to prepare a second edition to replace ISO 15927‑4:2005, so a revision is under development. Users should check for a published revision before assuming the 2005 edition is the most recent in the future.

Q: Is it part of a series?

A: Yes — ISO 15927 is a multipart series covering calculation and presentation of climatic data for building hygrothermal performance; relevant parts include at least Parts 1, 4, 5 and 6 (monthly means, hourly reference years, design heating data, and degree‑days).

Q: What are the key keywords?

A: Keywords include: hygrothermal performance, reference year, hourly climatic data, weather file, building energy simulation, heating load, cooling load, meteorological data.