Daylight for SketchUp®

Daylight & Sunlight Calculations within SketchUp®

MBS Daylight for SketchUp® is a quick, easy and cost-effective way to check design schemes. It also ensures you don’t waste a lot of time and money on impractical designs. Over the years, this software has revolutionised working practices for many hundreds of clients, and is a great introduction to the capabilities our software can offer. As climate-based daylight modelling starts to become the universal standard, a solution like this is invaluable.

It runs as a plug-in within the SketchUp® environment, one of the most popular and intuitive drafting packages available.

The software requires 3D models of the proposed development. You can then perform window calculations to determine the Vertical Sky Component (VSC) and the Annual Probable Sunlight Hours (APSH). Additionally room calculations for  Average Daylight Factor (ADF) as well as Daylight Distribution (also known as  No Sky Line) can be calculated.

The results are delivered in both textural (Excel file) and graphical format, as Waldram Diagrams and as a quick visual pass/fail/nearly ‘traffic light’ system within the SketchUp® programme itself. Any modifications or cutbacks you make to the proposed design can then be quickly analysed again.

Recommendations for light levels in new buildings and surrounding properties are provided by the Building Research Establishment (BRE) in a 2011 document by PJ Littlefair – “Site Layout Planning for Daylight and Sunlight – A Guide to Good Practice”. Many local authorities have adopted this guide, so these recommendations provide a foundation upon which planning permission is granted, or refused, in the UK.

Whilst the software has been designed to comply with the BRE guidelines, it’s also fully customisable by the end user. This means you can use it for any scenarios you might want to test, and to meet guidelines from outside the UK.