Abstract Most of the current building simulation tools are the results of funded projects for particular research purposes. Normally, these tools are developed in one research organization and utilized by the organization's own staff rather than by external personnel. Financially and intellectually, it is definitely a huge waste that designers and engineers rarely use those tools while they have to deal with increasingly complex issues and surely need the assistance of building simulation tools in building practice. Therefore, this thesis is dedicated to bringing building simulation closer to practice. The general goal is to promote the usage of simulation tools not only by simulation experts for research purposes but also by designers and engineers in practical work. Abstract Since the well-adopted tool could only be established based on appropriate requirements analysis, attention is firstly devoted to perceiving engineer or practice demands in building design and operation activities. Building multi-criteria analysis, whole life cycle integration, interdisciplinary interaction, control-wise integration/optimization together with the influence of “Industry 4.0” in building discipline are discussed in sequence. This is not only an enumeration of emerging scenarios, but also an exploration to figure out that integrated requirement is of growing significance as buildings are becoming increasingly advanced and complex. Abstract Multi-criteria simulation analysis indicates that designers and engineers need to consider, at least, energy efficiency and initial cost simultaneously; human comfort, environmental impact, life cycle cost are also involved; however, current workflow and cooperation mechanism among different simulation tools could not sufficiently fulfill multi-criteria analysis demand in building design and operation activities. Other detailed discussions on energy and cost integrated simulation, energy and human comfort integrated simulation, control related simulations all indicate one conclusion that building practice is increasingly integrated but simulation ability is still insufficient and isolated. Therefore, related tools must be coordinated and connected from the socio-technical point of view to support building practice eventually. Abstract Recent development in multi-domain modeling language Modelica and Functional Mock-up Interface (FMI) standard has provided an efficient solution for both integration and practical utilization. The ideology of the transfer layer is introduced; open-to-public and free usable framework and associated collaborative mechanisms are proposed. Individual models and tools could be integrated together through co-simulation or model exchange under FMI standard; along with complete and accurate database, the integrated tools could be validated and documented together, then transferred to commercial partners for further improvement, marketing and sale. In such way, a collaborative framework to transfer knowledge from research to practice could be formed in order to sufficiently process integrated requirement issues; the usage of research-oriented tools could be intensified in building industrial practice. Abstract Connection, interoperability, technical standard, and workflow protocol, those general terms for cooperative simulation development are further discussed. Cooperative Modelica library development is taken as an example to illustrate associated problems and their solutions from both detailed technical and generalized socio-technical perspectives. Abstract Individual model quality is a fundamental guarantee for successful cooperative simulation system. Therefore a model comparison project is carried out for quality assurance purpose. First, a series of comparison validation tests are established with a stepwise increased level of complexity. Then, multiple participants with a diversity of simulation tools contribute simulation models and results for listed validation scenarios. During the result comparison process, the deviation is detected, the bug is fixed, the model is improved; cooperative relationship and workflow standard are formed. Abstract In the last, a multi-criteria and interdisciplinary simulation case is conducted as a demonstrated example of actual integrated requirement along with integration and practical utilization effort of simulation. This case aims to select an appropriate energy solution for a building from four alternatives. Traditional HVAC equipment, renewable energy devices, storage facilities are applied and arranged in groups under Demand Side Management strategy and dynamic control. Financial and environmental impacts are also calculated along with the traditional result of annual energy consumption. Multiple Criteria Decision Analysis (MCDA) method is applied to analyze the four alternative energy solutions with an overall consideration of energy consumption, energy production, initial cost, life-cycle cost, and CO2 emission.:Chapter 1 Introduction Chapter 2 Integrated requirements in building practice Chapter 3 Isolated and insufficient building simulation tools Chapter 4 Practice oriented tool integration and improvement Chapter 5 Cooperative development in Modelica and Annex 60 Chapter 6 Model comparison cooperation Chapter 7 Conclusion and future work

Master of Landscape Architecture / Department of Landscape Architecture and Regional and Community Planning / Eric A. Bernard / The Kansas High Plains region is a key global agricultural production center (U.S. G.S, 2009). The High Plains physiography is ideal agricultural production landscape except for the semi-arid climate. Consequently, farmers mine vast groundwater resources from the High Plains Ogallala Aquifer formations to augment precipitation for crop production. Growing global population, current policy and subsidy programs, declining aquifer levels coupled with regional climatic changes call into question both short-term and long-term resilience of this agrarian landscape and food and water security. This project proposes a means to simulate future irrigated agriculture land use and crop cover patterns in the Kansas High Plains Aquifer region based on coupled modeling results from ongoing research at Kansas State University. A Cellular Automata (CA) modeling framework is used to simulate potential land use distribution, based on coupled modeling results from groundwater, economic, and crop models. The CA approach considers existing infrastructure resources, industrial and commercial systems, existing land use patterns, and suitability modeling results for agricultural production. The results of the distribution of irrigated land produced from the CA model provide necessary variable inputs for the next temporal coupled modeling iteration. For example, the groundwater model estimates water availability in saturated thickness and depth to water. The economic model projects which crops will be grown based on water availability and commodity prices at a county scale. The crop model estimates potential yield of a crop under specific soil, climate and growing conditions which further informs the economic model providing an estimate of profit, which informs regional economic and population models. Integrating the CA model into the coupled modeling system provides a key linkage to simulate spatial patterns of irrigated land use and crop type land cover based on coupled model results. Implementing the CA model in GIS offers visualization of coupled model components and results as well as the CA model land use and land cover. The project outcome hopes to afford decision-makers, including farmers, the ability to use the actual landscape data and the developed coupled modeling framework to strategically inform decisions with long-term resiliency.