Benjamin Brannon is a professional engineer and building performance specialist concentrating in operational decarbonization of buildings design for Arup. After finishing an electrical engineering degree and a couple internships in NRELs commercial building group, he decided he wanted to focus on energy modeling, and he went to CU Boulder for a master's degree in the Building Systems Program. That led him to Arup where he has been working in various mechanical and sustainability teams in San Francisco, Sydney, and Boston (though regardless of what it says on paper, you can find him in the unofficial IBPSA-USA headquarters of Lafayette, CO).
How long have you been a member of IBPSA-USA?
I have been a member of IBPSA-USA for 10 years.
Why did you join IBPSA-USA?
I was looking for a professional group to talk through some of the nerdy details of projects that I didn't always get an opportunity to in my day to day projects.
What’s your favorite part of being a member of IBPSA-USA?
The annual conferences because they are a great way to see how other people approach similar problems in different ways during the day, and talk though it over a few beers in the evening after.
Can you describe the volunteer work you do with IBPSA-USA?
At the moment most of my time is spent between the Communications committee and the building data exchange. In the past I've worked with organizing my local chapter (SF Bay Area at the time) and helping with a handful of conferences like BS 2019.
How did you get involved with this volunteer work?
Most of my work started after coming to a few local chapter meeting and just learning that there were things that needed volunteers, and that slowly grew into more projects with IPBSA-USA!
To someone who is interested in participating in IBPSA-USA, do you have any words of encouragement?
Just find a local chapter event near you if possible and go a couple times. Even if there isn't one, most have online options these days. If you are able to, attending conferences like SimBuild next year in Denver are an even better way to see what people in similar fields are up to.
What advice would you give to someone who wants to enter the field of building performance simulation?
TURN BACK NOW! I mean... if you are still in school be sure to take advantage of potential courses and resources that are available to you (for example, a lot of the paid software is free for students). For people looking to change or shift their careers this way, if you have the opportunity in your current position to get on a project, that's the best way to learn. And of course listen in to local chapter webinars and things like that.
