KnoWind: a database-oriented approach to determine the pedestrian level wind environment around buildings

High buildings generally have an adverse effect on the wind conditions in their immediate vicinity, sometimes giving rise to dangerous wind conditions. So far, the whole issue is hardly considered in the design stage since there are no easy tools available for use by designers. To fill this gap, a user-friendly database-oriented computer programme has been developed, called KnoWind, with which the pedestrian level wind environment around buildings can be determined easily, provided that the windclimate of the country considered is available. Complex building configurations must be schematised to their main dimensions. The roughness of the environment of the building under consideration is taken into account, but not adjacent buildings. With remarkable accuracy, the programme can be used to predict the potential wind nuisance and wind danger around buildings in simple and even complex situations, provided that the building under consideration is higher than the surrounding buildings. The user-friendly set-up, the simple input and the fast calculations make the programme suitable as a tool for laymen in the field of wind engineering and for quick scans of potential wind problems.