Analytic hierarchy process, a multi-criteria decision support approach for the improvement of the energy efficiency of built heritage

The paper addresses the theme of multidisciplinary decision support for energy efficiency in historic buildings through two research experiences: SECHURBA - Intelligent Energy Europe, and METRICS - an Italian PON-Research and Competitiveness project, where a multidisciplinary stakeholders group used the approach. A Multi-Criteria Analysis, the Analytic Hierarchy Process (MCA-AHP), was used to streamline the decision-making process during the design of energy improvement intervention on historic buildings. The tested methodologies provide best practices on the growing need for participatory processes to make informed choices involving very different disciplines. The MCA-AHP approach proved to be adequate for a balanced and solid formulation of the decision-making process: the workflow allowed a multidisciplinary group of actors with different skills to take a shared path that was first a path of knowledge and then a decision-making path, increasing their awareness and the effectiveness of the whole procedure.