Carol C. Menassa

My research focuses on understanding and modeling the interconnections between the human and the built environment. In this context, my research group focuses on two main research thrusts. In the first, we study the impact of human behaviors and actions on the built environment. For example, we use modeling and simulation to understand the impact of occupants on energy use in buildings and develop decision frameworks to sustainably retrofit existing buildings. In the second thrust, we focus on understanding the effect of the built environment on human comfort, well-being and accessibility issues. For example, we use non-intrusive methods such as low cost thermal cameras to provide personalized thermal comfort settings in single and multi-occupancy space. We also develop personalized localization and path planning methods to assist people with physical disabilities in navigating unknown building environments. My research group has expertise in energy simulation, complex adaptive systems modeling, high-level architecture and informatics, computer vision and robotics.

• Associate Editor, Automation in Construction (Elsevier), Special Issue of 33rd International Symposium on Automation and Robotics in Construction, 2017-2018.
• Assistant Specialty Editor, Journal of Construction Engineering and Management, American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE). January 2014-present
• Associate Editor, Journal of Computing in Civil Engineering, American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE). June 2013-present
• Vice Chair, ASCE Construction Research Council, September 2018-present
• Chair, ASCE Technical Council on Computing and Information Technology (TCCIT) Education Committee, September 2017- 2018.

• Walter L. Huber Civil Engineering Research Prize, 2022, American Society of Civil Engineering (ASCE).
• CEE Department CEEFA Award, 2018, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of Michigan.
• Alfred Noble Prize, 2017, American Society of Civil Engineers. Awarded for the paper entitled “Modeling the Effect of Building Stakeholder Interactions on Value Perception of Sustainable Retrofits,” published in Journal of Computing in Civil Engineering, July 2015.
• Daniel W. Halpin Award for Scholarship in Construction, 2017, American Society of Civil Engineers.
• Outstanding Early Career Researcher (1-10 years) Award, 2017, Fiatech CETI (Celebration of Engineering and Technology Innovation).
• Best Paper Award, 2016, 33rd International Symposium on Automation and Robotics in Construction (ISARC 2016). Awarded for paper entitled: “Semi-Autonomous Mobile Robots for Ambient Data Collection in Indoor Environments”.
• CEE Department Excellence Award, 2016, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of Michigan.
• Outstanding Reviewer, 2015, Journal of Computing in Civil Engineering, ASCE.
• Best Paper Award, 2015, American Society of Civil Engineers’ (ASCE) Journal of Management in Engineering. Awarded for paper entitled: “Determining the Optimal Premium for ADR Implementation Insurance in Construction Dispute Resolution”.
• Distinguished Professor Award, 2015, Construction Industry Institute (CII). This award recognizes faculty who integrate professional practice into their teaching by incorporating published CII research findings in the courses they teach.
• National Science Foundation (NSF) CAREER Award, 2014 – 2019, Awarded from the Division of Chemical, Bioengineering, Environmental, and Transport Systems (CBET) in the Engineering Directorate for the proposal “Career: Multi-Level Occupancy Intervention, Simulation and Education for Energy Reduction in Existing Buildings”.
• Best Paper Award, 2013, ASCE International Workshop on Computing in Civil Engineering. Awarded for paper entitled: “Influence of Social Sub-networks on Energy Conservation from Occupancy Interventions in a Typical US Commercial Building”.
• Distinguished Young Alumni Award, 2013, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, American University of Beirut (AUB). This award honors young alumni for their overall career accomplishments and contributions to the profession, their community, and service to AUB.
• Outstanding Reviewer, 2010, Journal of Construction Engineering and Management, ASCE.
• Excellence in Civil Engineering Education (ExCEEd) Fellowship, 2010, ASCE. One of 24 U.S. Civil Engineering Faculty selected a teaching fellowship and workshop.

• Li, D., Menassa, C. and Kamat, V. (2018). “Non-Intrusive Interpretation of Human Thermal Comfort through Analysis of Facial Infrared Thermography.” Energy and Buildings, Elsevier. 176, October 2018, Pages 246-261.
• Mantha, B., Menassa, C., and Kamat, V. (2018). “Robotic Data Collection and Simulation for Evaluation of Building Retrofit Performance.” Automation in Construction, Elsevier. August 2018, 88-102.
• Li, D., Menassa, C. and Kamat, V. (2017). “Personalized Human Comfort in Indoor Building Environments under Diverse Conditioning Modes.” Building and Environment, Elsevier. Volume 126, December 2017, 304-317.
• Thomas, A., Menassa, C. and Kamat, V. (2018). “A Systems Simulation Framework to Realize Net-Zero Building Energy Retrofits.” Sustainable Cities and Society, Elsevier. Volume 41, August 2018, Pages 405-420.
• Li, D., Menassa, C. and Kamat, V. (2017). “Personalized Human Comfort in Indoor Building Environments under Diverse Conditioning Modes.” Building and Environment, Elsevier. Volume 126, December 2017, Pages 304-317.
• Thomas, A., Menassa, C. and Kamat, V. (2017). “Lightweight and Adaptive Building Simulation (LABS) Framework for Integrated Building Energy and Thermal Comfort Analysis.” Building Simulation – An International Journal, Springer. Volume 10, December 2017, Pages 1023-1044.
• Lundeen, K., Kamat, V. and Menassa, C. (2017). “Scene Understanding for Adaptive Manipulation in Robotized Construction Work.” Automation in Construction, Elsevier. 82 (October 2017), 16-30.
• Mantha, B., Menassa, C., and Kamat, V. (2017). “Task Allocation and Route Planning for Robotic Service Networks in Indoor Building Environments.” Journal of Computing in Civil Engineering, ASCE. 31 (5), 04017038, 1-16.
• Li, D., and Menassa, C. and Karatas, A.* (2017). “Energy Use Behaviors in Buildings: Towards an Integrated Conceptual Framework.” Energy Research and Social Science, Elsevier. 23 (January 2017), 97-112.
• Thomas, A., Menassa, C. and Kamat, V. (2016). “A System Dynamics Simulation Framework to Study the Effect of Material Performance on a Building’s Life Cycle Energy Requirements.” Journal of Computing in Civil Engineering, ASCE. 30 (6), 04016034, 1-15. (Editor’s Choice)
• Karatas, A.*, Stoiko, A.* and Menassa, C. (2016). “A Framework for Selecting Occupancy Focused Energy Interventions in Buildings.” Building Research and Information, Special Issue: Building governance and climate change: regulation and related policies, Taylor and Francis. 44 (5-6), 535-551.
• Mantha, B., Menassa, C., and Kamat V. (2016). “A Review of Data Types and Data Collection Methods for Building Energy Monitoring and Performance Simulation”, Advances in Building Energy Research, Taylor and Francis. 10 (2), 263-293.
• Azar, E. and Menassa, C. (2016). “Optimizing the Performance of Energy-Intensive Commercial Buildings: An Occupancy-Focused Data Collection and Analysis Approach.” Journal of Computing in Civil Engineering, American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE). 30 (5), C4015002: 1–11.
• Azar, E. and Menassa, C. (2015). “Evaluating the Impact of Extreme Energy Use Behavior on Occupancy Interventions in Commercial Buildings.” Energy and Buildings, Elsevier. 97 (June 2015), 205-218.