Failing a daylight test doesn’t have to mean a full redesign. When council raises compliance concerns and you’re under pressure on cost, yield, or timelines, Makao’s daylight modelling identifies the exact issues and the most efficient path to compliance. Scalpel, not sledgehammer.
Request a Fee Proposal →Send us your plans. We'll confirm scope and fee within one business day. Timeframes are confirmed at quote; fast-track is available for urgent projects.
Daylight modelling is a 3D simulation of how natural light enters and distributes through a building. Using Radiance-based software and your site's actual orientation and surrounding obstructions, we calculate daylight levels room by room — giving you quantified evidence for your assessment rather than an educated guess.
NCC Part F6 requires natural light to habitable rooms in Class 2 buildings and Class 4 parts, bedrooms and dormitories in Class 3 buildings, sleeping rooms in Class 9a and 9c buildings, and general-purpose classrooms and early childhood playrooms in Class 9b buildings. The Deemed-to-Satisfy route needs windows of at least 10% of the room's floor area, or roof lights of at least 3%. The Performance Requirement F6P1 sets an average daylight factor of at least 2%. Verification Method F6V3 calculates this for each window. Radiance modelling can support a Performance Solution against F6P1. BESS and Green Star have their own daylight metrics. A daylight model produces the specific outputs each framework requires — in a format councils, building surveyors and rating tool administrators accept.
The geometry built for a daylight model can often be reused for JV3 thermal modelling. If you engage Makao for both services, you avoid building the model twice and reduce your overall consulting cost. See our JV3 (J1V3) assessments →
A full room-by-room assessment against WELL, NCC Part F6, BESS IEQ, or Green Star Light Quality criteria. Identifies compliant and non-compliant areas with clear reference to the relevant standard.
Where rooms are marginal or failing, we flag specific interventions — window repositioning, glazing specification changes, or layout adjustments — before the report is finalised. Fixes identified early cost far less than permit conditions.
Daylight modelling gets flagged at different stages for different reasons. These are the situations we see most often.
NCC Part F6 compliance — the most common trigger for Class 2 and 3 buildings. We model the building, identify which rooms are failing, and flag design interventions before the report is finalised. Timeframes confirmed at quote; fast-track available for urgent projects.
BESS daylight access credits — the built-in BESS calculator only works reliably for single-aspect rooms. Multi-aspect layouts, corner apartments, and rooms with neighbouring obstructions need full modelling to demonstrate compliance accurately.
Green Star Light Quality — uses Spatial Daylight Autonomy, a dynamic annual metric that can't be demonstrated with simple calculations. We run annual simulations for your site and produce outputs formatted for your Green Star submission.
ResCODE non-compliance argument — we compare your proposed design directly against the ResCode standard envelope. If your non-complying design performs no worse, the modelling gives your planning argument the technical legs it needs at VCAT.
Glazing that isn't performing — bigger windows don't always mean better daylight. Orientation, external shading, and inter-reflectance all affect the result. We identify whether the issue is window size, placement, glass specification, or something structural before you start redesigning. Glazing changes also affect Section J →
Tight sites with neighbouring obstructions — sky view factor matters more than raw window area on constrained sites. We model the actual obstruction profile of surrounding buildings, not just the site boundary, so you get a realistic picture of what's achievable before you lock the design.
Balcony depth versus daylight — shading and daylight performance are often in direct tension. We quantify exactly how much a proposed overhang or balcony depth reduces daylight levels, so you can find the configuration that works for both thermal comfort and NCC compliance.
"The layout changed in DD and nobody flagged the daylight implications. Building permit is four weeks away."
Late-stage design changes — it happens. If a floor plan revision has introduced rooms that are now marginal on daylight, we can fast-track the modelling and flag what's fixable before it becomes a condition of approval or, worse, a reason for refusal.
Architectural drawings, site location, project brief, and any correspondence from the relevant authority. We'll confirm scope and turnaround within one business day.
Using Radiance-based software, we model your building geometry, orientation and neighbouring buildings for your specific site.
The model tests daylight performance across all nominated rooms. Where results are marginal, we flag specific design interventions before the report is finalised.
A clear, referenced daylight modelling report suitable for submission to council, your certifier, or a VCAT hearing. Written in plain English, with annotated floor plan outputs.
The terms are often used interchangeably. A daylight assessment typically refers to a simpler calculation-based approach; daylight modelling uses 3D simulation software. For complex multi-unit developments, council and certifiers increasingly require full modelling rather than simplified calculations.
NCC Part F6 applies to Class 2, 3, 4 (residential parts), 9a, 9b, and 9c buildings. Class 5–8 commercial buildings have no mandatory daylight requirement under the NCC, though Green Star, WELL or LEED targets may require it.
Timeframes confirmed at quote; fast-track available for urgent projects. If you have a hard deadline, tell us upfront.
Yes — the building geometry developed for daylight modelling can often be extended for JV3 thermal compliance modelling, reducing your overall consulting cost and turnaround time when both services are engaged together.
We use Radiance-based simulation tools, which are widely accepted by councils, building surveyors and rating tool administrators across Australia.
Architectural drawings (PDF is fine), your site address, and any council or certifier correspondence flagging the daylight issue. We handle everything else from there. Once started, we may ask for additional details e.g. materials schedules and internal finishes.
Yes. Daylight modelling reports can be prepared as expert evidence for VCAT hearings or to support a planning appeal. We'll structure the report appropriately for the forum and can liaise with your planning consultant on the technical framing.
