Step 1: Towards a Balanced Decision

Abstract

The starting point for any decision to be made, including optimizing an indoor climate, is knowing what the context of the decision is. Which problem am I solving? Which (part of the) collection is at risk? What will happen to the building if control strategies are implemented? Who needs to be involved? How much money will it cost?

When it is decided to optimize the indoor climate the first step is to identify what is important to the different stakeholders for the decision at hand. The process starts by specifying the most important values and by developing a list of anything that collection managers or stakeholders care about, with regards to the possible consequences that may result from the decision to be made. The decision making can be improved by translating general ambitions into a set of objectives. These objectives are ideally provided by stakeholders.

To measure the success of any decision outcome, some kind of measure or unit for each objective is defined. These are called attributes. The use of attributes allows a quantified analysis of the success of a (preservation) decision. To structure the decision making process to manage indoor climate risks, nine separate steps are introduced.

The decision making that took place during a project in which a seventeenth century Dutch historic house was made suitable for a museum function is discussed.