This paper presents a case study on the performance based design of a HVAC system and controller of a museum. A famous museum in The Netherlands has reported possible damage to important preserved wallpaper fragments. The paper provides an evaluation of the current indoor climate by measurements, showing that the indoor climate performance does not satisfy the requirements for the preservation of old paper. To solve this problem we developed an integrated heat air and moisture (HAM) model consisting of models for respectively: the indoor climate, the HVAC system and controller and a showcase. The presented models are validated by a comparison of simulation and measurement results. The integrated model is used for the evaluation of a new HVAC controller design and the use of a showcase. It is concluded that it is not possible to satisfy the indoor climate within the recommended limits, exclusively by the use of a new control strategy. Furthermore in order to meet the recommendations, the wallpaper fragments should be placed in a showcase and a similar control strategy as presented in the paper, has to be implemented in order to limit the room air temperatare change. (c) 2007 Elsevier B.V. All tights reserved.