Computer programmers have developed a number oftools and techniques for dealing with source code,change management, and automation. Building energymodelers can benefit from applying many of these sametools and techniques to simulation input/output data andworkflows. In this paper, we will present four ideasfrom the software engineering domain that we haveapplied to our modeling work: text-based tools forworking with input/output data, version control fordistributed change management, templates forminimizing repeated content, and scripting for processautomation. We discuss these ideas in the context ofhow they can be applied today in actual building energymodeling projects.