Building Evaluations
SU•PER•B strongly supports the abitious goals of the US, the state of California, and other organizations (AIA, ASHRAE, USGBC, etc) to substantially improve the energy efficiency of our building stock.
Computer simulations show that substantial energy savings are achievalbe cost-effectively. Yet the savings actually achieved in the buildings, once constructed and occupied, can fall fas short of the predicted savings.
It has been estimated that:
- In a new building, from 10% to 30% or more of the energy savings predicted during design is wasted because of inefficiencies in its design and construction.
- In an existing building, from 10% to 30% of its potential energy efficiency is wasted from inefficient operation and maintenance.
It is important to evaluate the performance of buildings in order to identify the key factors that cause the energy waste, the lack of comfort and the reduced building performance. Such knowledge can lead to better guidelines, standards and education for improving building design, construction, operations.
Improving the sustainability of US Federal buildings
Our Executive Director has been a member of a 5-person team that has been researching the performance of actual Federal buildings in order to provide educational feedback to the staff of the Public Building Service of the US General Services Administratiion (GSA) in an effort to improve GSA standards for building comfort, energy efficiency, water efficiency, and sustainability.
Key objectives of this work include:
- Conducting research to gain an understanding of how building performance compares to the design intent, to compliance with GSA’s PBS P-100 building performance standard, and to the attainment of the LEED certification by the US Green Building Council
- Reporting the results to assist in educating GSA staff and consultants about opportunities for improving the performance of future GSA buildings.
Four federal courthouses have been evaluated in the last 2 years:
- Eugene, OR
- Denver, CO
- Little Rock, AR
- Jacksonville FL
These evaluations are part of an ongoing evaluation program of occupied buildings being funded by HQ GSA, and managed by the National Institute Of Building Sciences ("NIBS"), a 501c3 non-profit organization formed by an act of congress and located in Washington, DC. These building evaluations indicate that there is a great need to improve the training of building facility managers in the effective operation of large complex buildings in order to improve thermal and visual comfort while also saving energy and water, and reducing the buildings’ carbon footprints. SU•PER•B is encouraging GSA and other federal agencies to adopt advanced e-learning education techniques to improve the operation of buildings via better delivery of training.
Evaluation of Actual Energy Savings Achieved in California Buildings
Recent staff experience outside SU•PER•B included managing two large projects in California funded by the the California Public Utility Commission (CPUC) to evaluate the level of energy-efficiency obtained from utility incentive programs. The projects include energy measurement and verification of energy measures in over 100 large commercial buildings, 35 community colleges, and over 200 supermarkets, convenience stores, and restaurants with refrigeration systems. The evaluations involved extensive on-site performance monitoring of building operational features, energy use, and demand. These evaluations served the public good since they were ultimately intended to improve the effectiveness of the energy efficiency programs of investor-owned electric and gas utilities in California. Combined project cost was about US$ 3.8. Evaluations weere by ADM Associates for the CPUC.
