Energy efficiency package for rooftop unit replacement: laboratory testing and validation of energy savings
Not Available
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Engineering topics
Regnier, Cindy
Publications and source records attributed to Regnier, Cindy.
Challenges and Lessons Learned from an Analysis of Three Zero Energy Buildings
Zero energy buildings, or zero energy ready buildings, which are designed and operated by public or private commercial property owners can play an important role in reducing carbon emissions. This paper discusses lessons learned and key takeaways from an in-depth analysis of three zero energy buildings that took an integrated design and construction approach to significantly reduce energy use. Two of these projects are new construction and one is a retrofit to zero energy. Findings are based on project literature review, data analysis, and in-depth interviews with the building design teams and staff who were involved during the design, construction, and operation of the buildings. The paper addresses value proposition and cost data in such a way that other building owners can replicate the strategies and technology solutions in response to regulatory mandates or organizational goals. It also provides details on operational improvements taken at each zero energy building to enhance energy performance and increase the potential for load flexibility, and discusses challenges and lessons gleaned from design teams and building staff. The findings serve as a reference for building owners, designers, engineers, contractors, or others interested in, or involved with, the design, construction, or use of new or existing buildings. The paper also includes recommended pathways for widespread adoption of zero energy strategies that can be applied in various locations.
ENERGY CONSERVATION, CONSUMPTION, AND UTILIZATION↗
Multi-technology building system retrofits for utility incentive programs: Savings, costs and baseline considerations
Utility incentive programs are an important channel to support the deployment of energy efficiency in buildings. To date, these programs have largely been limited to single-component strategies. However, many utilities are now motivated to identify and develop multi-component system retrofits to achieve deeper energy savings, which are essential to achieving broader energy and greenhouse gas reduction goals in the buildings sector. In this paper we present the energy savings, demand reductions, and cost-effectiveness of 16 systems retrofit packages in six utility regions in the United States. These results are being used by these utilities to inform and develop incentive programs for systems retrofits. Our analysis shows that packages with proven lighting and HVAC measures can provide 5–22% whole building annual energy savings, and 13–22% annual energy costs savings, using utility incentive program baselines (code and existing building). The packages are reasonably cost effective for replace-on-burnout but generally not for a retrofit scenario prior to end of equipment life. Demand response can increase both the energy savings and energy cost savings, further improving the cost effectiveness of these packages. We analyzed the impact of using existing building vs. code baselines for calculating savings, showing that the choice of baseline in developing utility incentive programs has a substantial impact on the attributable energy savings to a program, with significant implications for the overall viability of a program (generally savings against existing building condition are higher and improve project and program cost-effectiveness).
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Package deals for deep savings: Scaling deep retrofits in commercial buildings with integrated systems packages
Explore the source record for details and available documents.
Mathew, Paul↗
Energy Efficiency Package for Tenant Fit-Out: Laboratory Testing and Validation of Energy Savings and Indoor Environmental Quality
Approximately 40% of the total U.S. office floor space of 1.5 billion sq.m (16 billion sq.ft.) is leased space occupied by tenants. Tenant fit-out presents a key opportunity to incorporate energy efficiency within the real estate business cycle. We designed a package of energy efficiency measures tailored to the scope of a tenant fit-out. This tenant fit-out package (TFP) includes advanced lighting and heating, ventilating and air-conditioning (HVAC) controls as core measures, with ceiling fans, automated shading, and plug load controls as additional optional measures. We conducted laboratory testing of six configurations of the package to evaluate energy savings, indoor environmental quality, and identify installation, commissioning, and operational issues. Combined savings for HVAC, lighting, and plug loads ranged from 33–40%. Lighting savings ranged from 69–83%, and HVAC savings from 20–40%. The laboratory testing also revealed some minor but tractable challenges with installation and commissioning of HVAC controls. Overall, the results demonstrate that significant savings can be realized in existing office buildings by incorporating relatively low-risk, proven measures at the time of a tenant fit-out.
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Beyond Widgets: Validated Systems Energy Savings and Utility Custom Incentive Program Systems Trends
Energy efficiency upgrades to buildings to date through avenues such as utility incentive programs have been largely limited to component-based products (e.g., lamps, RTUs). While some utilities do provide ‘custom’ incentive programs with whole building and system level technical assistance, these programs require deeper levels of analysis, resulting in higher program costs. This results in custom programs being restricted to utilities with greater resources, and are typically applied mainly to large or energy-intensive facilities, leaving much of the market without cost effective access and incentives for these solutions. In addition, with increasingly stringent energy codes, cost effective component-based solutions that achieve significant savings are dwindling. Integrated building systems (e.g., integrated façade, HVAC and/or lighting solutions) can deliver higher savings (Regnier et al. 2017) that translate into large sector-wide savings if deployed at the scale of these programs. However, systems application poses a number of challenges – energy savings assessments are inherently more complex and are not easily suited to the deemed measure model, and implementation of systems can be more disruptive. This paper presents the outcomes of a project to develop validated utility incentive program packages for three specific integrated building systems, in collaboration with ComEd, a consortium of California Public Owned Utilities (CA POUs) (Northern California Power Agency(NCPA) and the Southern California Public Power Authority(SCPPA)), and Xcel Energy (CO, MN). Previous work described the potential for energy savings of these systems at the individual and market level, early test findings for the task-ambient lighting system, and described the work products to develop utility incentive programs (Regnier et al. 2016). This paper presents validated end use energy savings of all three systems showing energy savings of ~20% for automated shading combined with daylight dimming (does not include light fixture retrofit savings); 30-46% for task-ambient lighting systems combined with plug load occupancy controls, depending on technology package and office building size (no daylight dimming impacts); and ~94% in the south-façade daylit zone for workstation specific lighting systems with daylight dimming (including lighting retrofit and task tuning). Using a U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) reference building model (DOE 2018), this translates to whole building savings of 2-5% (large-medium commercial), 12-23% (large-small commercial), and 13-15% (medium-large commercial) for these systems respectively. Early findings from the utilities in deploying these systems through their incentive programs indicate that deployment methods such as direct install programs might be best suited for these integrated systems. Further, early findings from a scoping study across custom utility programs and federal retrofit programs indicate that component level retrofits are still prevalent even in these programs, pointing towards an opportunity for deeper energy savings deployment. High performance retrofit case studies demonstrate that deeper energy savings is possible through integrated approaches. Market stakeholder interviews indicate however that there is generally a low level of awareness of the potential for energy savings of these three integrated systems.
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Beyond Widgets -- Systems Incentive Programs for Utilities
Utility incentive programs remain one of the most significant means of deploying commercialized, but underutilized building technologies to scale. However, these programs have been largely limited to component-based products (e.g., lamps, RTUs). While some utilities do provide ‘custom’ incentive programs with whole building and system level technical assistance, these programs require deeper levels of analysis, resulting in higher program costs. This results in custom programs being restricted to utilities with greater resources, and are typically applied mainly to large or energy-intensive facilities, leaving much of the market without cost effective access and incentives for these solutions. In addition, with increasingly stringent energy codes, cost effective component-based solutions that achieve significant savings are dwindling. Building systems (e.g., integrated façade, HVAC and/or lighting solutions) can deliver higher savings that translate into large sector-wide savings if deployed at the scale of these programs. However, systems application poses a number of challenges – baseline energy use must be defined and measured; the metrics for energy and performance must be defined and tested against; in addition, system savings must be validated under well understood conditions. This paper presents a sample of findings of a project to develop validated utility incentive program packages for three specific integrated building systems, in collaboration with Xcel Energy (CO, MN), ComEd, and a consortium of California Public Owned Utilities (CA POUs) (Northern California Power Agency(NCPA) and the Southern California Public Power Authority(SCPPA)). Furthermore, these program packages consist of system specifications, system performance, M&V protocols, streamlined assessment methods, market assessment and implementation guidance.
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Controlling Energy Performance on the Big Stage - The New York Times Company
The Times partnered with the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) as part of DOE’s Commercial Building Partnerships (CBP) Program to develop a post-occupancy evaluation (POE) of three EEMs that were implemented during the construction of The Times building between 2004-2006. With aggressive goals to reduce energy use and carbon emissions at a national level, one strategy of the US Department of Energy is looking to exemplary buildings that have already invested in new approaches to achieving the energy performance goals that are now needed at scale. The Times building incorporated a number of innovative technologies, systems and processes that make their project a model for widespread replication in new and existing buildings. The measured results from the post occupancy evaluation study, the tools and processes developed, and continuous improvements in the performance and cost of the systems studied suggest that these savings are scalable and replicable in a wide range of commercial buildings nationwide.
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A New Campus Built on Efficiency
The University of California (UC), Merced partnered with the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) to develop and implement solutions to reduce energy consumption by as part of DOE’s Commercial Buildings Partnerships (CBP) Program. Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL) provided technical expertise in support of this DOE program. This case study reports on the process and outcome of this project including the achieved savings from design improvements for the campus. The intent of the project was to retrofit the Science & Engineering (S&E) building and the central plant at UC Merced to achieve up to 30% energy reduction. The anticipated savings from these retrofits represented about 17% of whole-campus energy use. If achieved, the savings contribution from the CBP project would have brought overall campus performance to 56% of the 1999 UC/CSU benchmark performance for their portfolio of buildings. However, the final design that moved forward as part of the CBP program only included the retrofit measures for the S&E building.
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Achieving a Net Zero Energy Retrofit – in a humid, temperate climate – lessons from the University of Hawai’i at Mānoa
The University of Hawai’i at Mānoa (UHM) partnered with the US Department of Energy (DOE) and the Hawai`i Clean Energy Initiative to develop and implement solutions to retrofit exiting buildings to reduce energy consumption by at least 30% as part of DOE’s Commercial Building Partnerships (CBP) Program1. Kuykendall Hall, located on the UHM campus in Honolulu, was the focus of a CBP analysis and design collaboration among the University of Hawai’i, their consultants, and Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL). Kuykendall Hall consists of two 1960s-era wings – a four-story wing containing classrooms, and a seven-story tower containing offices – with a total floor area of approximately 76,000 square feet (ft²).
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The business of high performance: The USC Darla Moore School of Business
The University of South Carolina (USC), a public university in Columbia, South Carolina, partnered with the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) to develop and implement solutions to build a new, low-energy educational building. The new Darla Moore School of Business (DMSB) will consume at least 50% less energy than requirements set by Energy Standard 90.1-2007 of the American Society of Heating, Refrigerating, and Air-Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE), the American National Standards Institute (ANSI), and the Illuminating Engineering Society of North America (IESNA) as part of DOE's Commerical Building Partnerships (CBP) program. 4 Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL) provided technical expertise in support of this DOE program.
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Oregon Sustainability Center: Weighing Approaches to Net Zero
The Oregon Sustainability Center (OSC) was to represent a unique public/private partnership between the city of Portland, Oregon, state government, higher education, non-profit organizations, and the business community. A unique group of stakeholders partnered with the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) technical expert team (TET) to collaboratively identify, analyze, and evaluate solutions to enable the OSC to become a high-performance sustainability landmark in downtown Portland. The goal was to build a new, low-energy mixed-use urban high-rise that consumes at least 50 percent less energy than requirements set by Energy Standard 90.1-2007 of the American Society of Heating, Refrigerating, and Air-Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE), the American National Standards Institute (ANSI), and the Illuminating Engineering Society of America (IESNA) as part of DOE’s Commercial Building Partnerships (CBP) program.1 In addition, the building design was to incorporate renewable energy sources that would account for the remaining energy consumption, resulting in a net zero building. The challenge for the CBP DOE technical team was to evaluate factors of risk and components of resiliency in the current net zero energy design and analyze that design to see if the same high performance could be achieved by alternative measures at lower costs. In addition, the team was to use a “lens of scalability” to assess whether or not the strategies could be applied to more projects. However, a key component of the required project funding did not pass, and therefore this innovative building design was discontinued while it was in the design development stage.
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Lights, Camera, Action ... and Cooling - The case for centralized low carbon energy at Fox Studios
Fox Studios partnered with the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) to develop and implement solutions to retrofit two production stages and one of its central cooling plants, to reduce energy consumption by at least 30% as part of DOE’s Commercial Building Partnerships (CBP) Program. Although this case study reports expected savings arising from proposed design recommendations for a unique building type and the unusual load characteristics associated with its use, the EEMs implemented for the central plant are applicable to any large campus, office and higher education facility. The intent is that by making the energy-efficiency measures (EEMs) set that were assessed as cost-effective from this project applicable to a larger number of buildings on the campus Fox Studios will be able to implement an integrated campus-wide energy strategy for the long term. The significant challenges for this project in the design phase included identifying how to assess and analyze multiple system types, develop a coherent strategy for assessment and analysis, implement the measurement and verification activities to collect the appropriate data (in terms of capturing ‘normal’ operating characteristics and granularity) and determine the best approach to providing cooling to the site buildings based on the nature of existing systems and the expected improvement in energy performance of the central cooling plant. The analytical framework adopted provides a blueprint for similar projects at other large commercial building campuses.
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Achieving a Net Zero Energy Retrofit - In a humid, temperate climate: Lessons from the University of Hawai'i at Manoa
The University of Hawaii at Manoa (UHM) partnered with the US Department of Energy (DOE) to develop and implement solutions to retrofit exiting buildings to reduce energy consumption by at least 30% as part of DOE’s Commercial Building Partnerships (CBP) Program.1 Kuykendall Hall, located on the UHM campus in Honolulu, was the focus of a CBP analysis and design collaboration among the University of Hawai’i, their consultants, and Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL). Kuykendall Hall consists of two 1960s-era wings – a four-story wing containing classrooms, and a seven-story tower containing offices – with a total floor area of approximately 76,000 square feet (ft2). The retrofit design, which uses local prevailing winds to aid ventilation and cooling and incorporates envelope and lighting elements that reduce the need for cooling, was initially on track to use about 50% less energy than the current building, exceeding the CBP’s 30% savings goal. With the addition of building-mounted solar electric panels, the retrofitted building is projected to achieve net-zero annual energy use. Achieving net-zero energy addressed an emerging challenge to the university – how to lower energy usage and reduce dependence on imported fossil fuel in the face of already-high energy prices that are forecast to double by 2040. Not only will the retrofit dramatically reduce Kuykendall Hall’s annual energy costs, but the project lays the groundwork for new campus policies and processes and low-energy design approaches and is building a campus knowledge base on low-energy practices. This project is a model of integrated design and building delivery that will be replicated in future projects on the campus.
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Commercial Buildings Partnerships - Overview of Higher education projects
The Commercial Building Partnership (CBP), a public/private, cost-shared program sponsored by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), paired selected commercial building owners and operators with representatives of DOE, its national laboratories, and private-sector technical experts. These teams explored energy-saving measures across building systems – including some considered too costly or technologically challenging – and used advanced energy modeling to achieve peak whole-building performance. Modeling results were then included in new construction or retrofit designs to achieve significant energy reductions. CBP design goals aimed to achieve 50 percent energy savings compared to ANSI/ASHRAE/IES Standard 90.1-2004 for new construction, while retrofits are designed to consume at least 30 percent less energy than either Standard 90.1-2004 or current consumption. After construction and commissioning of the project, laboratory staff continued to work with partners to collect and analyze data for verification of the actual energy reduction. CBP projects represent diverse building types in commercial real estate, including lodging, grocery, retail, higher education, office, and warehouse/storage facilities. Partners also commit to replicating low-energy technologies and strategies from their CBP projects throughout their building portfolios. As a result of CBP projects, five sector overviews (Lodging, Food Sales, General Merchandise, Higher Education, Offices) were created to capture successful strategies and recommended energy efficiency measures that could broadly be applied across these sectors. These overviews are supplemented with individual case studies providing specific details on the decision criteria, modeling results, and lessons learned on specific projects. Sector overviews and CBP case studies will also be updated to reflect verified data and replication strategies as they become available.
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A New Campus Built on Efficiency - UC Merced
The University of California (UC), Merced partnered with the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) to develop and implement solutions to retrofit two existing buildings to reduce energy consumption by at least 30% as part of DOE’s Commercial Buildings Partnerships (CBP) Program.1 Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL) provided technical expertise in support of this DOE program. This case study reports expected savings from proposed design recommendations for the campus, which are subject to change in final construction. It is estimated that UC Merced will achieve the 30% reduction in the two participating buildings, the central plant and the Science & Engineering (S&E) building. The savings from retrofits of those buildings represent about 17% of whole-campus energy use. In addition, the energy saved by the CBP retrofits supports a broader goal, UC Merced’s “Triple Zero” commitment to zero net energy, zero landfill waste, and zero net greenhouse gas emissions by 2020. Although the campus has already made progress toward that goal with its efficient building construction and operation, opportunities for deeper savings remain, as the CBP project demonstrates.
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Guide to Setting Thermal Comfort Criteria and Minimizing Energy Use in Delivering Thermal Comfort
Historically thermal comfort in buildings has been controlled by simple dry bulb temperature settings. As we move into more sophisticated low energy building systems that make use of alternate systems such as natural ventilation, mixed mode system and radiant thermal conditioning strategies, a more complete understanding of human comfort is needed for both design and control. This guide will support building designers, owners, operators and other stakeholders in defining quantifiable thermal comfort parameters?these can be used to support design, energy analysis and the evaluation of the thermal comfort benefits of design strategies. This guide also contains information that building owners and operators will find helpful for understanding the core concepts of thermal comfort. Whether for one building, or for a portfolio of buildings, this guide will also assist owners and designers in how to identify the mechanisms of thermal comfort and space conditioning strategies most important for their building and climate, and provide guidance towards low energy design options and operations that can successfully address thermal comfort. An example of low energy design options for thermal comfort is presented in some detail for cooling, while the fundamentals to follow a similar approach for heating are presented.
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MIT - Mighty Steps toward Energy Sustainability
Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) partnered with the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) to develop and implement solutions to retrofit existing buildings to reduce energy consumption by at least 30% as part of DOE’s Commercial Building Partnerships (CBP) Program.1 Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL) provided technical expertise in support of this DOE program. MIT is one of the U.S.’s foremost higher education institutions, occupying a campus that is nearly 100 years old, with a building floor area totaling more than 12 million square feet. The CBP project focused on improving the energy performance of two campus buildings, the Ray and Maria Stata Center (RMSC) and the Building W91 (BW91) data center. A key goal of the project was to identify energy saving measures that could be applied to other buildings both within MIT’s portfolio and at other higher education institutions. The CBP retrofits at MIT are projected to reduce energy consumption by approximately 48%, including a reduction of around 72% in RMSC lighting energy and a reduction of approximately 55% in RMSC server room HVAC energy. The energy efficiency measure (EEM) package proposed for the BW91 data center is expected to reduce heating, ventilation, and air-conditioning (HVAC) energy use by 30% to 50%, depending on the final air intake temperature that is established for the server racks. The RMSC, an iconic building designed by Frank Gehry, houses the Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory, the Laboratory for Information and Decision Systems, and the Department of Linguistics and Philosophy.
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