These are the steps that Energy Resources Group, Inc. (ERG) recommends as the ideal sequence for energy optimizing of your building(s). Depending on your site and urgency, many of these steps may be omitted or condensed. ERG provides services, consulting, or other assistance for all steps laid out below.
1. Set Scope and Financial Parameters
Scope: Decide on what goals you are trying to reach. The scope may be limited to a specific project (lighting or boiler replacement), limited by location (a certain building, buildings, or campus), or it may be defining parameters for the discovery process. Are we seeking Net Zero, Zero Ready, Optimizing Energy Efficiency, or a more limited energy investment?
Financial Criteria: These are used to evaluate potential projects. How does your organization make financial decisions? These criteria can take many different forms. You could decide to invest in efficiency if it provides higher yields than other investments, look for positive net present values over a specific time frame, invest in efficiency when it is less than an 8-year simple payback or other established time frame. In all cases, it is recommended that you include life-cycle costs for equipment maintenance and replacement.
Capital: The second important question is capital. Do you have capital or lending already available, or would you like the energy efficiency to pay for itself with PACE or an Energy Services Agreement (ESA)? Under PACE and ESAs no capital is required.
Note that most Energy optimization projects can be funded by third parties and generate savings that are greater than the cost of the up-front capital, so lack of capital is not a reason to slow down energy optimization programs. ESAs can reduce the need for up-front capital to zero. Let ERG know if you would like more information on these funding options.
Roles and Internal Incentives: Although it can be minimal, all energy optimization projects take some effort on the part of internal staff. Clearly assigning roles and responsibilities for moving the project forward is critical (find and empower your energy champion). Since Energy Optimization will reduce operating costs, ERG recommends finding appropriate incentives for your staff. Overburdened facilities staff can slow down both studies and implementation.
2. Collect Information
Benchmarking: an energy usage analysis will reveal how your buildings compare to the Energy Use Intensity (EUI) of similar buildings. This is an examination of your utility bills along with other information on your building. It helps prioritize buildings and estimate the magnitude of the savings opportunities.
Equipment Schedules, Drawings, Trends: Critical to a smooth energy study is good information on the current energy-using systems in the building. Poor information at this point can cause slow-downs and increase costs.
Walkthrough: Energy professionals will walk through the building with facilities staff to get an understanding of current facility operations, including hours, any operational problems staff are aware of, and to assess the remaining life of critical equipment. Identifying savings opportunities begins.
3. Prioritize Buildings, Studies, and Known Projects
Energy Master Plan Initiation: The Energy Master Plan (EMP) is a living document that views your energy use from 30,000 feet and 50+ years in the future. You may not have the EMP fully fleshed out at this point, but early priorities will become clear based on building EUIs, an understanding of which studies are appropriate for which buildings, and where the various pieces of equipment are in their life cycles.
Initial Application for Utility Incentives: Some utilities require an application prior to the initiation of the building study to enter the incentive program.
4. Initiate Studies
ERG may recommend a combined suite of studies depending on the building. Combining studies (listed below) can reduce costs and will maximize potential savings.
Retro-Commissioning (RCx): RCx studies are recommended for buildings that have Building Automation Systems (BAS) that have not been recommissioned in the last three years. These buildings are usually 100,000+ ft2. The RCx is a systematic review of the building’s control systems that operate the building’s primary energy-using equipment: the HVAC systems. Retro-Commissioning identifies improvements to building controls and other low-cost measures. RCx measures typically have paybacks of less than 18 months. Studies have shown that Retro-Commissioning provides, on average, a 16% whole-building energy savings with an 11-month payback[1]. ERG recommends pairing a data analytics tool with the RCx study to increase savings. Utility incentives are available.
ASHRAE Level 2 Audit: This audit is recommended as a stand-alone if a building does not have a BAS or has recently completed an RCx. It also dovetails well with a concurrent RCx study, as both require a similar base-knowledge of building equipment. The ASHRAE Level 2 Audit requires a slightly broader scope of research but generates many worthwhile recommendations beyond the scope of the RCx. These measures will have financial returns less than that of the RCx, but they are still excellent investments. This study can include equipment life-cycle analyses and evaluations of renewable energy installations. Utility incentives are available.
Building Loads Analysis: When building equipment is close to the end of its life-cycle and needs to be replaced, the building loads analysis will determine if the existing equipment is oversized, which it often is. This reduces un-needed capital expenditure at replacement and increases the accuracy of the savings analysis of the Level 2 audit and the RCx.
ASHRAE 62.1 Ventilation Re-assessment: One of the highest costs of conditioning a building is the overuse of outdoor air and delivery of more supply air than is needed to meet cooling loads. If an RCx is performed, revalidation of the building ventilation requirements to meet current standards often reveals additional savings.
5. Implementation Planning
Presentation and prioritization: The investment opportunities that meet the economic parameters selected by the client are presented. The estimated costs of each measure revealed by the audit and RCx are compared to projected savings, giving expected returns on investment for each recommendation. After review with the client, the team develops a prioritized implementation schedule for the approved measures.
Financing: If the project is not already working on an ESA or other financing arrangement, the planning process also lays out options and opportunities for securing third party financing, if needed, to assure the economic benefits arrive sooner rather than later.
6. Implementation
Design and Build: Some measures will require additional engineering design or further studies prior to implementation.
Management assistance: Facilities departments are often already operating at capacity. ERG recommends a realistic assessment of existing in-house capacity, which often means that additional in-house incentives, resources, or outside project management assistance will be needed. Budgeting for these additional costs will make the project more cost-effective overall because savings are achieved more quickly.
Commissioning: New systems need to be fully commissioned by the Energy Professional to make sure they have been installed to specifications that generate the full energy savings projected.
Training: New equipment and controls systems may require new procedures. Full training of facilities staff ensures that the upgraded equipment will be run optimally, and that staff understand best practices for dealing with faults and adjusting the system.
7. Utility Incentives
Utility Application: After implementation, final applications for utility incentives and rebates will be made by the Energy Professional. The incentive check goes to the party that has made the investment, either the building owner or the financial partner, if there is an ESA or other funder.
8. Measurement and Verification
Comparisons with projections: Six to eighteen months after implementation is complete, measurement and verification (M&V) of achieved savings should be validated by the Energy Professional.
Publicity: Positive press is good any time, but the best time for it is after the M&V has shown the extent of the benefit you’ve received. Figures on reduced CO2 emissions, reduced energy usage and monetary savings are available from your Energy Professional.
Reap the benefits: Enjoy reduced energy costs. ERG recommends continuing to track the savings accumulating from the energy efficiency efforts for both internal and external reporting. Recording a cumulative balance of savings can build an internal Green Energy Savings Fund to create a ‘virtuous spiral’ bolstering future green energy efforts.
9. Monitoring
First year: At least one year of close monitoring of the performance of the improvements helps ensure that the transition to new operational patterns has been made, and that any installation-related hiccups are fully resolved.
Monitoring-Based Commissioning: For RCx projects that did not use data analytics at the start of the project, ERG recommends engaging an ongoing data analytics service with robust fault detection and diagnostics tools to assist facilities staff in pro-active building maintenance and to ensure that energy savings are maintained well into the future. Analytics tools have been shown to both reduce maintenance costs and increase energy savings. This is an ongoing service contract that keeps your building in tune.
10. Policies and Master Planning
Energy Investment Policy: If you didn’t have an energy investment policy already set in Step 1, this is a good time to refine or develop that policy, to ensure that future investments are in line with your energy goals. The policy should clearly define energy goals, set financial parameters, and give guidance to staff at the points where energy investments are most likely to be made: replacement of equipment, and remodels. ERG encourages placing a monetary value on carbon savings when setting financial parameters.
Energy Master Plan: Not all beneficial energy investments will be advisable at the time of the first study. Reaching your energy goals is more of a program than a single project or set of projects. An Energy Master Plan will outline the expected costs and savings from suggested initiatives and when they are likely to occur – based on equipment life cycles – sometimes this may be many years in the future. This plan will ensure that you anticipate future equipment retirement with the time necessary for optimal decision-making, system integration, cost reduction, and resilience.
11. Bonus: Rinse, Repeat, and Enjoy
Then loop! Revisit step 1 to update the investment criteria and take on the next priorities identified on the roadmap of the Energy Master Plan. Energy optimization requires careful attention and planning but the results speak for themselves.
[1] Evan Mills Ph.D., Building Commissioning A Golden Opportunity for Reducing Energy Costs and Greenhouse Gas Emissions (Berkeley, CA: Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory 2009), p.1
