EVENTS

NEWS

EVENTS

HB 3693 and SB 12 Rules
The State Energy Conservation Office (SECO) has published rules on House Bill (HB) 3693 and Senate Bill (SB) 12 for persons who have an interest in the adoption of energy codes to have an opportunity to comment on newly published editions of the International Energy Conservation Code and the International Residential Code. The code manuals can be purchased at the International Code Council web site.

Residential Energy Code Workshops
Various locations throughout Texas
February - November 2008
The State Energy Conservation Office (SECO), in cooperation with the Energy Systems Laboratory of the Texas A & M University and the Texas Association of Builders, is funding a series of residential energy code workshops in various cities throughout the state of Texas to help disseminate the needed information about building science technology. This training is part of the education and outreach effort of SECO' s energy codes and standards program, and is based on the 2003 International Energy Conservation Code (IECC). The 77th Texas Legislature established uniform residential building and energy codes in Texas in 2001.

After more than six years providing training on the minimum energy code requirements of the IECC, SECO established the Texas Healthy Homes program (THH), as part of the Texas State Energy Plan to the U.S. Department of Energy. The THH is designed to provide education and outreach to the building community for construction practices that go beyond the residential energy code. THH provides education on building science technology for residential construction that can achieve 30 to 50 percent less energy than conventional homes. The training is oriented to a high performance house construction. The characteristics of a high performance house are: very tight construction, carefully insulated, mechanical ventilation, good indoor air quality, reduced moisture problems, high comfort levels, durable and low maintenance, low energy use, and affordable to own. The main goal of the program is to reduce construction cost, lower homeowner's energy bills, and reduce callbacks and warranty claims for builders.

The Certified Energy Manager (CEM®) Program for Professional Certification
An Association of Energy Engineers web site. Since it's inception in 1981, the Certified Energy Manager (CEM®) credential has become widely accepted and used as a measure of professional accomplishment within the energy management field. It has gained industry-wide use as the standard for qualifying energy professionals both in the United States and abroad. It is recognized by the U.S. Department of Energy, the Office of Federal Energy Management Programs (FEMP), and the U.S. Agency for International Development, as well as by numerous state energy offices, major utilities, corporations and energy service companies.

Fundamentals of Standard 90.1 - ASHRAE eLearning System
How to comply with ANSI/ASHRAE/IESNA Standard 90.1 for Energy Efficiency in Buildings ASHRAE eLearning System. A practical guide to the application of ANSI/ASHRAE/IESNA Standard 90.1-2004 in the design and construction of energy efficient buildings, and the process and correct use of documentation for gaining compliance.

NEWS

"Green" Is New Building Standard In Dallas April 2008
The Dallas City Council has unanimously adopted a green construction ordinance which aims to reduce energy and water consumption in all new houses and commercial buildings constructed in the city. With this ordinance, Dallas becomes one of the first major U.S. cities to pass comprehensive building standards for both residential and commercial construction.

DOE Calls for 220,000 Efficient New Homes by 2012 February 2008
DOE launched the Builders Challenge last week, calling on the U.S. homebuilding industry to build 220,000 high-performance, energy efficient homes by 2012. Thirty-eight homebuilders have already pledged to build 6,000 high-performance homes under the new voluntary national program. DOE aims for 1.3 million of these high-performance homes to be built by 2030, allowing the owners of those homes to collectively save as much as $1.7 billion in energy costs while avoiding the greenhouse gas emissions equal to the emissions of 606,000 cars. To support builders participating in the challenge, DOE has made available "builder option packages," which provide guidance for building high-performance homes in different climate zones. See the Builders Challenge Web site.

Home Builders Launch New National Green Building Program February 2008
The National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) has launched the NAHB National Green Building Program, an education, verification, and certification program for building green homes. The new program, launched last week, allows green builders to accrue points in seven categories: water, energy, and resource efficiency; lot and site development; indoor environmental quality; global impact; and homeowner education. The program sets point requirements in each category for the bronze, silver and gold levels. Homes are inspected and verified by local green experts, who send their documentation to the NAHB Research Center for review. If the project qualifies, the home can receive national certification from the Research Center. See the NAHB National Green Building Program Web site, which features an online scoring tool.

ASHRAE Publishes Updated Version of Energy Efficiency Standard January 2008
The American Society of Heating, Refrigerating, and Air-Conditioning Engineers, Inc. (ASHRAE) has published an updated version of its energy efficiency standard for buildings other than low-rise residential buildings. The new standard addresses advanced lighting technologies that use less power, resulting in lower electrical and cooling loads for new buildings. The 2007 version of ANSI/ASHRAE/IESNA Standard 90.1, Energy Standard for Buildings Except Low-Rise Residential Buildings, provides minimum requirements for the energy-efficient design of buildings except low-rise residential buildings. The standard contains changes made through 47 addenda to the 2004 standard.

ASHRAE Publishes Free Energy Design Guide for K-12 School Buildings January 2008
ASHRAE has published a new energy design guide that can cut annual energy use in new K-12 school buildings by 30% or more. The publication features easy-to-follow recommendations for various climate zones and a series of case studies of actual school construction projects. It also includes suggestions for achieving green building energy credits, as well as supplemental strategies for achieving advanced energy savings beyond 30%. The guide provides a sensible approach to easily achieve advanced levels of energy savings without having to resort to detailed calculations or analyses. The book is available for free in electronic form. Hard copies are available for purchase.

ASHRAE Offers Free Advanced Energy Design Guide Series January 2008
To encourage energy efficient design in a range of building types, ASHRAE and its partnering organizations are making available for free the Advanced Energy Design Guide series.

USGBC Creates Green Building Certification Institute November 2007
The U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) started the LEED rating system, which stands for Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design, and the council is now composed of more than 12,000 organizations from across the building industry. To keep its focus on buildings, the USGBC announced on November 19th that it will spin off its credentialing activities to a new organization, called the Green Building Certification Institute (GBCI). The USGBC will transfer its LEED Professional Accreditation program to the GBCI in January 2008. See the new GBCI Web site.

DOE & ASHRAE Cooperate on Building Energy Standards August 2007
DOE and the American Society of Heating, Refrigerating, and Air-Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE) have agreed to work together to toughen building energy standards so that by 2010, the standards will require buildings to use 30% less energy than buildings built to the 2004 standards. Under a new memorandum of understanding, DOE and ASHRAE will support the continuing development of ASHRAE standards, the adoption of these standards by international organizations, and the implementation of a new energy standard for buildings other than low-rise residential buildings.

Texas One of 15 States Leading the Nation in Energy Star Homes July 2007
In 15 states, more than 12% of new homes are meeting Energy Star standards, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). Nearly 200,000 new homes nationwide earned the Energy Star in 2006, bringing the total number of Energy Star-qualified homes across the nation to nearly 750,000. To date, these homes have locked in annual savings of more than $180 million for homeowners by saving over 1 billion kilowatt-hours of electricity and 100 million therms of natural gas.

ENERGY STAR in Texas June 2007
Texas is home to more than 800 companies and public entities participating in ENERGY STAR, about 10% of which are small businesses; and consumers can purchase ENERGY STAR qualified products at some 1,400 locations across the state. More than 2,600 buildings (over 500 million square feet) in Texas have been rated for energy efficiency using EPA's energy performance rating system. This represents about 10% of all buildings that have been rated nationwide. Homeowners are benefiting too, as about 200,000 Texas homes have earned the ENERGY STAR. For additional information see this article on how Texas is saving money while protecting our environment.

Houston Joins Energy Efficiency Building Retrofit Program May 2007
Sixteen of the world's largest cities-including Chicago, Houston, and New York-have joined in a global effort to reduce energy consumption in existing buildings. The Energy Efficiency Building Retrofit Program, a project of the Clinton Climate Initiative, will draw on $5 billion in financing to be provided in equal amounts by five banks that will finance cities and private building owners to undertake energy efficiency retrofits. Four energy service companies will conduct energy audits, perform building retrofits, and guarantee the energy savings of the retrofit projects. The companies will be assisted by the American Society of Heating, Refrigerating, and Air-Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE) and the U.S. Green Building Council.

U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) FREE Platinum Certifications
Beginning January 1, 2007, USGBC is challenging the building industry to put us out of business: we will fully rebate the certification fees for any project that earns a Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Platinum certification. Platinum buildings are highly energy and resource efficient; provide superior indoor comfort for the building's occupants; and dramatically reduce CO2 emissions, a primary cause of global climate change. Help us build a healthy, sustainable, and prosperous future by raising your building's performance to Platinum, and we'll send you a check with your LEED plaque.

NREL Laboratory Earns LEED Platinum, a Federal First April 2007
The new Science and Technology Facility (S&TF) at DOE's National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) is the first federal facility to earn LEED Platinum certification from the U.S. Green Building Council. The 71,000-square-foot S&TF, completed in June 2006, consumes 41 percent less energy than comparable buildings through the use of daylighting, evaporative cooling, and efficient motors, ventilation fans, windows, and lighting.

DOE Updates EnergyPlus Program for Building Energy Design April 2007
DOE issued a new version of its award-winning EnergyPlus program last week. The EnergyPlus program allows architects, building engineers, and others to model the energy flow within a building, examining the effects of the building's heating, cooling, ventilating, and lighting systems. The software allows users to simulate the performance of a building at intervals of less than an hour, studying the energy and thermal comfort effects of a variety of energy strategies, including natural ventilation, dividing homes into multiple heating and cooling zones, and adding solar photovoltaic panels. Version 2.0, released on April 12th, allows users to include green roofs, phase-change materials, and advanced building controls in their building designs.

In the first six months of FY 2007, users have downloaded more than 5,500 copies of DOE's EnergyPlus building energy simulation program, breaking all previous download records. Since EnergyPlus was first released in 2001, more than 50,000 copies have been downloaded.

New Guidelines for Home Energy Ratings, Energy Star New Homes
On July 1, 2006 Energy Star announced new guidelines for rating new homes at the same time that a new scoring for home energy ratings (HERS) goes into effect.

Home Builders and Building Code Group to Develop Green Standards
The National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) and the International Code Council (ICC), which develops building codes, announced last week that they will join forces to develop a residential green building standard. NAHB took a leadership position in such standards back in 2005, when it published the Model Green Home Building Guidelines, while the ICC promotes green building practices through its International Codes. Those codes set minimum standards for energy efficiency and sustainable building practices but also suggest voluntarily "above-code" practices. The two organizations aim to have the new standard accredited by the American National Standards Institute (ANSI), which coordinates the development and use of voluntary consensus standards in the United States.

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