Energy Department analysis shows efficiency gains from ASHRAE 2013 energy standard

Preliminary analysis from the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) shows that the ASHRAE/IES’s 2013 energy efficiency standard contains energy savings over the 2010 standard of 8.5% source energy and 7.6% site energy.

As a result, DOE could establish the 2013 standard as the commercial building reference standard for state building energy codes. Today, states must meet or exceed the 2010 ASHRAE standard—the commercial building reference standard for state building energy codes under the federal Energy Conservation and Production Act.

DOE says the energy savings reflect improvements in ANSI/ASHRAE/IES Standard 90.1-2013, Energy Standard for Buildings Except Low-Rise Residential Buildings, which includes provisions related to better lighting, fans, commercial refrigeration, boilers, and controls. DOE is now accepting comments on this preliminary determination.

The 2013 standard contains 52 positive impacts on energy efficiency including:

•    Control requirements for lighting alternations
•    New requirements for individual fans
•    Reduction of energy usage for large boilers
•    Reduction of fan energy usage
•    New efficiency requirements for commercial refrigeration
•    More controls in more spaces and reduction of time to reduction or shut off of those controls
•    Reduction of lighting power density in most building types

More information can be found at http://www.energycodes.gov/regulations/determinations.

(https://www.ashrae.org/news/2014/doe-takes-first-step-in-updating-national-reference-standard-for-commercial-buildings-to-90-1-2013)