Introduced in 2009, the American Institute of Architects (AIA) 2030 Commitment Program, a voluntary initiative for architecture firms and other entities in the built environment to commit their practice to advancing the AIA’s goal of carbon neutral buildings by the year 2030, has produced a report assessing their work.
“There is some very encouraging data in this report that shows how architects are making measurable progress towards reducing the carbon emissions in their design projects,” said AIA Chief Executive Officer, Robert Ivy, FAIA. “But one of the major findings from our research is that in order to maximize the energy efficiency of buildings and to realize our ultimate goal of carbon neutral buildings, energy modeling must become a standard part of the design practice.”
The key findings from a new report, 2030 Commitment 2013 Progress Report, include:
- 401 design projects are meeting the 60% carbon reduction target – a 200% increase from 2012
- 2,464 projects have been accounted for in this report – a 150% increase form 2012
- 1.6 billion gross square feet (GSF) represented in this data – a 9% increase from 2012
- 66% of total GSF using energy modeling to predict operational energy consumption – a 14% increase form 2012
- 19% average firm reduction in Lighting Power Density for interior projects – a increase of 2% from 2012
- 34% average Predicted Energy Use Intensity reduction reported by firms – a decrease of 3% from 2012
- 7% of total GSF meeting the current 60% carbon reduction target – a decrease of 7% from 2012
- 99 firms submitted reports – a 10% decrease from 2012
The decrease in firms reporting data is mainly attributed to the time and effort involved in tracking and entering project data. To address that situation, the AIA has partnered with the Department of Energy to create the 2030 Design Data Exchange to provide a more user friendly interface and allow firms to anonymously research how their projects are predicted to perform compared to similar projects in the AIA 2030 Commitment portfolio. This new reporting tool will be made available in late December 2014 or early January 2015.
For a preview of the functionality of the 2030 Design Data Exchange, click here.
Related Stories
| Apr 12, 2011
American Institute of Architects announces Guide for Sustainable Projects
AIA Guide for Sustainable Projects to provide design and construction industries with roadmap for working on sustainable projects.
| Apr 11, 2011
Wind turbines to generate power for new UNT football stadium
The University of North Texas has received a $2 million grant from the State Energy Conservation Office to install three wind turbines that will feed the electrical grid and provide power to UNT’s new football stadium.
| Apr 8, 2011
SHW Group appoints Marjorie K. Simmons as CEO
Chairman of the Board Marjorie K. Simmons assumes CEO position, making SHW Group the only firm in the AIA Large Firm Roundtable to appoint a woman to this leadership position
| Apr 5, 2011
Zaha Hadid’s civic center design divides California city
Architect Zaha Hadid is in high demand these days, designing projects in Hong Kong, Milan, and Seoul, not to mention the London Aquatics Center, the swimming arena for the 2012 Olympics. But one of the firm’s smaller clients, the city of Elk Grove, Calif., recently conjured far different kinds of aquatic life when members of the City Council and the public chose words like “squid,” “octopus,” and “starfish” to describe the latest renderings for a proposed civic center.
| Apr 5, 2011
Are architects falling behind on BIM?
A study by the National Building Specification arm of RIBA Enterprises showed that 43% of architects and others in the industry had still not heard of BIM, let alone started using it. It also found that of the 13% of respondents who were using BIM only a third thought they would be using it for most of their projects in a year’s time.
