Zero Energy Buildings growth driven by government policy, stringent codes, technologies

The continued growth of zero energy buildings (ZEB) will be driven by commitment from developed and developing economies in pursuing ZEB targets, enforcement of stringent global building codes and standards, and advancements in building technologies.

That’s the assessment from a new report, Global Zero Energy Buildings (ZEB) Promise New Efficiency Beyond Cost and Innovative Technologies, 2020 by Frost & Sullivan. Today, less than 1% of the buildings in the world are ZEB-certified, the report says.

ZEB market restraints include ambiguities and inconsistency issues resulting in the absence of a universally approved definition and approach to ZEB. Also, current up-front costs for deploying ZEB technologies are high, and most building occupants are not ready for large-scale ZEB adaption.

The report looks at the ZEB market in five technological segments: high-performance heating, ventilation and air-conditioning (HVAC) Systems; energy-efficient lighting; solar photovoltaic (PV) systems and solar thermal systems; and energy-efficient building envelope materials. The market revenue of these technologies in 2019 was $86.1 million, the report says.

The report is available at: https://www.reportlinker.com/p06000043/?utm_source=GNW

New York City has two very large buildings dedicated to answering the 911 calls of its five boroughs. With more than 11 million emergency calls annually, it makes perfect sense. The second of these buildings, the Public Safety Answering Center II (PSAC II) is located on a nine-acre parcel of land in the Bronx. It’s an imposing 450,000 square-foot structure—a 240-foot-wide by 240-foot-tall cube. The gleaming aluminum cube risesthe equivalent of 24 stories from behind a grassy berm, projecting the unlikely impression that it might actually be floating. Like most visually striking structures, the building has drawn as much scorn as it has admiration.