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Energy 200

ANSI Standards Action Weekly Edition

Iowa State University

Starting 2023 we break down our coverage of education community energy codes and standards into two tranches:

Energy 200: Codes and standards for building premise energy systems.  (Electrical, heating and cooling of the building envelope)

Standards Michigan: Building Transformers are Oversized and What We Are Doing About It

(Hint:  We are routinely “outvoted” on the National Electrical Code by stakeholders whose revenue depends upon oversized transformers.)

National Electrical Manufacturers Association (Free Download): Benefits of Electrical Submeters

US Department of Energy Office of Scientific and Technical Information: How college dormitory residents change to save energy during a competition-based energy reduction intervention

Energy Star Data Trends: Energy Use in Residence Halls

University of Alabama: Which Residence Hall Can Save the Most Energy?

International Energy Conservation Code

Energy 400: Codes and standards for energy systems between campus buildings.  (District energy systems including interdependence with electrical and water supply)

ΔE=ΔKE+ΔPE+ΔU=Q−W

A different “flavor of money” runs through each of these domains and this condition is reflected in best practice discovery and promulgation.  Energy 200 is less informed by tax-free (bonded) money than Energy 400 titles.

Some titles cover safety and sustainability in both interior and exterior energy domains so we simply list them below:

ASME Boiler Pressure Vessel Code

ASHRAE International 90.1 — Energy Standard for Buildings Except Low-Rise Residential Buildings

International Code Council 2021 Energy Conservation Code

cdpACCESS | Energy Complete Monograph for all 2021 cycle energy proposals (1270 pages)

International Code Council 2021 International Green Construction Code

NFPA 90 Building Energy Code

NFPA 855 Standard for the Installation of Stationary Energy Storage Systems

IEEE Electrical energy technical literature

ASTM Energy & Utilities Overview

Underwriters Laboratories Energy and Utilities

There are other ad hoc and open-source consortia that occupy at least a niche in this domain.  All of the fifty United States and the Washington DC-based US Federal Government throw off public consultations routinely and, of course, a great deal of faculty interest lies in research funding.

Please join our daily colloquia using the login credentials at the upper right of our home page.  We are also rolling out another facility — [MEETING POINT] — which should be ready for use sometime mid-2023.

More

Economics of Energy, Volume: 4.9 Article: 48 , James L. Sweeney, Stanford University

Global Warming: Scam, Fraud, or Hoax?, Douglas Allchin, The American Biology Teacher (2015) 77 (4): 309–313.

Helmholtz and the Conservation of Energy, By Kenneth L. Caneva, MIT Press

International District Energy Association Campus Energy 2023 Conference: February 29-March 2 (Grapevine Texas)

Climate Psychosis

The Seven Sins of Greenwashing

“Eco-friendly”, “Green”, “Bio”… Companies are increasingly using those tags as a signal to consumers of their environmental awareness. Yet also on the rise is a public concern about potential corporate lies in this subject, a phenomena labelled as “greenwashing”.

According to IESE professor Pascual Berrone, “many companies highlight one green positive aspect of their product or service, and hide the true impact that its production has on the environment”. With more and more NGO’s act as public watchdogs, “the consequences of getting caught can be, in terms of reputation but also economically, severe”, he says.

Universidad de Navarra | Iruña

Uno a uno

Building Environment Design

Energy Standard for *Sites* and Buildings

ANSI Standards Action Weekly Edition

 

The American Society of Heating, Refrigerating, and Air Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE) is an ANSI-accredited continuous-maintenance standards developer (a major contributor to what we call a regulatory product development “stream”).   Continuous maintenance means that changes to its consensus products can change in as little as 30 days so it is wise to keep pace.

Among the leading titles in its catalog is ASHRAE 90.1 Energy Standard for Sites and Buildings Except Low-Rise Residential Buildings.  Standard 90.1 has been a benchmark for commercial building energy codes in the United States and a key basis for codes and standards around the world for more than 35 years.  Free access to ASHRAE 90.1 version is available at the link below:

READ ONLY Version of 2022 ASHRAE 90.1

Redlines are released at a fairly brisk pace — with 30 to 45 day consultation periods.  A related title — ASHRAE 189.1 Standard for the Design of High Performance Green Buildings — first published in 2009 and far more prescriptive in its scope heavily  references parent title 90.1 so we usually them as a pair because 189.1 makes a market for green building conformance enterprises. Note the “extreme prescriptiveness” (our term of art) in 189.1 which has the practical effect of legislating engineering judgement, in our view.

25 January 2023: Newly Released ASHRAE 90.1-2022 Includes Expanded Scope For Building Sites

ASHRAE committees post their redlines at the link below:

Online Standards Actions & Public Review Drafts

At least two energy/building enclosure related redlines are open for consultation through May 27th.  

Education industry facility managers, energy conservation workgroups, sustainability officers, electric shop foreman, electricians and front-line maintenance professionals who change lighting fixtures, maintain environmental air systems are encouraged to participate directly in the ASHRAE consensus standard development process.

We also maintain ASHRAE best practice titles as standing items on our Mechanical, Water, Energy and Illumination colloquia.  See our CALENDAR for the next online meeting; open to everyone.

Issue: [Various]

Category: Mechanical, Electrical, Energy Conservation, Facility Asset Management, US Department of Energy, #SmartCampus

Colleagues: Mike Anthony, Larry Spielvogel, Richard Robben

Under Construction:  ASHRAE WORKSPACE

More

The fundamental concept in social science is Power, in the same sense in which Energy is the fundamental concept in physics. - Bertrand Russell

ANSI/ASHRAE/IES 90.1-2019: Energy Standard For Buildings

ARCHIVE 2002-2016 / ASHRAE 90.1 ENERGY STANDARD FOR BUILDINGS

US Department of Energy Building Energy Codes Program

ASHRAE Guideline 0 The Commissioning Process

Why Software is Eating the World

International Energy Conservation Code

2024 GROUP A PROPOSED CHANGES TO THE I-CODES

Shouldn’t energy conservation measures be determined by market forces rather than building construction regulations? 

Energy codes in the United States are adopted and enforced at the state level, and the stringency of the energy codes can vary widely from state to state.  For example, as of September 2021, four states (Alabama, Mississippi, South Carolina, and West Virginia) had not adopted statewide energy codes at all, according to the Building Codes Assistance Project. Other states may have adopted energy codes but have not updated them to the latest version, which could be less stringent than more recent versions.

We do not spend too many resources challenging the zietgeist.  Engineers, by nature, seek to do more with less but it is worth reminding our colleagues that energy conservation practices vary widely around the globe and not every nation supports what amounts to an energy police state.

“The Conquest of Energy” / José Chávez Morado / Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México

The International Energy Conservation Code is a model building code developed by the International Code Council for incorporation by reference into state and local energy conservation legislation.  Free access to the current edition is linked below:

2021 International Energy Conservation Code

Sell Sheet: Leading the Way to Energy Efficiency

2024 International Energy Conservation Code Update: Appeals Deadline Extended

Apart from product prescriptive passages IECC is a largely a performance code which draws its inspiration from other energy-related catalogs developed by United States standards developers; notably ASHRAE International.  Several accessory titles supporting the current 2021 edition which address energy efficiency on several fronts including cost, energy usage, use of natural resources and the impact of energy usage on the environment are linked below:

Related Titles

Many of the ideas in play can be tracked in the transcripts linked below:

Complete Monograph: 2022 Group B Proposed Changes

Complete Monograph: 2022 Group B Public Comment Agenda

Note the pre-occupation with products such as insulation, fenestration, power outlets and lighting — reflecting the financial support of energy activists advocating on behalf of manufacturers who tend build the cost of their advocacy in the price of their product.

A commonly overlooked energy conservation measure is reducing standby power consumption, also known as “vampire power.” Many electronic devices, such as televisions, computers, and chargers, consume energy even when they are not actively being used but are still plugged in. This standby power can account for up to 10% of a building’s energy consumption.

While our focus tends to be on the commercial facility docket, we keep an eye on the residential docket because, a)  many colleges and universities own and operate square-footage on the periphery of their campuses that is classified as residential, b) many student rental houses are obviously classified as residential and we want property owners to be able to afford reasonable energy conservation measures for the houses they rent to students.*

From previous posts we explained we summarized our priorities for the Group B cycle and the IECC in particular:

  • Education facilities as storm shelters
  • Laboratory ventilation
  • Classroom lighting
  • Expansion of lighting controls
  • Expansion of receptacle controls
  • Expansion of electrical power system design requirements above beyond National Electrical Code minimums.

We encourage our colleagues in energy enterprises in education communities to participate directly in the ICC Code Development Process.*

2024/2025/2026 ICC CODE DEVELOPMENT SCHEDULE

The IECC is a standing item on our periodic Energy 200, Power, Mechanical and Hello World! colloquia.  See our CALENDAR for the next online meeting; open to everyone.

University of Michigan

Issue: [Various]

Category: Architectural, Facility Asset Management, Space Planning

Colleagues: Mike Anthony, Jim Harvey, Jack Janveja, Richard Robben, Larry Spielvogel

* More:

Gallery: Other Ways of Knowing Climate Change

Life-cycle cost of education community settings are informed by climate change assumptions.  The architectural character of a campus — i.e. the design and operation its buildings — has changed over the past half-century with cyclical assumptions about global cooling and global warming having  changed accordingly.  In the late 1960’s academic researchers found evidence of global cooling.  Fifty years on academic researchers assume the earth is warming.  We just roll with it as we do with all the other policy “givens” we accommodate.

According to a report by the Congressional Research Service, federal funding for climate research and related activities totaled approximately $13.8 billion in fiscal year 2020. This funding was distributed across various agencies and programs, including the National Science Foundation’s Climate and Large-Scale Dynamics program, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s climate Program Office, and the Department of Energy’s Office of Science.

Not included in this figure is the opportunity cost and loss of brand identity of not conforming to the climate change agenda.

 

The “Narrative”

Mass Formation Psychosis

Climate Psychosis

Climate Science: What Does it Say?

Dialectic: Climate Change

Readings / The Administrative State

If you repeat a lie often enough, people will believe it, and you will even come to believe it yourself. - Joseph Goebbels

Rightsizing Electrical Power Systems

University of Michigan

 

Rightsizing Commercial Electrical Power Systems: Review of a New Exception in NEC Section 220.12

Michael A. Anthony – James R. Harvey

University of Michigan, Ann Arbor

Thomas L. Harman

University of Houston, Clear Lake, Texas

For decades, application of National Electrical Code (NEC) rules for sizing services, feeders and branch circuits has resulted in unused capacity in almost all occupancy classes. US Department of Energy data compiled in 1999 indicates average load on building transformers between 10 and 25 percent. More recent data gathered by the educational facilities industry has verified this claim. Recognizing that aggressive energy codes are driving energy consumption lower, and that larger than necessary transformers create larger than necessary flash hazard, the 2014 NEC will provide an exception in Section 220.12 that will permit designers to reduce transformer kVA ratings and all related components of the power delivery system. This is a conservative, incremental step in the direction of reduced load density that is limited to lighting systems. More study of feeder and branch circuit loading is necessary to inform discussion about circuit design methods in future revisions of the NEC.

CLICK HERE for complete paper

University of Houston

2026 National Electrical Code Workspace

Fenestration

The oldest door still in use in Pantheon (115 A.D.)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

“No work of art can be great,

if it is not composed of the smallest things.”

— Vitruvius  (Book VII, Chapter 9)

 

Today we sweep through standards action in building glazing, entrances and means of egress.  The word fenestration (Latin: fenestra) has become a term of art for the design, construction, and placement of openings in a building, including windows, doors, skylights, and other glazed elements.  While the word has sparse use in the International Code Council and National Fire Protection Association catalog it is widely used by the Construction Specifications Institute in its MasterFormat system for organizing construction standards, guidelines and building contracts.

The percentage of a building envelope “skin” that is comprised of doors and windows varies depending on the specific building design, function, and location. However, a commonly cited range is between 15% to 25% of the total building envelope.  The actual percentage will depend on several factors such as the building’s purpose, orientation, local climate, and energy performance goals. Buildings that require more natural light or ventilation, such as schools, hospitals, and offices, may have a higher percentage of windows and doors in their envelope. In contrast, buildings with lower lighting and ventilation requirements, such as warehouses, may have a smaller percentage of windows and doors.

Fenestration presents elevated risk to facility managers.  The education facility industry is a large target and a pattern of settling out of court.   For example:

  • In 2013, a former student at Yale University sued the school over a broken window in her dorm room. The student alleged that the university was negligent in failing to repair the window, which allowed a burglar to enter her room and sexually assault her. The case was settled out of court in 2015 for an undisclosed amount.
  • In 2019, a student at the University of California, Los Angeles sued the school over a broken window in her apartment. The student alleged that the university was negligent in failing to repair the window, which allowed a swarm of bees to enter her apartment and sting her. The case was settled out of court for $4.5 million.
  • In 2020, a group of students at Harvard University sued the school over its decision to require them to move out of their dorms due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The students alleged that the university breached its contract with them by failing to provide suitable alternative housing, including functioning windows and doors.  (The case is ongoing; best we can tell as of the date of this post).

These cases illustrate that colleges and universities can face legal action related to doors and windows, either due to alleged negligence in maintaining or repairing them, or due to issues related to student housing and accommodations.

Our inquiry breaks down into two modules at the moment:

Exterior facing fenestration

Interior window walls and doors

Join us online at the usual time.

door (n.)

University of Arkansas at Little Rock

Related:

Means of Egress

Life Safety Code

Rijksuniversiteit Groningen

Kitemark testing services for windows and doors

Eurocodes

Guide to Premises Security

Library of Alexandria

NFPA 730 Guide to Premise Security guide describes construction, protection, occupancy features, and practices intended to reduce security vulnerabilities to life and property.  Related document — NFPA 731 Standard for the Installation of Electronic Premises Security Systems covers the application, location, installation, performance, testing, and maintenance of electronic premises security systems and their components.

The original University of Michigan standards advocacy enterprise (see ABOUT) began following the evolution of NFPA 730 and NFPA 731 since the 2008 Edition.   That enterprise began a collaboration  with trade associations and subject matter experts from other universities (notably Georgetown University and Evergreen State University) to advocate user-interest concepts in the 2011 edition.    A summary of advocacy action is summarized in the links below:

in the appeared in a trade association journal Facilities Manager:

APPA Code Talkers Anthony Davis Facility Manager May June 2011

An online presentation by Michael C. Peele (Georgetown University) — one of the voting members of NFPA 730 and NFPA 731 technical committees– was recorded and is linked below.

FREE ACCESS: 2023 Guide for Premises Security

FREE ACCESS: 2018 NFPA 730 Guide to Premise Security

Public comment on the First Draft of the 2026 Edition will be received until January 3, 2025.  You may key in your own ideas by clicking in to our user-interest Public Consultation Meeting Point or by communicating directly with the NFPA.

This title remains on the standing agenda of our Security colloquia.  See our CALENDAR for the next online meeting; open to everyone.

Recently in Washington D.C.

“Bureaucracy” 1842| Honoré de Balzac

“Self Reliance” 1841 | Ralph Waldo Emerson

Ædificare

S. 3952 Fast Track To and Through College

Open Commission Meeting

Electrical Resource Adequacy

 

 

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888-746-3670

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