DOE takes first step in updating commercial buildings reference standard
Preliminary analysis from the U.S. Department of Energy 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. According to ASHRAE, this is the first step by the DOE in issuing a ruling that could establish the 2013 standard as the commercial building reference standard for state building energy codes.
In an announcement in the May 13 edition of “The Federal Register,” DOE attributes the greater energy savings to improvements in ANSI/ASHRAE/IES Standard 90.1-2013, Energy Standard for Buildings Except Low-Rise Residential Buildings, related to better lighting, fans, commercial refrigeration, boilers and controls.