» Proposed High-Performance Building Standard 189.1 Draws Nearer to Publication Date
Proposed High-Performance Building Standard 189.1 Draws Nearer to Publication Date

ATLANTA ? The total building sustainability package, addressing everything from design and commissioning to plans for high-performance operation, is covered in a proposed green building standard currently open for public review.

Proposed Standard 189.1, Standard for the Design of High Performance, Green Buildings Except Low-Rise Residential Buildings, is being developed by the American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE) in conjunction with the Illuminating Engineering Society (IES) and the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC). The standard is slated to be the first code-intended commercial green building standard in the United States. It is expected to be published in early 2010.

?This is one of the most highly-anticipated building standards ever released,? ASHRAE President Gordon Holness, said. ?ASHRAE?s commitment to excellence and transparency in true consensus standards development is reflected in the quality of and interest in Standard 189.1.?

The proposed standard is currently open for a fourth public review. It is an ?independent substantive change? review so only changes from the third public review, which ended in June 2009, are open for comment. The public comment period started Sept. 18 and remains open until Nov. 2, 2009.

?IES is pleased to co-sponsor this standard for high-performance green buildings and supports the goal shared with ASHRAE and USGBC of environmental responsibility toward current needs as well as those of future generations,? Rita M. Harrold, IES director of technology, said.

?The key to a prosperous future is cost-efficient and energy-saving green buildings and is imperative as we move forward,? Scot Horst, senior vice president of LEED, USGBC, said. ?Standard 189.1 will help increase adoption of green building practices, leading to a prosperous and sustainable future for our nation.?

?The standard, once published, provides a ?total building sustainability package? for those who strive to design, build and operate green buildings,? Kent Peterson, chair of the committee writing the standard, said. ?From site location to energy use to recycling, this standard will set the foundation for green buildings through its adoption into local codes. The dedication of those tasked with writing the standard has been unwavering. There are no short cuts to creating a quality, comprehensive green building standard that reflects input from all corners of the building community.?

Among the biggest proposed changes is in the exterior light pollution section, including elimination of the Total Site Lumen approach. The draft of the standard that went out for a third public review earlier this year required users to limit exterior lighting according to one of three methods for determining total initial lamp lumens, or light output, for all outdoor lighting. While site lumen limits are being explored in other model lighting pollution efforts, it complicates application and enforcement significantly, according to Nick Ferzacca, vice chair of the committee and IES representative. The current draft maintains the use of Backlight, Uplight and Glare ratings from the IES Luminaire Classification System for Outdoor Luminaires (IESNA TM-15-07). Also, exterior lighting power densities and lighting zone definitions were modified to align with recent ASHRAE 90.1 addenda.

Another proposed change is in the Outdoor Air Delivery Monitoring section. Under the proposal, measurement of outdoor airflow rates at the system level would be required for all spaces ventilated by mechanical systems, except for constant volume systems. The exception allowing CO2 monitoring as an alternative for systems serving only densely occupied spaces has been removed. Also proposed would be removal of all requirements for outdoor airflow monitoring in naturally ventilated spaces.

The standard development committee will meet again to review comments received during this ?independent substantive change? public review during the USGBC GreenBuild conference in November.

To view a copy of the public review draft, go to www.ashrae.org/publicreviews. Copies of public review drafts are only available during public review periods.

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» Building Energy Use Highlighted in Newest ASHRAE Certification Program Print This Email This RSS For Release: October 9, 2009 Contact: Amanda Dean
Building Energy Use Highlighted in Newest ASHRAE Certification Program

October 9, 2009, ATLANTA?As building owners and developers become increasingly concerned about rising energy costs and potential obligations under climate change programs, building energy modeling helps provide a preview into a building?s likely energy use and allows decisions affecting energy use to be made before a shovel even hits the ground.

To ensure that professionals modeling a building?s energy use have the skills necessary to produce an accurate model, ASHRAE is launching a Building Energy Modeling Professional certification.
The first exam for the new certification program will be administered on Jan. 27, 2010, at the Winter Conference in Orlando, Fla. To register for the exam, visit www.ashrae.org/BEMP.

?Energy modeling is one of the most effective ways to achieve energy efficiency when designing sustainable buildings,? Gordon Holness, ASHRAE president, said. ?Since buildings consume 40 percent of all U.S. primary energy supplies, and energy modeling is only as good as the consultant who uses it, ASHRAE?s newest certification program strives to ensure that engineers and architects achieve the highest possible standards when it comes to sustainable design.?

Criteria to improve the accuracy of building energy models will help address some of the growing concerns within the building community that building designs do not necessarily translate to actual energy use once a building is constructed.

Additionally, energy modeling will play a vital role in ASHRAE?s soon-to-be launched Building Energy Quotient (bEQ) program, which will feature both an ?As Designed? and ?In Operation? component. While the ?In Operation? rating is based on actual energy use, the ?As Designed? rating is based on the results of a building energy model.

Careful and consistent energy modeling will allow modeling results to be compared with the results of models from other buildings. According to Holness, the certification will be an essential element for guaranteeing the quality of the bEQ program by assuring that there is a competent pool of building energy modelers.

Professionals who pass the certification exam will have demonstrated their ability to evaluate, choose, use, calibrate and interpret the results of energy modeling software, as well as confirm their competence to model new and existing buildings and systems with their full range of physics.

The certification will also highlight a consultant?s ability to act as a leader for projects that focus on energy efficiency, especially projects that deal with green buildings and building labeling programs, such as bEQ.

The Building Energy Modeling Professional program will help the individuals who earn it to distinguish themselves by providing confirmation of their skills and specialties by an internationally recognized engineering society. Professionals with such certifications have better chances of being hired, promoted and/or tapped for working on certain types of design projects.

ASHRAE?s newest certification will become available at testing centers located around the world in March 2010and was developed in collaboration with the U.S. affiliate of the International Building Performance Simulation Association and the Illuminating Engineering Society of North America.

ASHRAE, founded in 1894, is an international organization of some 50,000 persons. ASHRAE fulfills its mission of advancing heating, ventilation, air conditioning and refrigeration to serve humanity and promote a sustainable world through research, standards writing, publishing and continuing education.

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» Carbon Monoxide Alarms Proposed for ASHRAE Residential Ventilation Standard
Carbon Monoxide Alarms Proposed for ASHRAE Residential Ventilation Standard

ATLANTA ? In a change that would bring its residential ventilation and indoor air quality standard closer in line with that of the 2009 International Residential Code, ASHRAE is proposing that carbon monoxide alarms be required in homes.

Under proposed addendum l to ANSI/ASHRAE Standard 62.2-2007, Ventilation and Acceptable Indoor Air Quality in Low-Rise Residential Buildings, carbon monoxide alarms would be required to be installed outside of each sleeping area. The proposed addendum is open for public comment until Oct. 26, 2009.
Nine other addenda, unrelated to CO, also are open for review. Steve Emmerich, chair of the Standard 62.2 Committee, said that as the standard becomes more widely used as a result of its adoption into building codes and green building programs, several clarifications are being addressed through proposed changes.

Carbon monoxide (CO) poisoning leads to hundreds of deaths and thousands of injuries each year in homes. Such poisoning results primarily from automobiles left running in attached garages but also from portable generators, power tools and heaters, according to Emmerich. A small fraction of poisonings also result from failed central heating combustion appliances.

?Residents have very little ability to sense the presence of CO without detectors, unlike many other indoor polluting events,? he said.

Whether to include CO alarms as a requirement in the standard has been discussed since the standard was first proposed. Debate has focused on the unreliability and cost of alarms. But Emmerich said the committee believes the time has come to make this change, noting that it will bring the standard into closer alignment with the 2009 International Residential Code, which requires alarms if the house has combustion appliances or attached garages, and with many states that have passed laws requiring CO alarms.

?This proposed requirement goes a step further, expanding the protection to all homes, regardless of fuel type or garage configuration, reflecting the fact that many CO exposures occur due to causes completely independent of these factors,? he said. ?It also requires that alarms be hard-wired with battery backup to address an increased likelihood of high CO exposure events during power outages.?

Also open for public comment is proposed addendum s, which would give credits for different types of residential ventilation systems. The proposed change increases mechanical ventilation system flow rates for systems that are unbalanced or not fully ducted, unless they have a provision for mixing. Emmerich said this is a fairly significant change that has been under extensive study by the committee.

Standard 62.2 addenda open for public comment until Oct. 11 are addenda j, l, o, p, q and r while those open until Oct. 26 are m, n, s and t.

To view a copy of the addenda open for public review, go to www.ashrae.org/publicreviews. Copies of public review drafts are only available during public review periods.

ASHRAE, founded in 1894, is an international organization of some 50,000 persons. ASHRAE fulfills its mission of advancing heating, ventilation, air conditioning and refrigeration to serve humanity and promote a sustainable world through research, standards writing, publishing and continuing education.