The Latest

Benchmarking Case Study: Demonet Building

When Transwestern took over management of the Demonet Building in 2009, one of the first things they did was benchmark, or measure and rate, the building’s energy performance. Robert Sloan, the building’s Chief Engineer, said benchmarking helped them see just how much energy the building was consuming. In just three years, with low-cost changes, they … Continued

Benchmarking Case Study: 4600 Connecticut Avenue

Finding energy savings in a condominium building poses a challenge. How does a Board of Directors persuade hundreds of individual owners to practice energy efficiency? When Harry Richter, a consultant with High Rise Consulting, began working with the board of the 4600 Connecticut building, he knew there were ways they could save on energy costs … Continued

RE 188-13: Adding a Rating-Based Compliance Path to the IECC

Together, the Leading Builders of America–which represents 20 of the nation’s largest builders accounting for 40 percent of the new single-family homes market–the Institute for Market Transformation, the Britt/Makela Group and the Natural Resources Defense Council have proposed a change to the 2015 International Energy Conservation Code (IECC) that would result in significant energy savings, … Continued

Proposal RE188-13

This proposal was approved by the Residential Energy Committee at the Dallas Committee Action Hearings in April. Contact your mayor or city manager or county leadership and ask them to send representatives to the International Codes Council’s meeting in Atlantic City this October where the 2015 code will be considered—and vote for our groundbreaking proposal—“proposal RE188-13, … Continued

Building Energy Codes: Creating Safe, Resilient, and Energy-Efficient Homes

Building energy codes establish minimum requirements for the elements within a building that impact energy consumption. The obvious benefit of buying a new home built in compliance with current energy codes is the energy cost savings for the homeowner. However, there are other significant benefits that come with the purchase of a home built in … Continued

Achieving Scale With Energy Efficiency

If interest is high in building energy efficiency in the United States, why aren’t investments in efficiency growing? Experts from local and federal governments, the private sector, and non-government organizations explored that question at a June 2013 Roundtable Dialogue in Washington, D.C., convened by the Johnson Controls Institute for Building Efficiency (IBE) and the Institute … Continued

Standard Bearers: The Excellence in Energy Code Compliance Award 2013 Application

[PLEASE NOTE: THE 2013 APPLICATION PERIOD IS NOW CLOSED.] Standard Bearers: The Excellence in Energy Code Compliance Award 2013 Applications due August 30, 2013 For the second year, the Institute for Market Transformation (IMT) and Global Buildings Performance Network (GBPN) will recognize jurisdictions and code officials using strategies that have improved building energy code compliance … Continued

Retail Green Lease Primer

The Retail Green Lease Primer is a two-page document that helps guide retailers and retail owners to improving the efficiency of their facilities. The goal of the document is to educate real estate and leasing agents on the specific retail lease provisions necessary for achieving reductions in energy, waste, and water use—and cost. When it comes to … Continued

How Energy Codes Make Commercial Buildings More Efficient

How would a (hypothetical) four-story, 50,000-square-foot office building built to meet the 2001 energy code differ from an identical building that meets the 2010 code? It would be 41 percent more energy-efficient, for one thing. Find out more by downloading our new infographic, produced in collaboration with the Energy Efficient Buildings Hub (EEB Hub).

Impact Evaluation of Nebraska Energy Code Training on Energy Code Compliance

This report presents the results of an impact evaluation of a building energy code training campaign on residential code compliance rates in the state of Nebraska. The authors conducted field inspections on a sample of 42 newly-constructed homes in Nebraska—normalizing, modeling, and comparing the results to a pre-training compliance evaluation. On average the pre-training study … Continued