Smarter Small Buildings Campaign: Honoring Leaders in HVAC Controls

The Smarter Small Buildings Campaign is accepting submissions for recognition of outstanding achievements in HVAC controls within small commercial buildings. Building owners are invited to participate by submitting their work in a range of categories, celebrating their success in installing and managing controls for HVAC rooftop units (RTUs) in both existing buildings and new construction. We also encourage our campaign partners to highlight their contributions toward energy justice, diversity, equity, and inclusion.

Submissions are open until March 15, 2024, and selected honorees will be revealed in June. For more details or to begin your submission process, contact SSBC-Controls@lbl.gov.

GreenBiz Highlights Emissions Framework in 2024 Roundup

The Framework for Greenhouse Gas Emissions Reduction Planning: Building Portfolios, published as part of the Department of Energy (DOE)’s Better Climate Challenge, was recently included in a roundup of the most valuable guides to building decarbonization in 2024 at media site GreenBiz. The framework provides guidance to organizations on reducing greenhouse gas emissions for their building portfolios and vehicle fleets. BTUS’s Hannah Kramer, Nora Hart, and Jessica Granderson are coauthors of the framework, which offers both near-term actions and a longer-term transition path to low- or no-carbon operations.

Berkeley Lab Delivers a ‘BETTER’ Approach to Decarbonizing Underserved Buildings in New England

The Building Efficiency Targeting Tool for Energy Retrofits (BETTER) is enabling major cost and emissions savings for Massachusetts. PowerOptions, a nonprofit energy consortium, has been using BETTER, which was developed by Berkeley Lab and Johnson Controls, since January 2023 to conduct virtual energy efficiency audits for over 50 buildings from eight nonprofit organizations. BETTER enabled PowerOptions to avoid on-site energy audit costs, save time, and provide roadmaps that will help its members cut energy costs by $2.48 million and avoid emissions equivalent to 6,560 metric tons of carbon dioxide each year. To learn more, see the full case study or visit BETTER at https://better.lbl.gov/. 

The DOE Building Technologies Office’s BETTER is an award-winning software toolkit that delivers actionable insights to improve energy, emissions, and financial performance in buildings and portfolios without requiring site visits and complex modeling. Since its launch in 2021, BETTER has 1,100 registered users that have analyzed more than 12,000 buildings covering 2 billion square feet of floor space in more than 60 countries. For more information, please contact Carolyn Szum or Han Li.

Efficient and Healthy Schools Program Launches

Efficient and Healthy Schools, which began as a campaign in response to the coronavirus pandemic, has been formalized as a DOE program, the agency announced last November. The program provides recognition and technical assistance to school districts seeking to implement high-impact indoor air quality and efficiency improvements. Efficient and Healthy Schools has also released its 2023-2024 Recognition Award Categories and application support. Berkeley Lab provides technical support for the program, which is an interagency effort from the Department of Energy, Department of Education, and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). Read about the growing network of schools and districts applying for recognition. If you would like to provide support, please sign up as a supporter or encourage schools to sign up as a participant.

A Milestone for IMPEL: 2024 Marks Fifth Anniversary!

Five years ago, the IMPEL program began by supporting five DOE National Lab teams through an incubation and industry mentorship process, where each team learned to communicate the value of their R&D to broad audiences. Today, IMPEL has vastly expanded its programming to entrepreneurs and researchers, providing coaching, mentoring and public and private sector opportunities that connect innovators to potential investors, partners, and policymakers. It serves critical needs of building technologists at the national labs and beyond, springboarding over 250 innovators from small businesses, nonprofits, and academia into countless success stories.

This year, IMPEL’s Berkeley Lab-based project team is developing a research publication describing front-line perspectives from emerging technologists, investors, and researchers, with insights from the past five years. The paper will explore the barriers building tech faces when going to market and propose new approaches for commercialization programs moving forward. If you would like to get involved with our research publication, contact us at IMPEL@lbl.gov.

National Fenestration Rating Council Honors Charlie Curcija

The National Fenestration Rating Council (NFRC) presented Charlie Curcija with the Dariush Arasteh Member of the Year award at its annual fall membership meeting. The annual award recognizes a member “whose talent, achievements, and innovative contributions are integral to the fenestration industry and the NFRC mission.” 

Curcija leads BTUS research in the thermal and optical performance of windows, window shading, building facades and other fenestration systems.  

“This year’s winner has shown incredible dedication to the mission of the NFRC and has been active in NFRC for many years, including several years on the Board of Directors,” said NFRC Board Chair Tony Cinnamon in his announcement at the membership meeting. "His contributions to NFRC efforts, particularly those related to thermophysical properties and software development, have been vital to our success.”

Read the full article here.