The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) has issued a ruling that establishes ASHRAE/IES’s 2013 energy-efficiency standard as the commercial building reference standard for state building energy codes. The move comes after preliminary analysis that the 2013 standard contains energy savings over the 2010 — specifically, 8.5 percent source energy savings and 7.6 percent site energy savings.
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, in areas including better lighting, fans, commercial refrigeration, and boilers.
As a result, states are required to update their codes to meet or exceed the 2013 standard within two years, creating a plethora of opportunities for utilities and energy service companies in terms of energy-efficiency partnerships and programming. States must currently meet or exceed the 2010 standard, which serves as the commercial building reference standard for state building energy codes under the federal Energy Conservation and Production Act.
The 2013 standard contains 52 positive energy-efficiency impacts incorporated into the analysis, including control requirements for lighting alternations; new requirements for individual fans; reduction of energy usage for large boilers; reduction of fan energy usage; new efficiency requirements for commercial refrigeration; more controls in more spaces and reduction of time to reduction or shut off of those controls; and reduction of lighting power density in most building types.
For more information, follow this link – 90.1 Determination of Energy Savings
UPDATE:
A new Energy Code went into effect on October 1, 2014 for all projects covered by the Kentucky Building Code (KBC). Effective that date, projects must comply with the provisions of the 2012 International Energy Conservation Code (IECC), in lieu of the 2009 edition of the IECC that was currently being used. There are more stringent requirements across the board (insulation envelope, efficiency of HVAC equipment, lighting, etc.) that are anticipated to result in a 30% energy savings. There are some differences between the 2012 IECC and the 90.1-2013 standard. It is currently unclear if the adoption of the 2012 IECC by Kentucky will meet the Department of Energy requirement.
