Amy A. Kim

Current Industry Methods for Quantifying Energy Service Projects: Key Findings and Lessons Learned

AbstractThe use of energy service performance contracts (ESPCs) has become a popular method for financing energy conservation upgrades. To date, the use of the stipulated savings approach, often expressed as tables and equations, has been a popular method for calculating energy savings in ESPCs. However, no studies to date have confirmed or denied the literature findings regarding the use and acceptance of this method in the current industry through a systematic investigation. Therefore, this research identified other practices by conducting an ethnographic study with subject-matter experts, by reviewing publicly available technical reference manuals, and by analyzing a typical utility assessment report from a recent ESPC. In particular, the methods for quantifying lighting and lighting control measures were explored in detail. The findings indicate that the current industry relies on a stipulated savings method as a foundation for determining the baseline and postretrofit savings. In addition, the curren...

Advancement of behavioral energy interventions in commercial buildings

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to identify opportunities, barriers and guidelines for future research in behavioral energy interventions in commercial buildings. Design/methodology/approach The study methodology includes a three-step screening protocol with a collection of prior publications, clustering of related studies and results and analysis of the findings of the prior studies. Findings The review showed that commercial energy interventions were generally successful at impacting occupant energy consumption. Most energy savings were obtained by applying comparative feedback and energy competition strategies, but the lack of long-term effect measurements prevents drawing conclusions regarding their long-term effectiveness. The authors suggest that future studies should explore the impacts that occupant characteristics, environment and community and intervention implementation have on the success of the energy intervention, and integrate these findings into the intervention design. In addition, the authors call for more discussion on the feasibility issues that researchers, policymakers and educators face when implementing these energy interventions to streamline sustainability efforts in the future. Originality/value Research on assessing the effectiveness of occupant behavior interventions has increased considerably over the past decade. This review includes a structured analysis of prior studies of behavioral energy interventions in commercial buildings and encompasses studies conducted between 2005 and 2015. The review is unique in that it focuses on comparing empirical studies that quantified measured energy savings.

Effective Communication Practices for Implementing ERP for a Large Transportation Agency

AbstractState transportation agencies have implemented enterprise resource planning (ERP) for real-time access to financial and human resource information across divisions and districts. In 2013, the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) started the transition of 22 mainframe and legacy applications to an enterprise-wide computing environment, comprised of four areas of business: payroll, human resources, supply chain, and finance. The fragmented nature of the organization, limited budget, and short time frame created various challenges. Using data collected though an organization-wide survey of employees and targeted follow-up interviews, this study identifies key change management and communication strategies adopted by TxDOT and lessons learned from the ERP implementation. Successful drivers include the unique makeup of the implementation team, top-management support, change management activities that promoted awareness, use of ambassadors to further break down the communication barrier, and measu...

Preparing for the Future of Transportation Construction: Strategies for State Transportation Agencies

AbstractThe objective of this paper is to develop a conceptual framework that explains the implications and corresponding strategies of changes for state transportation agencies (STAs) to ensure long-term satisfactory performance in the area of construction. The researchers used their collective knowledge to identify key drivers of change using the systems dynamic methodology and their implications in the context of a range of plausible futures using the scenario planning methodology. The implications were then used to develop strategies to meet the future needs of STAs. The findings suggest that commonly in all scenarios, sustainability, information technology, workforce training, and innovative financing should have priority for STAs. Technology supports sustainable construction practices, while technology development requires an adequate level of funding and human interface. As a result, effective training programs are needed. Public-private partnerships were also identified as a strategy that can prov...

Comparison between Current Industry Methods and an Energy Simulation Model for Quantifying Energy Service Projects

AbstractDifferent techniques and guidelines are available to select and quantify the savings from energy service projects. In this article, a comparison is presented between the engineering algorithms supported by energy service performance contract technical reference manuals and an as-built, calibrated whole-building energy simulation model. A lighting energy retrofit measure was selected to demonstrate the methodologies. The results show that the industry methods of quantifying the total savings for the lighting energy retrofit measure underreported the savings as compared with the as-built, calibrated whole-building energy simulation model. In particular, the breakdown of savings (e.g., electricity savings, adjustments to energy savings, and demand savings) was inconsistent between the various industry methods that are currently in use. The differences identified in this study were location specific and weather driven, and also included agreements with the local utility companies to quantify the deman...

Thermal comfort assessment through measurements in a naturally ventilated LEED Gold building

Reductions in electric power consumption at the University of Washington are an established sustainability performance target. In order to meet this target, Leadership in Energy & Environmental Design (LEED) certification of buildings on campus is part of a long term plan for the University. It has been assumed that LEED certification will result in less power usage by occupants while improving indoor environmental quality. However, the related indoor environmental quality for these certified buildings has not been evaluated in situ. The primary objective of our study was to investigate the indoor quality assessment, more specifically in this paper, we discuss the thermal comfort of a LEED Gold building through both in-situ measurements of temperature, humidity, and occupant comfort surveys. Three measurement stations have been implemented in a low-rise retrofitted Student Union Building starting April of 2014: two in a food court or commercial kitchen environment and the other in a small office. Surveys to assess the comfort levels of both populations have been undertaken. The resulting data set is rich in terms of providing technical and nontechnical feedback on the thermal comfort of a LEED certified building. Preliminary findings indicate that thermal comfort parameters employed for heating, ventilation and airconditioning systems control were not optimum in practice.