What are the benefits of setting thermal comfort criteria?Space conditioning strategies have traditionally only emphasized the management of interior temperature and humidity conditions through mechanical conditioning systems to provide thermal comfort. Owners, operators and building designers may not typically understand or utilize the broader range of means at their disposal to support thermal comfort, or look to incorporate them into their designs or operation. Thoughtful building design that makes use of the wider array of available thermal comfort mechanisms and opportunities can be leveraged to result in significant energy savings, whether through operational improvements on an existing conditioning system or when evaluating options for a retrofit. In some climates, it may be possible to achieve thermal comfort through a different low energy space conditioning mechanism than would otherwise be considered, such as natural ventilation paired with localized air movement. In a case study at the University of Hawaii at Manoa, creating an "advanced" thermal comfort criteria that addressed their local climate demonstrated the viability of such a system, with predicted energy savings on the order of 60% over existing energy use. The information and methods outlined here aim to illustrate the value in setting thermal comfort criteria for a project and the array of opportunities it can present to benefit design and energy savings. What is the purpose of this document?Historically thermal comfort in buildings has been controlled by simple dry bulb temperature settings. As we move into more sophisticated low energy building systems that make use of alternate systems such as natural ventilation, mixed mode system and radiant thermal conditioning strategies, a more complete understanding of human comfort is needed for both design and control. This guide will support building designers, owners, operators and other stakeholders in defining quantifiable thermal comfort parameters-these can be used to support design, energy analysis and the evaluation of the thermal comfort benefits of design strategies. This guide also contains information that building owners and operators will find helpful for understanding the core concepts of thermal comfort. Whether for one building, or for a portfolio of buildings, this guide will also assist owners and designers in how to identify the mechanisms of thermal comfort and space conditioning strategies most important for their building and climate, and provide guidance towards low energy design options and operations that can successfully address thermal comfort. An example of low energy design options for thermal comfort is presented in some detail for cooling, while the fundamentals to follow a similar approach for heating are presented.
Approximately 40% of the total U.S. office floor space of 1.5 billion sq.m (16 billion sq.ft.) is leased space occupied by tenants. Tenant fit-out presents a key opportunity to incorporate energy efficiency within the real estate business cycle. We designed a package of energy efficiency measures tailored to the scope of a tenant fit-out. This tenant fit-out package (TFP) includes advanced lighting and heating, ventilating and air-conditioning (HVAC) controls as core measures, with ceiling fans, automated shading, and plug load controls as additional optional measures. We conducted laboratory testing of six configurations of the package to evaluate energy savings, indoor environmental quality, and identify installation, commissioning, and operational issues. Combined savings for HVAC, lighting, and plug loads ranged from 33–40%. Lighting savings ranged from 69–83%, and HVAC savings from 20–40%. The laboratory testing also revealed some minor but tractable challenges with installation and commissioning of HVAC controls. Overall, the results demonstrate that significant savings can be realized in existing office buildings by incorporating relatively low-risk, proven measures at the time of a tenant fit-out.
Achieving a Net Zero Energy Retrofitin a humid, temperate climate-lessons from the University of Hawai'i at Mānoa Overview The University of Hawaii at Mānoa (UHM) partnered with the US Department of Energy (DOE) to develop and implement solutions to retrofit exiting buildings to reduce energy consumption by at least 30% as part of DOE's Commercial Building Partnerships (CBP) Program. 1 Kuykendall Hall, located on the UHM campus in Honolulu, was the focus of a CBP analysis and design collaboration among the University of Hawai'i, their consultants, and Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL). Kuykendall Hall consists of two 1960s-era wings-a four-story wing containing classrooms, and a seven-story tower containing offices-with a total floor area of approximately 76,000 square feet (ft 2). The retrofit design, which uses local prevailing winds to aid ventilation and cooling and incorporates envelope and lighting elements that reduce the need for cooling, was initially on track to use about 50% less energy than the current building, exceeding the CBP's 30% savings goal. With the addition of building-mounted solar electric panels, the retrofitted building is projected to achieve net-zero annual energy use. Achieving net-zero energy addressed an emerging challenge to the university-how to lower energy usage and reduce dependence on imported fossil fuel in the face of already-high energy prices that are forecast to double by 2040. Not only will the retrofit dramatically reduce Kuykendall Hall's annual energy costs, but the project lays the groundwork for new campus policies and processes and low-energy design approaches and is building a campus knowledge base on low-energy practices. This project is a model of integrated design and building delivery that will be replicated in future projects on the campus.
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