ACEEE
NEWS RELEASE
ACEEE
HELPS BUILDING OWNERS MANAGE VOLATILE ENERGY COSTS: LAUNCHES ONLINE GUIDE TO ENERGY-EFFICIENT COMMERCIAL EQUIPMENT
FOR IMMEDIATE
RELEASE
November 4, 2004
WASHINGTON, D.C. -- A highly competitive business environment,
coupled with roiling oil and natural gas prices, demands that building
and business decision-makers achieve the lowest possible energy
costs. Energy services cost commercial businesses about $100 billion
a year, an average of about $1.50 per square foot of commercial
floor space. The American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy
(ACEEE) has launched an "Online Guide to Energy-Efficient Commercial
Equipment" to help businesses invest wisely to control costs by
reducing consumption through efficiency, and to protect the environment
while doing so.
"By cataloging the continuous wave of new equipment aimed at making
commercial buildings more efficient," said Harvey Sachs, ACEEE's
Buildings Program Director, "we developed an online resource that
can stay abreast of all of the new developments coming to market."
He added, "We plan to update the information periodically and to
provide other enhancements in order to make life easier for commercial
equipment decision-makers who are overloaded with information and
competing claims about performance."
The "Online Guide to Energy-Efficient Commercial Equipment" addresses
critical needs in three areas common to commercial buildings: lighting;
heating, air conditioning, and ventilating systems; and energy-efficient
motors.
- Lighting
accounts for more than 40% of commercial sector electricity consumption
in the United States. Its by-product, heat, has a great effect
on air-conditioning loads. Best practice lighting provides equal
or greater lighting quality while cutting energy use by up to
50%—even for buildings with fluorescent lamps throughout.
Side benefits include improved building appearance and aesthetics,
and also increased building asset value (for both owner-occupied
and owner-leased revenue-producing space).
- Heating,
air-conditioning, and ventilating systems have improved due
to remarkable advances in the past decade. For small buildings,
performance far better than building code requirements is widely
available, often with integrated ventilation and "economizer"
sections that improve air quality and control costs. For larger
systems, the equipment is better-and there is also much more awareness
of how to minimize "parasitic" loads like air handlers.
- Energy-efficient
motors to handle building needs are much more easily chosen
now because of new programs to certify premium motor performance.
In addition, office equipment, packaged refrigeration, ice-makers,
and even distribution transformers are available that work reliably
while saving money. All are included in the "Online Guide to Energy-Efficient
Commercial Equipment," which can be viewed at http://aceee.org/buildings/coml_equp/index.htm.
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About ACEEE: The American Council
for an Energy-Efficient Economy is an independent, nonprofit organization
dedicated to advancing energy efficiency as a means of promoting
both economic prosperity and environmental protection. For information
about ACEEE and its programs and publications, contact ACEEE, 1001
Connecticut Avenue, N.W., Suite 801, Washington, D.C. 20036-5525
or visit http://aceee.org
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