EGB October 2007

Building Science and Integrated Design
By Geoff McDonell, P.Eng, LEED AP
HVAC designers must comprehend how building heating and cooling loads are affected by building-envelope design...[MORE]

China Burns Corn Stalks and Cotton Stalks to Generate Electricity
A small power plant that burns corn stalks and cotton stalks to generate electricity for nearby villages and steam for a neighboring industrial complex is being built in Boxing, China and should be open next year. The plant would be ready sooner, but only four companies in China make the specialized precision boilers that the biomass plant requires. The same utility company, building the green plant in Boxing, opened a coal-fired plant in southernmost China...[MORE]

Grocer Pushes Earth-Friendly Store Design
Hannaford Bros. Co., a Maine-based grocery chain, announced plans for a green supermarket. Plants will be grown on the store's roof to add insulation and control storm water. The grocery store also will have photovoltaic panels to generate solar energy, geothermal heating and cooling, high-efficiency refrigeration, energy-efficient lighting, and a recycling program...[MORE]

Motel 6 Saves Energy With Shut-off Sensors
Motel 6 will team with Honeywell and Pacific Gas and Electric Co. to perform energy-efficiency retrofits of more than 7,000 hotel rooms in California. Sensors that shut off air-conditioning and heating equipment when the rooms are unoccupied will be installed. The retrofit will save an estimated $140 per room in annual energy savings, or an average of 1,100 kwh....[MORE]

DOE Warns of E-mail Scam Offering Energy Refunds
The Department of Energy (DOE) is aware an e-mail scam targeting the general public. The e-mail claims to be from the DOE with a return e-mail address of . This e-mail account does not exist. The scam attempts to entice victims by claiming they are eligible to receive a refund. The email instructs the victim to click a link that could infect a computer or provide an opportunity for someone to collect information entered on the form...[MORE]

LEED for Existing Buildings v.2008
The U.S. Green Building Council introduced Version 2008 (v.2008) of the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Green Building Rating System for Existing Buildings. This version includes fewer program prerequisites, an emphasis on facilities operations and maintenance, updated referenced standards, and expanded sections on water efficiency, energy performance, building commissioning, and green cleaning...[MORE]

U.N. to go Smoke-Free
To achieve a platinum rating in the U.S. Green Building Council's Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Green Building Rating System, the renovated United Nations (U.N.) building in New York City will require a smoke-free ventilation system. After the $1.9 billion renovation project is completed in 2014, the building will appear relatively unchanged, but the energy bill will be cut by at least 40 percent from 2004 levels...[MORE]

Change a Light Bus Tour
The Department of Energy and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency are on a 20-day Energy Star Change a Light bus tour. So far, nearly 1 million U.S. residents have pledged to replace at least one light bulb in their house to an energy-saving Energy Star bulb.This effort can save nearly $70 million in energy costs and prevent 1 billion pounds of greenhouse-gas emissions...[MORE]

HPAC Engineering Co-Sponsor of Global Engineering Conference
Designed for global consulting and design engineers, Carrier Corp.'s 10th Global Engineering Conference, co-sponsored by HPAC Engineering, features new technology and engineering topics in the HVAC industry. The event will focus on designing and building for sustainability and will take place April 9-11, 2008, at Caesar’s Palace in Las Vegas...[MORE]