Fastrack June 2007

Real Efficiencies of Central Plants
By Ben Erpelding
Actual wire-to-water efficiencies of six common central-plant types...[MORE]

What Does It REALLY Take to Be an Intelligent Building?
By Thomas H. Hartman
To get our industry to meet its commitment to owners, occupants, and the rapidly evolving energy- and environmental-performance expectations of our society, we need the connectivity we incorporate into intelligent buildings to add valuable functionality...[MORE]

EGB 2007 Targets Hospitality, Education, and Government Buildings
With its focus on hospitality, education, and government buildings -- key sectors for construction growth and green design -- the 2007 Engineering Green Buildings Conference and Expo is expected to attract engineers, architects, mechanical contractors, facility managers, and building owners/operators from around the country when it convenes Sept. 17 and 18 at Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino in Las Vegas. Why the emphasis on those buildings sectors?

Labs21 Offers Energy-Efficiency Tips
Laboratories for the 21st Century (Labs21), co-sponsored by the Environmental Protection Agency and the Department of Energy, is enlisting laboratory operators in an effort to corral energy consumption and cut attendant costs. Many factors have contributed to the saving of 533 trillion Btu. On a square-foot basis, laboratories can consume 10 times the energy of a typical office building. Energy-efficient steps laboratory operators are taking include installing energy- and water-efficient equipment; incorporating sustainable-design elements into new construction; improving operation-and-maintenance techniques, recovering exhaust heat energy, and processing cooling-water energy recovery; and using geothermal ground-source heat-pump systems...[MORE]

ASHRAE Publishes Refrigeration Safety Standard
Expanded requirements for safety relief protection are contained in ASHRAE’s new 2007 refrigeration-systems safety standard. ANSI/ASHRAE Standard 15-2007, Safety Standard for Refrigeration Systems, establishes procedures for operating equipment and systems to ensure the safety of building occupants and system technicians...[MORE]

Advanced IAQ Design Guide
Organizations are collaborating to develop a book and professional-development course to provide advanced indoor-air-quality (IAQ) design guidance for the industry. The book, Advanced Indoor Air Quality (IAQ) Design Guide for Non-Residential Buildings, and a professional-development course will describe an integrated process for achieving improved IAQ in all elements of a building. Participating organizations are the American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers; the American Institute of Architects; the Building Owners and Managers Association; the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency; the Sheet Metal and Air Conditioning Contractors'; National Association; and the US Green Building Council...[MORE]

Fan-System Assessment Tool
Air Movement & Control Association International and the US Department of Energy released the Fan System Assessment Tool (FSAT). With FSAT, users can calculate the amount of energy used by a fan system, determine system efficiency, and quantify the savings potential of an upgraded system...[MORE]