Benchmarking & Feedback
Benchmarking begins with the establishment of actual building performance information. Through a continuum of strategies this "benchmark" data can then be used for comparing measured performance of a building to peer group buildings or other target values.
Dramatic progress toward very low-energy buildings requires prompt, useful, consistent feedback on how current buildings are performing. Relevant feedback is needed by each major group affecting energy consumption including designers, owner/operators and tenants/occupants.
Evaluating Post Occupancy Performance
Evidence-Based Design and Operations Research Program. In September 2009 New Buildings Institute (NBI) began this three-year effort as a part of the Public Interest Energy Research (PIER) Program funded by the California Energy Commission. This NBI research program is a linked series of projects that examine the variation in energy use of commercial buildings through an evidence-based assessment of high performance buildings. Read More
Study on the performance of LEED buildings. NBI conducted a study of the post-occupancy performance of LEED new construction buildings. Whole building energy use/square foot was benchmarked several ways and showed that on average the LEED buildings performed better than comparable non-LEED buildings. However, there is a very wide range of actual results, with a large number of buildings failing to meet objectives.
Tools & Resources
A number of current approaches are used for benchmarking at the whole building level for an occupied buiding:
CBECS. The Commercial Building Energy Consumption Survey (CBECS) provides Energy Use Intensity (EUI), in kBtu/sf/yr for the national building stock, representing commercial buildings of all ages and types.
CEUS. The State of California developed its own building performance data set, the California Energy Use Survey (CEUS) which is much like the CBECS data, but with a larger sample size relative to the population of California buildings and with end use breakdowns developed from calibrated energy models.
Energy Star. The EPA Energy Star program benchmarks with CBECS data, but improves on it by normalizing building energy use for occupancy patterns and climate. An Energy Star rating of 1 to 100 ranks buildings on a curve, with 100 being the best score and representing the top 1% of buildings.
