The Energy Department reported on Wednesday that it has published a new series of protocols for determining the savings that result from upgrades in energy efficiency in homes, commercial buildings, and industrial facilities in the hopes that the new methods will improve credibility and clearly outline the advantages of energy efficiency programs that give families and businesses significant savings. The current way public utility commissions, utilities, contracts, and program administrators calculate energy efficiency varies. The Department hopes that the new protocols, developed with the help of the Uniform Methods Project, provide consistency and help increase confidence in the economic benefit. The protocols have been vetted by numerous experts and follow accepted energy efficiency practices.
The Energy Department lists the following protocols:
– Commercial and Industrial Lighting Evaluation Protocols
– Commercial and Industrial Controls Evaluation Protocols
– Small Commercial/Residential Unitary/Split HVAC Cooling Efficiency Upgrade Evaluation Protocols
– Residential Furnaces and Boilers Evaluation Protocols
