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CCC Offers No-Cost Assessment Tools As Benchmarking Deadlines Approach
FOA toolkit will support compliance with new Californ ia law, identify energy-saving improvements
DAVIS, California –– Californians who are buying, selling or refinancing a commercial building have been tasked by state legislators with complying with state benchmarking regulations, beginning January 1, 2013. The California Commissioning Collaborative (CCC) is offering support and assistance for this regulatory effort in the form of a Facilities Operations Assessment (FOA) toolkit, which can be downloaded for free at http://www.cacx.org/resources/rcxtools/foa/.
In an effort to reduce energy consumption of com mercial buildings, the State of California passed a law in 2007 (Assembly Bill 1103) that requires building owners to complete building performance benchmarking and disclose a Statement of Energy Performance to the buyer, lessee, or lender whenever a building is sold, leased, or refinanced. The dates by which building owners must comply are tiered (by site square footage), beginning January 1, 2013 and ending January 1, 2014.
Completing a Facilities Operations Assessment using the FOA toolkit will help commercial building owners satisfy the benchmarking requirement. Additionally, the FOA will identify opportunities to make energy-saving operational improvements and assess the feasibility of conducting an existing building commissioning (EBCx) project; the FOA provides recommendations on whether to pursue comprehensive EBCx or specifically targeted improvements. EBCx has been shown to provide 16% energy sa vings on average, with a typical payback of just 1.1 years; for a building owner, EBCx can offer the opportunity of increasing net operating income, asset value and occupant comfort in a very short span of time.
Included in the FOA toolkit: A Process Manual which describes each step of the FOA process; a Checklist and Field Guide, which guide the site walkthrough and offer system-by-system guidance for data collection; a Cost-Effectiveness Tool which estimates potential energy savings based on the walkthrough data; and Reporting Templates which provide a framework for the final report, including descriptions of data sources and other supplementary information.
Beyond filling the legislative need for building owners to comply with California’s energy benchmarking laws, the FOA toolkit will help anyone, anywhere in the U.S. – EBCx program managers, real estate agents, property assessment firms and those looking to purchase or invest in commercial real estate - who wants to improve building performance and cut energy costs.
About the California Commissioning Collaborative
The CCC is a non-profit organization committed to improving the performance of buildings and their systems. The CCC is made up of utility, building owners, building services organizations and professionals who have come together to create a viable market for building commissioning in California. For more information, visit www.cacx.org.
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