The US Department of Energy (DOE) has completed showcasing the use of smart building technology to help businesses save on energy costs. The Department launched the Smart Energy Analytics Campaign, a four-year initiative that could help families save up to $3 million in annual energy costs.
The use of energy management information systems (EMIS)
The Smart Energy Analytics Campaign was facilitated by Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory or Berkeley Lab and involved the using energy management information systems, or EMIS to monitor energy consumption in more than 6,500 buildings around the country.
According to data from the Smart Energy Analytics Campaign, buildings that were tested demonstrated a total saving of up $95 million. According to Jessica Granderson, the campaign’s research principal investigator, EMIS are made up of sensors, meters, and control systems that analyze energy consumption in buildings.
The systems offer direct feedback on every building performance with regard to energy consumption and point out the hidden causes of energy wastage in day-to-day activities. The campaign was designed to offer technical assistance and advice and collect data from partners to inform its findings. This is according to a report compiled by the Smart Energy Analytics Campaign.
“Working with such a broad install base, half a billion square feet of install space and a hundred organizations … gives us very concrete evidence for cost benefits and savings,” Granderson said. “With the info all available, we hope we see a lot of broad applications across the commercial sector.”
The main objectives of the campaign were to provide a foundation for mass adoption of EMIS, offer assistance to users facilitate optimal use of smart building technology, and document best practices for energy consumption in buildings. The campaign recognized and lauded 32 EMIS for their implementation of the technology.
Among those recognized was Kaiser Permanente, which was commended by the DOE and Berkeley Lab for installing the fault detection and diagnostic with support from the campaign.
