New Construction Energy Requirements

This section outlines the EWC energy target and modelling requirements for new building construction on the UT Austin main campus. These requirements should be established within the project OPR.

Energy Utilization (EUI) Design Requirements

The Energy and Water Conservation group has been specifically tasked with meeting the goals outlined in the University of Texas at Austin President's Sustainability Steering Committee's Natural Resource Management and Conservation Plan (adopted February 2011, amended April 2012). The specific energy goal outlined in that plan states: The University of Texas at Austin will reduce energy consumption at the building level by an average of 20% per square foot per degree-day by August 31, 2020 using 2009 as the base year.In order to achieve this goal, it is expected that all new buildings built prior to 2020 be design to use at least 20% less energy per square foot (EUI) than existing similar buildings on campus did during the 2009 baseline.

Targets

The following table shows the baseline UT campus building EUI's by type as of 2009, the 20% target to meet or beat for new construction, as well as aggregated industry standards for reference.

Energy Utilization Index (EUI)

Energy utilization index includes the total site energy consumption of chilled water, steam, and electricity at the total building level. Consumption of each utility is summed together after being converted to MMBTU as follows:

• Chilled Water ton-hour = 12,000 BTU [defined]
• Steam pound = 1216 BTU [per UEM]
• Electricity kilowatt-hour = 3413 BTU [defined]

Updating targets

During the year 2020, it is anticipated that the President will introduce a new goal for energy conservation moving forward. At this point, the target EUIs will change to reflect the new goals.

Inability to meet targets

If the design team is unable to meet the EUI target for the building during the design stage, a report must be provide to EWC detailing the reasons the EUI target was not met. This report should be provided as part of the energy modeling design report or by the engineering design firm.Report to include:

• A breakdown of the building systems, features, process loads, or occupancy measures driving energy consumption.
• Feasibility study of energy conservation opportunities and explanation for their exclusion.
• Identification of specific owner requirements that limited ability to achieve the goal.

Energy Models

Energy models are required during the design process to meet LEED and SECO reporting requirements. EWC requires no additional modeling, but does outline requirements for how these models are generated and reported.

Source versus site energy

USGBC guidance allows for inclusion of the district energy (source) efficiency when calculating and reporting percent energy savings for the proposed design. Utilization of this method is permitted only during submission to USGBC. This method shall not be utilized when reporting to SECO or UT Austin. All energy model reports shall include the site energy consumption on a basis of total building energy consumption for chilled water, steam, hot water, electricity, and natural gas for the standalone building.

Modeling UEM meters

UT Austin buildings are typically metered by Utilities & Energy Management (UEM) for chilled water, steam/hot water, and electricity by at least one set of meters at the total building level. The energy model should be designed to, at the best of the modeler's current knowledge, demonstrate the energy consumption at each anticipated metered point. If multiple building utility connections will be present with multiple utility meters, the model outputs should reflect the consumption at each meter individually. If internal sub-metering is planned for additional billing purposes, consumption at these proposed sub-meters should also be modeled.

Commissioning

EWC's new construction commissioning requirements mirror the commissioning requirements set out in LEED 2009 for New Construction. If the construction project is pursuing LEED certification, the project should already be performing the minimum requirements set out below and preferably also be pursuing the enhanced commissioning credits as well. If the project is not pursuing LEED certification, the minimum requirements shall apply to the project. For verification, EWC requires direct communication of the following:

• Copies of proposed CxA scope with opportunity to review and comment prior to bidding and selection of CxA.
• Copies of the CxA's commissioning plan, including the details below, with opportunity to review and comment prior to start of construction.
• For LEED projects, final review and approval of submittal documentation demonstrating that the tasks were performed prior to uploading to USGBC for certification.
• Copies of final commissioning summary/report that includes details outlined below.

Continuous Monitoring & Optimization
Each new building should include a continuous monitoring and a closed loop optimization software, which will be used to help identify deficiencies and maintenance optimal building energy efficiency. This software must be capable of integration with existing UEM optimization software, which currently uses Optimum Energy.

Minimum Requirements (LEED 2009 EAp1)

The following minimum requirements are detailed in the LEED Reference Guide for Green Building Design and Construction, 2009 Edition as required tasks for Energy & Atmosphere Prerequisite 1: Fundamental Commissioning.Step 8 [page 226]: Verify the installation and performance of the systems to be commissioned.