CTTC

CTTC is the acronym for Chapter Technology Transfer Committee...and it combines the old TEGA, Refrigeration, and Programs at the Society level to try and bring you, the member, more of its information.

Whether it be its Standards, Handbooks, Broadcasts, or just updates as they are developed.

Many refer to this as the "Darkside"...but it is just the Technology Side of ASHRAE. It is created by the Technical Committees that report up thru the Technical Advisory Committee (TAC) to the Board of ASHRAE. If you have been to a Winter or Annual Meeting - you'll see TC guys before the official "Show" that are meeting to move the technical advancement of HVAC&R that ASHRAE produces.

So - here are some of the Articles that have been posted to this website - and not in the Dewpoint - so that they are there for our Chapter Members to find if needed. We hope to continue "transferring" the information from Society to the Chapter Level.

International Code Council Takes Action on ASHRAE Proposals (ATLANTA)

International building codes may soon incorporate requirements from a new load calculation standard from ASHRAE and ACCA under several recent proposals now under consideration.
ASHRAE made 15 proposals to the International Code Council (ICC), which develops model codes that may be adopted by code jurisdictions in the United States or internationally. After a public comment period of the committee recommendations of proposals, final hearings for the code change proposals will take place in September 2008. If the proposals are accepted, they would be included in the 2009 code.

Under a proposal to both the International Mechanical Code (IMC) and the International Energy Conservation Code (IECC), references to load calculation guidance in the ASHRAE Handbook, Fundamentals, would be replaced with requirements from a new ASHRAE standard developed with the Air Conditioning Contractors of America (ACCA), ANSI/ASHRAE/ACCA Standard 183-2007, Peak Cooling and Heating Load Calculations in Buildings Except Low-Rise Residential Buildings. The standard establishes minimum requirements for building loads that are inclusive of as many procedural methods as possible while identifying core elements that impact heat loss and gains.

“The guidance in the ASHRAE Handbook was never intended to serve as a reference document to codes,” said Steve Ferguson, ASHRAE assistant manager of standards – codes. “Standard 183 provides an appropriate consensus reference standard that is appropriate for adoption in the ICC codes.”

Also approved were proposed changes regarding lighting stringency based on requirements in ANSI/ASHRAE/IESNA Standard 90.1-2007, Energy Standard for Buildings Except Low-Rise Residential Buildings. These changes include:

·      Adding exceptions for typical lighting requirements, which would eliminate conflicts with the code and accepted lighting design practice that are commonly applied.

·      Allowing calculation of track lighting wattage, which provides an important practical application. Without this provision, users may be forced to claim more wattage than it is possible to put into the application.

·      Modifying lighting power allowances, which would eliminate issues in the allowance section through appropriate and practical application of these additional allowances. While simplifying the application, it also will increase energy savings, according to Ferguson.

Also related to 90.1 was a proposal to modify chiller requirements. The proposal calls for, effective Jan. 1, 2010, an additional path of compliance for water-cooled chillers and consolidation of, and new requirements, for some of the existing categories.

Also approved was a proposal from ASHRAE to add new refrigerant classifications to the IMC from ANSI/ASHRAE Standard 34-2007, Designation and Safety Classification of Refrigerants.

Proposed Standard for High-Performing Buildings Open for Public Review (ATLANTA)

A proposed standard that will essentially define high-performing buildings in code-intended language is one step closer to completion. Proposed Standard 189.1, Standard for the Design of High-Performance Green Buildings Except Low-Rise Residential Buildings, is now open for its second public review.
Proposed Standard 189.1 will provide minimum requirements for the design of high-performance new commercial buildings and major renovation projects, addressing energy efficiency, a building’s impact on the atmosphere, sustainable sites, water use efficiency, materials and resources, and indoor environmental quality. It is being developed by ASHRAE, the Illuminating Engineering Society of North America (IESNA) and the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC).

“This standard is an energy-saving stepping stone toward ASHRAE’s goal of net-zero-energy buildings,” says John Hogan, chair of the committee that wrote the standard. “This is a goal that IESNA and the USGBC support as well as partners in this standard’s development. It also gives building owners or jurisdictions that voluntarily choose to adopt the standard a tool for constructing truly high-performing buildings that provide energy-efficient, safe and comfortable environments for occupants.”

By applying the minimum set of prescriptive recommendations, Standard 189.1P leads to site energy savings ranging from 10 to 41 percent over Standard 90.1-2007, including plug and process loads and all other energy consumption for the building, with an average of 24.9 percent for all climates.

The proposed standard also provides indoor water savings of 35 percent for an office building and 26 percent for a multifamily building. The indoor air quality criteria have been coordinated with ASHRAE’s IAQ Design Guide (under development), and the commissioning criteria have been more-closely aligned with ASHRAE’s commissioning guidelines. The first public review generated 900 comments.

Proposed ASHRAE standards, guidelines and addenda to standards are available only during public review periods. To read the draft standard or to comment, visit www.ashrae.org/publicreviews. The public review began Feb. 22 and ends April 7, 2008.

International building codes may soon incorporate requirements from a new load calculation standard from ASHRAE and ACCA under several recent proposals now under

ASHRAE High-Performance Building Design Professional Certification Now Available (ATLANTA)

ASHRAE’s new certification program provides the necessary training and tools for the design of high-performance buildings that live up to their performance capability.
Registration is now open for ASHRAE’s high-performance building design professional certification. The first exam will take place June 25 at ASHRAE’s 2008 Annual Meeting, June 21-25, Salt Lake City. Exams at testing centers around the world will become available in the fall. For more information or to register, visit www.ashrae.org/certification.

“This new certification program will allow practioners to demonstrate a well-rounded understanding and knowledge of how HVAC&R design is integrated into high-performing buildings to achieve the overall goal of sustainable practice used in green buildings,” Kent Peterson, P.E., ASHRAE president, said. “The program combines the criteria of ASHRAE Standards 90.1 (energy efficiency), 62.1 (ventilation) and 55 (thermal comfort) with the innovative approaches included in the Advanced Energy Design Guide series in an integrated design approach that strives to achieve practical, cost-effective high-performance building designs.”

The content of the exam includes sustainability concepts, HVAC and sustainable processes and environmental improvement programs and rating systems; energy analysis; indoor environment; controls and monitoring; benchmarking with performance metrics; water conservation, commissioning in sustainable construction; and operation and maintenance of high-performance buildings.

The high performance design professional certification is renewable every three years, and those certified must earn 45 professional development hours during that time.

“This program has been designed so that it is inclusive of global design approaches and tools,” Peterson said.

ASHRAE Provides Support for National Engineers Week Feb. 17-23 (Atlanta)

Engineers don’t just shape our buildings and infrastructure; they help shape our world.

The Atlanta-based American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE) is a partner in the National Engineers Week program (Feb. 17-23), a celebration of the contributions that engineering makes to our society and encourages engineering as a career path among young students by promoting pre-college literacy in math and science. For specific information about the program, please visit www.EWeek.org.

"National Engineers Week showcases how our profession engineers the world we live in," says ASHRAE President Kent Peterson. "From buildings to manufacturing and transportation, engineers have been behind so many modern-day marvels. Mankind also faces many engineering challenges today and in the future on how to improve sustainable life on earth. ASHRAE is proud to be involved in this program and celebration."

ASHRAE has twice served as lead organization in National Engineers Week. The last time, in 2003, ASHRAE launched the New Faces of Engineering recognition program as part of the weekly celebration, which has continued each year. The New Faces program promotes the accomplishments of young engineers across various disciplines by highlighting their engineering contributions and the resulting impact on public welfare. The program targets those age 30 and younger. Engineering associations, societies and government groups nominate candidates each year, from which 15 are selected for recognition in USA Today. ASHRAE’s nominee this year is Molly F. McGuire, a mechanical designer at Taylor Engineering, Alameda, California.

McGuire’s projects include variable-air-volume retrofits of two chemistry labs at Stanford University, which markedly reduced building energy consumption by more than 50 percent. She serves on the committee writing Standard 189.1P, Standard for the Design of High Performance Green Buildings Except Low-Rise Residential, which will be the nation’s first standard for sustainable buildings. Through this committee, she has advanced aggressive energy and indoor environmental quality targets.

McGuire and all of the New Faces of Engineering will be featured in a full-page ad published in USA Today during National Engineers Week.

Several events will take place in conjunction with National Engineers Week, including Introduce a Girl to Engineering Day (Feb.21) and the Future City Competition. Now in its 16th year, the competition attracted 30,000 middle-school students this year from a record-breaking 1,111 schools in 40 regions across America to work with teachers and volunteer engineers to envision the future in large, tabletop models of cities of tomorrow. The teams present their Future Cities before engineer judges at regional competitions in January. First place teams from qualifying regional competitions win a trip to Washington for the Future City National Finals, February 18-20. Visit www.futurecity.org. ASHRAE will be presenting special awards for sustainability and indoor air quality.

In addition, ASHRAE’s National Capital Chapter participates in and supports the Family Day event at the National Building Museum in Washington, D.C., on February 16. Some 6,000 local K-12 students try out hands-on projects, meet with engineers, and discover the ways engineers make a difference in the world.

ASHRAE and BOMA International Sign Memorandum of Understanding (Atlanta)

Partnership will promote mutual interests of engineering and building operations and management

ASHRAE and the Building Owners and Managers Association (BOMA) International are pleased to announce the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) in recognition of shared technical interests to foster superior building performance. Both organizations will work together to achieving, among others, the following goals:

Identify opportunities for shared operation services

Identify opportunities to collaborate on product development, and to give presentations at each other’s conferences

Where mutually beneficial, jointly promote educational programs to members and jointly identify, create and identify new products and services

Encourage continuing dialogue between ASHRAE and BOMA at national, regional and local levels on issues of importance to engineers and building professionals

Encourage collaborative and cooperative activities to promote continuing professional development

BOMA and ASHRAE commit to support each other and fully participate in standard development areas, initially centering around ASHRAE standards 62.1, 90.1, 180P and 189.1P working within the ANSI consensus standards development process.

“We are pleased to collaborate with ASHRAE and work toward our shared goal of promoting superior building performance,” said BOMA International Chairman and Chief Elected Officer Brenna S. Walraven, RPA, CPM, executive managing director, national property management, USAA Real Estate Company. “ASHRAE and BOMA are on the forefront of developing standards that significantly impact building owners and managers, and we look forward to working more closely with them on these matters.”
“BOMA and ASHRAE share many of the same objectives and we are excited to strengthen our relationship” says ASHRAE President Kent Peterson, P.E., vice president and chief engineer of P2S Engineering. “We are all working toward optimal performance of both new and existing buildings and this partnership will be beneficial for both ASHRAE and BOMA members.”
ASHRAE, founded in 1894, is an international organization of some 50,000 persons. ASHRAE fulfills its mission of advancing heating, ventilation, air conditioning and refrigeration to serve humanity and promote a sustainable world through research, standards writing, publishing and continuing education.
Founded in 1907, the Building Owners and Managers Association (BOMA) International is an international federation of more than 100 local associations and affiliated organizations. The 17,000-plus members of BOMA International own or manage more than 9 billion square feet of commercial properties in North America and abroad. BOMA’s mission is to enhance the human, intellectual and physical assets of the commercial real estate industry through advocacy, education, research, standards and information. On the Web at www.boma.org.

ASHRAE '08: Reaching New Heights (Atlanta)

Major announcements at ASHRAE’s 2008 Winter Meeting included free electronic distribution of the Advanced Energy Design Guide series, publication of the 2007 energy conservation standard from ASHRAE and IESNA, and signing of memorandums of understanding with the Brazil Green Building Council and the Building Owners and Managers Association.

More than 2,700 people attended the meeting, held Jan. 19-23, New York City. Held in conjunction with the meeting was the Air Conditioning, Heating, Refrigerating Exposition, which set a new attendance record with 39,298 registered visitors (excluding exhibitors). Records for a Northeast HVAC&R event also were set with total number of exhibitors of 1,885 and square footage of exhibit space of 363, 505.

Centered on the theme Reaching New Heights, a nod to the skyscraper skyline of New York City, the ASHRAE meeting offered a technical program with more than 130 sessions, 21 educational courses and social events. The meeting also featured more than 500 meetings of technical, standards and standing committees, developing guidance for the future of the industry and ASHRAE.

“ASHRAE hit new heights at this meeting in regard to driving the industry forward through our distribution of technical information, educational offerings and networking opportunities,” ASHRAE President Kent Peterson said. “Being surrounded by the thousands of buildings in New York City was a great reminder that ASHRAE and our industry must truly aim to reach new heights in creating high performing buildings. The accomplishments at this meeting certainly helped move us along the sustainability path.”

At the meeting, President Peterson debuted a new video that highlights how existing design and technology can be used in creating net-zero-energy buildings. The video and his state-of-the-Society address can be found at www.ashrae.org/peterson.

“Since we last met in June, oil has hit the $100-per-barrel milestone,” he said in his speech. “As you recall, we were concerned in 2004 when the price of oil roughly doubled in a year to $55 per barrel. Rising energy costs and the increased global awareness of the potential impact of climate change continues to drive home the message that low-energy, environmentally responsible, high-performance buildings are the future.”

Meeting highlights include the technical program, with its theme of Reaching New Heights in Net-Zero Energy Design, featuring more than 130 sessions with presentation of 59 papers. The most well-attended sessions dealt with net-zero-energy design, exergy, designing for mold and dehumidification avoidance and energy efficient datacom facilities.

Top best-selling books at the ASHRAE Bookstore included the 2007 version of Standard 90.1, the Handbook CD+, the Spanish Pocket Guide and the new Advanced Energy Design Guide for K-12 Schools.

More than 900 people attended the ASHRAE Learning Institute’s seven Professional Development Seminars and 14 short courses. The most popular courses dealt with health care, Standard 62.1 and natural ventilation.

ASHRAE Publishes Updated Version of Energy Efficiency Standard (Atlanta)

Energy reduction through new requirements related to lighting, façades, and mechanical systems is achievable in the latest energy efficiency standard from ASHRAE and the Illuminating Engineering Society of North America (IESNA).

Just published, the 2007 version of ANSI/ASHRAE/IESNA Standard 90.1, Energy Standard for Buildings Except Low-Rise Residential Buildings, provides minimum requirements for the energy-efficient design of buildings except low-rise residential buildings. The standard contains changes made through 47 addenda to the 2004 standard.

“One of the best ways to reduce building energy consumption is to reduce, or eliminate, the cooling or heating loads,” Mick Schwedler, chair of the Standard 90.1 committee, stated. “By doing so, the systems installed in buildings become smaller and use less energy. For example, on a hot, sunny day, having more insulation in the roof and better glass on the southern and western façades of a building reduce the air conditioning necessary as well as its resultant energy use. Two of the addenda do this by enhancing the insulation and fenestration (or window) requirements for the building exterior.”
The standard also addresses reduction of electrical and cooling loads and thus electricity by allowing less power for lighting. An addendum revised lighting allowances for retail displays, as it allows more flexibility for designers and better reflects actual retail lighting function.

Schwedler cited forewords from three approved mechanical addenda to quantify a portion of the energy savings:

· Addendum an: “…would save about 18 trillion Btu of gas and oil annually once the existing boiler stock turns over.”

· Addendum g: “will save an estimated 1.05 Quads of cumulative primary energy by 2035.”

· Addendum f: “will save an estimated 2.3 Quads of cumulative primary energy by 2035.”

“These substantial savings are credited to the work of past Standard 90.1 Chair Jerry White, the Standard 90.1 committee, and those that aided in the rigorous public review process,” Schwedler said. “We know that many projects are achieving considerable energy savings at reasonable costs and ask the entire design, operation, and owner communities to share these project ideas and contribute toward future energy and energy cost savings.”

Energy Efficient Buildings Encouraged Through Free Download of Advanced Energy Design Guide Series (ATlanta)

To encourage energy efficient design in a range of building types, ASHRAE and its partnering organizations are making available for free the Advanced Energy Design Guide series.

Electronic versions of the newest book in the series, Advanced Energy Design Guides for K-12 School Buildings, as well as the existing guides on small office and small retail buildings are available for free download at www.ashrae.org/freeaedg. Future guides, including one focused on warehouses to be published this spring, will be available for free electronic download as well.

"Energy efficiency is still a vast and underutilized energy resource that is essential to the long-term survival of our world," says ASHRAE President Kent Peterson. "Buildings consume approximately 40 percent of the primary energy in the United States. As part of our energy efficiency market deployment strategy, we want to get this valuable building guidance into the marketplace and into the hands of owners, contractors and design teams. The technology is available today to construct substantially more efficient buildings. Free distribution of the Advanced Energy Design Guide series will help educate the marketplace on how to build energy efficient buildings that use significantly less energy than those built to the minimum code requirements.

"The Illuminating Engineering Society of North America (IESNA) supports the electronic distribution of the Advanced Energy Design Guide series to ensure widespread availability of these voluntary recommendations," said Rita Harrold, IESNA member of the AEDG Steering Committee. "Offering these important Guides for free download to a large audience of users will help further the partnering organizations’ efforts to create a more secure energy future."

In addition, the K-12 guide was sent to nearly 14,000 school systems around the country to assist with the design of energy-efficient schools that create safe and comfortable environments conducive to learning.

Partnering organizations include the American Institute of Architects, the Illuminating Engineering Society of North America, the U.S. Green Building Council and the U.S. Department of Energy.

"Addressing energy use in our buildings is one of the most important measures we can take in our efforts to protect the health of our environment," said Brendan Owens, vice president of LEED Technical Development, U.S. Green Building Council. "The Advanced Energy Design Guide series are critical publications for the building industry. Every percentage point reduction in buildings’ energy use brings us that much closer to our goal of mitigating climate change."

"The importance for all design and construction professionals to move toward carbon neutral, sustainable buildings is of paramount importance to the American Institute of Architects," said Christine McEntee, executive vice president and CEO of the AIA. "The Advanced Energy Design Guides are an approachable, important tool to help achieve that goal."

The guides provide a sensible, hands-on approach to design through use of products that are practical and commercially available as "off-the-shelf" technology. They offer designers and contractors the tools needed for achieving a 30% energy savings compared to buildings that meet the minimum energy efficiency requirements of Standard 90.1-1999.

Hard copies of all of the guides are available for purchase. For more information, visit www.ashrae.org/freeaedg.

To order, contact ASHRAE Customer Service at 1-800-527-4723 (United States and Canada) or 404-636-8400 (worldwide), fax 404-321-5478, or visit at www.ashrae.org/bookstore.

ASHRAE Hosts Workshops on Data Center Energy Savings - (Atlanta)

Data centers in New York State use an estimated $593 million worth of energy each year.

Implementation of energy efficiency guidance and best practices information will be presented at five upcoming workshops from ASHRAE held throughout New York State. This information could result in a savings of at least $25 million for New York data centers over the next five years. Specifically, a 75 percent reduction in data center energy use could be experienced for some data centers.

“Estimates show that the total energy usage by data centers approaches 2 percent of the United States electricity usage, which is equivalent to about eight 1000 MW power plants,” said Roger Schmidt, chair of ASHRAE’s technical committee on mission critical facilities, technology spaces and electronic equipment. “The significant energy usage by datacom equipment has governmental agencies and utility companies very interested in how energy efficiency opportunities can be implemented.”
ASHRAE received an $180,000 grant from the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority to host five workshops in New York focused on data center energy efficiency and best practices. Registration is free to attend the workshops.
The first workshop takes place March 25 in Albany at the Nanotechnology Center, University of Albany, State University of New York. For more information, visit www.ashrae.org/datacenter. Additional workshops are planned for May 28, Baruch College, New York City; July 29, Syracuse University; Sept. 9, New York Power Authority, Buffalo; and Nov. 6 at Baruch College, New York City.
The workshops will focus on how data center operators, users, chief information officers, and data center designers and consultants can use energy efficiency opportunities and best practices. They are centered on three ASHRAE publications, Thermal Guidelines for Data Processing Environments, Improving Datacom Facility Energy Efficiency and High Density Data Centers – Case Studies and Best Practices. These three publications are free to workshop attendees.
Following the workshops, attendees will perform a survey of current practices and energy usage with their data centers.
“These ASHRAE workshops will demonstrate that significant energy improvements can be made in data centers, and that employing current technologies and ASHRAE guidance can show up to a 75 percent reduction in energy usage,” Schmidt said.

Last modified: 04/24/08