Measuring Deep-Retrofit Savings in Commercial Building
“SBW was an invaluable partner to Seattle City Light during the development of our Pay for Performance program. SBW’s expertise in measurement and verification methodology and program evaluation was instrumental in designing the industry leading program.”
Seattle City Light recently launched an innovative Pay for Performance program. This program gives building owners the flexibility to customize their energy efficiency improvements. These improvements will maximize their return on investment by improving the comfort of their buildings, reducing electricity bills, and earning money by saving energy. The program is available for any large commercial customer that is heated or cooled. Prime examples are large office buildings, schools, grocery stores, warehouses, and senior housing.
Seattle City Light designed this program to encourage deep retrofits in commercial buildings and to achieve energy savings greater than 15% of annual consumption. Working closely with Seattle City Light staff, SBW developed guidelines for the measurement of these savings using data from whole-building electric meters. These guidelines adhere to International Performance Measurement and Verification Protocol Option C (Whole Facility) and the Bonneville Power Administration M&V Protocols. SBW’s guidelines provide step-by-step assistance to program participants, helping them account for the effects of weather and building occupancy in coming to a reliable estimate of the savings from their deep-retrofitinvestments. These guidelines are provided as part of the Pay for Performance manual available from this link.