New Construction

EAc1

1-10 Points

Optimize Energy Performance

Intent: Achieve increasing levels of energy performance above the baseline in the prerequisite standard to reduce environmental and economic impacts associated with excessive energy use.

Toolbox

Lighting Controls

Design Guides

TER Values of ABL Products

Search for Fixtures by Required Efficiency

RT5 Energy Story

I-BEAM Energy Story

Free Software

USGBC Home Site

OPTION 1 - WHOLE BUILDING ENERGY SIMULATION (1-10 points)

Demonstrate a percentage improvement in the proposed building performance rating compared to the baseline building performance rating per ASHRAE/IESNA Standard 90.1-2004 (without amendments) by a whole building project simulation using the Building Performance Rating Method in Appendix G of the Standard. The minimum energy cost savings percentage for each point threshold is as follows:

Appendix G of Standard 90.1-2004 requires that the energy analysis done for the Building Performance Rating Method include ALL of the energy costs within and associated with the building project. To achieve points using this credit, the proposed design—

• must comply with the mandatory provisions (Sections 5.4, 6.4, 7.4, 8.4, 9.4 and 10.4) in Standard 90.1-2004 (without amendments);
• must include all the energy costs within and associated with the building project; and
• must be compared against a baseline building that complies with Appendix G to Standard 90.1-2004 (without amendments). The default process energy cost is 25% of the total energy cost for the baseline building. For buildings where the process energy cost is less than 25% of the baseline building energy cost, the LEED submittal must include supporting documentation substantiating that process energy inputs are appropriate.

For the purpose of this analysis, process energy is considered to include, but is not limited to, office and general miscellaneous equipment, computers, elevators and escalators, kitchen cooking and refrigeration, laundry washing and drying, lighting exempt from the lighting power allowance (e.g. lighting integral to medical equipment) and other (e.g. waterfall pumps). Regulated (nonprocess) energy includes lighting (such as for the interior, parking garage, surface parking, façade, or building grounds, except as noted above), HVAC (such as for space heating, space cooling, fans, pumps, toilet exhaust, parking garage ventilation, kitchen hood exhaust, etc.), and service water heating for domestic or space heating purposes.

For EA Credit 1, process loads shall be identical for both the baseline building performance rating and for the proposed building performance rating. However, project teams may follow the Exceptional Calculation Method (ASHRAE 90.1-2004 G2.5) to document measures that reduce process loads. Documentation of process load energy savings shall include a list of the assumptions made for both the base and proposed design, and theoretical or empirical information supporting these assumptions.

- OR -

OPTION 2 - PRESCRIPTIVE COMPLIANCE PATH (4 points)

Comply with the prescriptive measures of the ASHRAE Advanced Energy Design Guide for Small Office Buildings 2004. The following restrictions apply:

• Buildings must be under 20,000 square feet
• Buildings must be office occupancy
• Project teams must fully comply with all applicable criteria as established in the Advanced Energy Design Guide for the climate zone in which the building is located

- OR -

OPTION 3 - PRESCRIPTIVE COMPLIANCE PATH (1 point)

Comply with the Basic Criteria and Prescriptive Measures of the Advanced Buildings Benchmark™ Version 1.1 with the exception of the following sections: 1.7 Monitoring and Trend-logging, 1.11 Indoor Air Quality, and 1.14 Networked Computer Monitor Control. The following restrictions apply:

• Project teams must fully comply with all applicable criteria as established in Advanced Buildings Benchmark for the climate zone in which the building is located.