This Advanced VAV System Design Brief provides recommendations to help engineers improve the efficiency of large HVAC systems. It focuses on built-up variable-air-volume (VAV) systems in multistory office buildings.

To truly minimize the energy use of a drivepower system-which includes the motor, its controls, and the connection between the motor and the equipment it drives-designers need to consider how these components operate as a system rather than looking at them on an individual basis.

Evaporative coolers provide cool air by forcing hot dry air over a wetted pad. The water in the pad evaporates, removing heat from the air while adding moisture. Although the concept has been used in residential "swamp" coolers in the Southwest for decades, technology advances have made evaporative cooling a viable alternative to conventional cooling in commercial buildings and in other areas of the country.

Commissioning Assistant™ is a web-based tool designed to provide project-specific building commissioning information to design teams. The tool enables the user to evaluate probable commissioning cost, to identify an appropriate commissioning scope, and to access sample commissioning specifications related to their construction project.

The new multi-purpose building at the Urban Promise Academy consists of approximately 11,000 SF of new construction including a multi-purpose gymnasium with raised platform stage, office, conference room, equipment storage, rest rooms, a lobby, and art/music classrooms. The project is located within the Oakland Unified School District.

The modernization project at Oakland High School consisted of major renovations in Building E (a 5,573 SF wellness center) and Building F (a 20,400 SF historic shop building). In addition, the project included the construction of one new building, Building G (a 16,320 SF classroom building). In addition to the challenge of renovating aging buildings to provide a healthy and productive educational environment, the design team also had to meet stringent energy efficiency requirements.

La Maestra Community Health Centers is an award-winning not-for-profit organization that has been serving low-income and immigrant communities for 19 years.

Many school districts are finding the resources to renovate their
existing schools and build new ones while improving environmental
conditions at the same time. Green design practices not only
minimize operating costs, but they can protect the health of students and
teachers. Green schools engage students in a learning environment where
air is healthy, conditions are conducive to learning, and children can thrive.

This second volume of the Advanced Simulation Guidebook series is intended to teach readers about the high performance building process for commercial new construction. The goal of the high performance building process is to create buildings that meet owner and occupant needs in terms of energy efficiency, thermal comfort, and other sustainability areas-and do so in a way that reduces the necessary design effort and construction cost impact.

The Coast Community College District (CCCD), located in Orange County, California, comprises three community colleges that enroll more than 60,000 students per year in over 300 degree and certificate programs. Founded in 1947, the CCCD enjoys a reputation as one of the leading community college districts in the United States.

The builder for Hangar 25, a corporate jet hangar with attached office facility located at Burbank's Bob Hope Airport, set out with the lofty goal to build the "most sustainable aviation hangar in the world".

The CoolTools™ project objective is to develop, disseminate and promote an integrated set of tools for design and operation of chilled water plants.

Chilled beams are among the recent energy-saving innovations making their way to the U.S. market. Chilled beam technology, which involves locating a low-temperature radiator at ceiling level to cool the rising warm air, has been utilized in Europe and Australia for more than a decade. Once cooled, the air slowly descends into the occupied zone, providing adequate cooling with minimal air movement and fan power, while providing an unobstructed radiant heat sink above the occupied zone.

Energy costs are a significant expense for facilities that operate industrial refrigeration systems. In new construction projects, significant energy savings can be achieved by incorporating energy efficiency technologies in the project design. For facilities being expanded or upgraded, ensuring the efficiency of the refrigeration systems can lead to significant energy savings without compromising productivity.

San Francisco's Orchard Garden Hotel was San Francisco's first hotel to implement a cardkey system to control lights and HVAC systems in guestrooms. Monitored data from four rooms in the hotel showed a reduction in heating and cooling energy of 45% during the peak cooling season. Computer simulations based on monitored occupancy levels in the hotel estimate a savings of 32% of annual heating and cooling costs. Modeled across five different climate zones, the average savings were 26%.