Expertise, discipline needed to contain energy costs

From rising electricity rates to expiring energy incentive programs to the implementation of Maryland’s Building Energy Performance Standards (BEPS), construction clients and their project teams are wrestling with a shifting array of challenges as they try to contain energy costs.

The ability to deliver successful, affordable solutions hinges on some construction fundamentals.

High performance building design

Advanced electrical and mechanical systems, building automation and onsite generation can lower a building’s energy consumption and carbon footprint, but at a hefty and increasing cost.

“You don’t immediately go off and buy the most expensive, highest efficiency HVAC system. There’s a smarter approach to high-performance building design and that involves looking at passive strategies first,” said Sean Soboloski of James Posey Associates.

Soboloski points to the current renovation of the Macklin Tower Library at Montgomery College. Constructed in 1971, the library’s mass walls lacked ample insulation. By adding insulation and completing other building envelope improvements, the project team was able to reduce the size of the HVAC system required in the updated building. The project, he added, is on track to reduce the library’s energy use intensity by 48 percent.

Renovation projects often encounter a prime opportunity for energy efficiency, said Dave Hoffman, President of Gipe Associates. “A lot of older buildings had no ventilation and, since Covid, we have been very aware of the need for ventilation.”

Including energy recovery systems and demand-control ventilation in updated HVAC equipment can boost a building’s energy efficiency, Hoffman said. “Of course, those systems cost money but you typically get a payback within seven years.”

New systems, he added, can deliver other financial benefits. A current renovation of the South Dorchester K-to-8 school in Dorchester County is outfitting the school with a highly efficient geothermal system and relocated HVAC equipment to resolve a long-standing problem the school had with outdoor equipment getting flooded on the school’s low-lying site.

Mechanical and electrical upgrades, however, are becoming more expensive, Hoffman said. Project costs have risen 15 to 25 percent in recent years and federal legislation that will sunset the 30 percent tax credit for solar and geothermal systems could make those technologies unaffordable for many future projects. Solar systems will be eligible for tax credits until 2027 and geothermal systems until 2033.

“The Maryland Energy Administration has a robust program of grants and incentives to offset the costs of improvements and there’s been an uptick in people seeking those financing opportunities,” Soboloski said.

When assessing the costs and benefits of building upgrades, some clients also have to determine what upgrades will be needed to remain in compliance with BEPS and how much alternative compliance fees could cost them if they don’t complete those upgrades, he said.

The well-maintained building

Even the best designed mechanical and electrical systems, however, can fail to deliver expected performance and efficiencies if they are not operated precisely.

“It’s our job to make sure everything actually does work in harmony,” said Vincent Koren, Regional Vice President Mid-Atlantic for Albireo Energy, a building automation contractor.

Optimal building performance depends on employing the right hardware and software to ensure that all the different pieces of mechanical and electrical equipment operate together in concert and respond to the needs of building occupants.

To deliver that performance, “you’re talking about a matter of seconds in equipment staging, in exercising outputs like valves and actuators,” Koren said.

Numerous factors can compromise building performance: programming errors (for example, misidentifying a work holiday), a malfunctioning temperature or CO2 sensor, or “mechanical atrophy where valves don’t quite close,” he said.

Consequently, Albireo recommends that clients bring skilled building automation technicians onsite at least once a month and much more frequently for campuses or buildings with complex operations.

Featured in this article: James Posey Associates, Gipe Associates, Albireo Energy