Advances in Measurement and Verification that are Good for All Industry Stakeholders

摘要

There has been a long-standing need to streamline the measurement and verificationrn(M&V) process for estimating savings in commercial buildings. Savings estimates haverntraditionally been based on pre-project engineering calculations, and not “true” M&V that reliesrnand pre- and post-project measurements of energy use. Because of the challenges in modelingrnthe actual energy use, there has been a general perception M&V is not possible within reasonablernbudgets.rnRecently, new public domain software tools for M&V have been developed. This meansrnthat improved estimates of site-specific energy savings can be made. This capability is maderneven more valuable by the installation of “smart” meters, which has increased the availability ofrnenergy use data by orders of magnitude in comparison to monthly billing data. These new M&Vrntools can use either smart meter data or equipment/subsystem data, and can estimate not onlyrnsavings but also the uncertainty in those savings estimates.rnAn easy-to-use, free software tool that has been used by utilities and national laboratoriesrnis presented in this paper. This tool can use sub-hourly, hourly, or daily interval data to establishrnenergy use models. For completeness, the tool can also use monthly billing data. The toolrnfacilitates the definition of daytypes or occupancy periods, and provides a number of modelrntypes that are based on ASHRAE research.rnThis paper provides examples of its use in several projects, discusses how such tools canrnbe used to streamline projects and programs, and provide confidence in project results forrnutilities, regulators, and investors.