Well I don’t know about you, but my big plans this weekend involved buying new energy-efficient light bulbs. It’s always the same—you sit in a cold, dark room for several hours listening to incredibly inspiring speeches about the very real ways we can all improve energy efficiency, reduce carbon emissions and in general leave less of an impact on our planet while saving money, and you walk out wanting to change the world. That is to say, I was lucky enough to attend the first inaugural Energy Efficiency Global Forum & Exposition (EE Global) in Washington, D.C., last week (You can read more about the event at http://www.usgnn.com/ and in the December issue of USGlass).
Ok, maybe buying light bulbs isn’t a huge step. But that’s one of the points RK Stewart, president of the American Institute of Architects, seemed to make during his presentation, “What Kind of Ancestors Will We Be?” According to Stewart, we can start right now to reduce energy consumption—at no cost—by using the systems we have available smartly. Little steps from architects, like reconsidering window size and orientation can make the most of available sunlight, Stewart said.
One of the points I found most interesting, that was stressed again and again by speakers on all topics, was how big increases in energy efficiency can be attained through very little cost. Scot Horst, chairperson of the U.S. Green Building Council’s LEED Steering Committee, showed real examples of buildings where energy efficiency was increased—with great financial savings—simply by looking at buildings holistically. Horst put graphs up on the screen showing the cost of investments in daylighting and IG units in a school in New Jersey. The cost savings seemed to support his point. But then Horst flipped to the next slide and explained that because the IG units led to reductions in the amount of heat pumps needed to warm the building, fewer (very pricey) holes had to be dug for the heat pumps and suddenly the cost savings were astronomical. Not only were many of these solutions cost-effective, but many relied on our industry.
The solutions presented during EE Global all made good sense to me. But then sitting and listening to Representatives promote their books about the environment and energy efficiency “idea” people talk about how easy it could be to make these changes isn’t the same as listening to product engineers and curtainwall consultants talk about the very concrete things that need to be done to make buildings more energy efficiency. So you tell me, you’re the experts—is improved energy efficiency really about changing our mindset to look for the available opportunities? Is it as cost-effective as the idea folk would have us believe? And while we’re on the topic of improving energy efficiency, do you think net-zero energy buildings are really attainable? What do you think?
One more important point. I’d like to encourage all of you meeting organizers out there to consider the value of an ice cream sundae bar at your next event. Don’t underestimate the power of chocolate and vanilla covered with m&m’s, sprinkles, whipped cream and cherries at provoking networking.
Ok, maybe buying light bulbs isn’t a huge step. But that’s one of the points RK Stewart, president of the American Institute of Architects, seemed to make during his presentation, “What Kind of Ancestors Will We Be?” According to Stewart, we can start right now to reduce energy consumption—at no cost—by using the systems we have available smartly. Little steps from architects, like reconsidering window size and orientation can make the most of available sunlight, Stewart said.
One of the points I found most interesting, that was stressed again and again by speakers on all topics, was how big increases in energy efficiency can be attained through very little cost. Scot Horst, chairperson of the U.S. Green Building Council’s LEED Steering Committee, showed real examples of buildings where energy efficiency was increased—with great financial savings—simply by looking at buildings holistically. Horst put graphs up on the screen showing the cost of investments in daylighting and IG units in a school in New Jersey. The cost savings seemed to support his point. But then Horst flipped to the next slide and explained that because the IG units led to reductions in the amount of heat pumps needed to warm the building, fewer (very pricey) holes had to be dug for the heat pumps and suddenly the cost savings were astronomical. Not only were many of these solutions cost-effective, but many relied on our industry.
The solutions presented during EE Global all made good sense to me. But then sitting and listening to Representatives promote their books about the environment and energy efficiency “idea” people talk about how easy it could be to make these changes isn’t the same as listening to product engineers and curtainwall consultants talk about the very concrete things that need to be done to make buildings more energy efficiency. So you tell me, you’re the experts—is improved energy efficiency really about changing our mindset to look for the available opportunities? Is it as cost-effective as the idea folk would have us believe? And while we’re on the topic of improving energy efficiency, do you think net-zero energy buildings are really attainable? What do you think?
One more important point. I’d like to encourage all of you meeting organizers out there to consider the value of an ice cream sundae bar at your next event. Don’t underestimate the power of chocolate and vanilla covered with m&m’s, sprinkles, whipped cream and cherries at provoking networking.
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