Using Benchmarking Data in Laboratory Design
Peter Rumsey, Integral Group | Rumsey Engineers
The Labs21 benchmarking tool allows laboratory owners to compare the performance of their laboratory facilities to similar facilities and thereby help identify potential energy cost savings opportunities. The tool allows benchmarking with energy use metrics (such as British Thermal Units/square feet/year [BTU/sq. ft./yr]) as well as system efficiency metrics (such as Watts/cubic feet per minute [W/cfm]). This resource is a valuable design tool that provides designers with essential data with which to gauge the energy performance of potential designs and to make critical design decisions early in the process.
Integral Group | Rumsey Engineers has been involved in benchmarking energy use for critical facilities for more than a decade and performed the benchmarking studies for facilities in California that are used as the industry standard for PG&E's incentive programs. The baselines were done for both small and large facilities and are standardized for the California Energy Comission's 16 climate zones.
Integral Group | Rumsey Engineers also has extensive experience implementing cleanroom and benchmarking projects with Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratories and several private sector clients.
This session will show laboratory designers, owners, and operators how to mine benchmarking data for use in designing facilities. Examples of actual laboratory designs where benchmarking data was used effectively will be also be provided.
Biography:
Peter Rumsey, a national leader in the design of low-energy buildings, is the founder and managing director of Oakland, California-based Integral Group | Rumsey Engineers, the first engineering firm in the U.S. to achieve seven LEED® Platinum projects. He has designed mechanical systems for data centers, cleanrooms, and laboratories that are among the most energy-efficient in the United States. His firm's projects have received many local and national awards from prominent industry organizations, including the Association of Energy Engineers and the American Institute of Architects. He is a registered professional engineer in 10 states, a certified energy manager, a senior fellow of the Rocky Mountain Institute, and an ASHRAE Fellow. He is a graduate of the University of California, Berkeley's mechanical engineering program and is a frequent lecturer at industry events, conferences, and colleges and universities, including the University of California, Berkeley and Stanford University. The focus of Mr. Rumsey's career has been transforming the building industry by designing affordable and dramatically energy-efficient buildings.