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The U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE), Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy’s (EERE)’s Building Technology Office (BTO) leads the research and development on innovative technologies that make homes and buildings more affordable, energy-efficient and sustainable.
At present, in America, there are 123 million buildings, of which 80% are 20 years old or older. In this context, the residential and commercial buildings use more than 40 per cent of the nation’s total energy and more than 74 per cent of electrical power, resulting in an estimated annual national energy bill totaling more than US$ 415 billion annually. In contrast, America’s industrial sector uses 32 per cent of the nation’s total energy while the transportation sector uses 28 per cent of the nation’s total energy.
As per a report of the U.S. Energy Information Administration AEO 2018, the use of energy – is highest in the residential sector followed by the commercial sector. Thus, buildings consume up to 80 per cent of peak electricity, which is often termed as the dirtiest and most expensive electricity use by any industry. In the given context, the goal of the Building Technologies Office’s (BTO) is to reduce the energy intensity of U.S. Buildings by 30 per cent by 2030, relative to 2010.
To improve America’s energy efficiency in residential and commercial buildings, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), announced on 25th September the Buildings Energy Efficiency Frontiers and Innovation Technologies (BENEFIT) 2020 Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA). The funding opportunity is for up to $80 million for projects that will improve the energy productivity of the buildings without disrupting or sacrificing the comfort of the occupant, enhance energy demand flexibility across buildings and also include research and development of next-generation building technologies such as building construction tools, remodelling, retrofit practices and associated workforces.
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“Improving energy efficiency in our nation’s buildings and homes enables American businesses and families to efficiently consume energy without compromising comfort or performance,” said Deputy Secretary Mark W. Menezes. “By advancing innovative technologies that enhance building design, materials, equipment, and operations, we are building a more resilient energy future.” The projects undertaken within the BENEFIT 2020 FOA aims to improve the energy efficiency of America’s building stock, covering over 119 million homes and 5.6 million commercial buildings.
The 2020 BENEFIT FOA broadens DOE’s investments in cutting-edge, energy-saving building technologies, systems, and practices that will impact various segments of the buildings industry. “Projects funded under this FOA will help advance innovative buildings technologies to move toward a new generation of building energy technologies,” said Daniel R. Simmons, Assistant Secretary for Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy. “These projects will further U.S. leadership in advanced building science and technology.”
As part of BTO’s multi-year plan (2016-2020), and as defined under the FOA, the goal of the BTO is to:
| Goal | Goal Definition | Strategy |
| Commercial Buildings Integration | By 2025, market leaders will achieve in their buildings an improvement in energy consumption per square foot of at least 35% relative to typical commercial buildings in 2010 | · R&D to conduct building and systems integration and to build zero energy buildings
· Validate using High-impact technologies (HITs) · Develop modeling and analysis tools for energy performance |
| Better Buildings Initiative | To dramatically improve the energy efficiency in the commercial, public, industrial and residential sectors by at least 20% over the next decade | · Grid-Interactive Efficient Buildings (GEB)
· A Grid-interactive and efficient office |
| Advanced Building Construction | To use next-gen technologies and practices that improve building energy performance | · New construction and retrofit applications
· Lean construction and remodeling processes · Offsite production technologies |
Thus, DOE seeks to use a suite of building technologies to unlock energy savings and to enhance America’s energy system. Using high-impact technologies, total building energy savings up to 25-40% is possible. “DOE seeks to advance both the efficiency and flexibility of buildings while improving the comfort and productivity of American families and businesses,” said Alex Fitzsimmons, Deputy Assistant Secretary for Energy Efficiency. “This suite of technologies will not only unlock deep energy savings in buildings but also enable buildings to provide innovative services to the grid with which they’re connected, enhancing the resilience of America’s energy system.”
By using next-gen technologies such as geospatial, and BIM software with energy analysis software, America could save up to 760 TBtu in energy while simultaneously resulting in occupant satisfaction and improved health, improved indoor environmental quality and better space utilization. The US$ 80 million funding opportunity would help BTO achieve sustained, multifaceted building technology landscape for an energy-efficient infrastructure ecosystem.
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