Servidyne Inc. announced that it is has been awarded contracts to provide energy efficiency and demand response services for commercial and institutional buildings in the city of San Antonio. The contracts call for the company to provide retro-commissioning and energy audit services. Servidyne also will perform demand response audits.

The EnOcean Alliance announced that it has signed up its 200th member company, NanoSense. NanoSense develops products using EnOcean and KNX technologies that regulate and optimize air quality inside buildings. Originally created in April 2008 by Distech Controls, EnOcean, Masco, MK Electric, Omnio, and Thermokon, the alliance now counts 200 members from 20 different countries.

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) has published a final rule establishing federal test procedures for walk-in coolers and freezers. In the rule, DOE adopted by reference Air-Conditioning, Heating, and Refrigeration Institute (AHRI) Standard 1250 (I–P)–2009, ‘‘Standard for Performance Rating of Walk-In Coolers and Freezers.”

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) and the U.S. Department of Education have joined with the National Science Teachers Association to launch America’s Home Energy Education Challenge, a new energy education initiative. The goal is to motivate students across the country to learn about energy efficiency and help their families save money.

America, with its entrepreneurial spirit and innovative national labs, will lead the global clean-energy revolution and reap the economic and environmental benefits that go with it, Vice President Joe Biden stated in a visit to the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE’s) National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL).

The High-Performance Building Congressional Caucus Coalition (HPBCCC), established by the American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE), will highlight the importance of high-performance buildings to federal, state, and local policymakers and the general public during High-Performance Building Week, May 23-29.

The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) has announced a decision to defer for one year - from Jan. 1, 2012 to Jan. 1, 2013 - the withholding of 3 percent tax on all payments for goods and services made by the federal, state, and local governments with total expenditures of $100 million or more. The 3 percent withholding tax applies to the total contract, not to the net revenue generated from a project.

Energy Concepts Co. is developing a waste heat powered 3-ton chiller for the U.S. Army Communications-Electronics Research Development and Engineering Center (CERDEC). The engine exhaust heat powered chiller must operate in 122°F desert climates with dry cooling; it must also be lightweight, compact, and efficient.

Radiant heating company Reid Heating & Energy Inc. has completed an in-floor radiant heating and cooling system for Hall St. Helena Winery in Napa Valley. The energy efficient installation has allowed for Hall to receive Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Gold certification from the U.S. Green Building Council.

The U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE’s) Fuel Cell Technologies Program will host a webinar with the Clean Energy States Alliance and the Technology Transition Corp. titled “Fuel Cells for Supermarkets” on April 4 from 1 to 2 p.m. Eastern time. The webinar will detail the experiences that supermarkets in four states have had with stationary fuel cells.