Commercial buildings have high energy needs, and it’s no secret that the HVACR system is one of the largest sources of electricity consumption in them. Since the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) began tracking energy use through its Commercial Buildings Energy Consumption Survey (CBECS) in 1979, total energy consumption has almost doubled. However, while there was a 14 percent increase in total buildings and a 22 percent increase in total floor space between 2003 and 2012, energy use was up only 7 percent, according to findings from the 2012 CBECS.
These findings can be explained by new construction being built to tighter building codes and higher energy performance standards, as well as higher-performance retrofits of existing buildings.