CHICAGO — A step-by-step procedure to determine the annual cooling and heating energy use of buildings with multiple HVAC systems will be developed by the American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE).

The organization approved funding totaling $575,383 for seven research projects in the areas of design tools, operation and maintenance tools, indoor air quality, comfort and health, refrigeration, environmentally safe materials, and energy conservation at its winter meeting.

Among the projects is 1092-TRP, “Development of Procedures to Determine In-Situ Performance of Commonly Used HVAC Systems.” The project is expected to take 18 months to complete with ASHRAE contributing $89,841.

According to ASHRAE, recent studies have shown that HVAC system models, originally developed for design purposes, are equally useful for detecting and assessing the impact of operation and maintenance measures and for identifying energy retrofit savings when monitored data are available.

For more information on the research, visit www.ashrae.org.

Publication date: 03/10/2003