A new credential — the Energy Management Professional (EMP) certification from Energy Management Association (EMA) — is training individuals to balance the goals of energy conservation and building performance, which, according to Andrew Heitman of Building Energy Sciences LLC, Pensacola, Florida, keeps customers happy.

ASHRAE announced that the importance of building and system commissioning will be highlighted in the Technical Program at its 2015 Annual Conference, which takes place June 27-July 1, at the Atlanta Hilton in Atlanta.

Building commissioning services originated in the United States and United Kingdom in the 1960s and 1970s as a quality assurance measure for new buildings. In recent years commissioning has experienced rapid growth through the spread of green building certification programs, notes Navigant Research.

ASHRAE has announced that registration is now open for its free webcast, “New Tomorrows for Today’s Buildings: Existing Building Commissioning,” at www.ashrae.org/webcast.

The National Environmental Balancing Bureau (NEBB) has announced its new Commissioning Process Certified Professional Program. The NEBB Commissioning Process Certified Professional (CX-PC) certification will be U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) recognized.

ASHRAE has announced the addition of a new online course focused on requirements in its first commissioning standard. The course, “Commissioning Process and Standard 202,” taught by Walter Grondzik, P.E., is being held March 25, 2015. It is one of 12 ASHRAE Learning Institute (ALI) spring online courses being offered.