Starting in June, California’s latest version of its Title 24 building code kicks in, requiring several systems come with demand response capability. Every new or retrofit thermostat, HVAC system, networked lighting controller, and building automation system in the state will have to be ready for two-way, automated utility-to-customer energy management. Non-residential building lighting systems will be required to have daylight-matching adjustment, dimming and demand response capabilities.
These devices and systems will be required to be “capable of receiving and automatically responding to at least one standards-based messaging protocol” to receive signals from utilities. There are a few standards that meet the requirement— OpenADR, SEP 2.0, and HomePlug.
OpenADR was developed by the California Energy Commission and Berkeley Labs. It offers tools to allow buildings and utilities to communicate about energy availability, price, and how buildings can execute and confirm actions to reduce power use.
These standards were enacted after the California Energy Commission identified flaws in the state’s approach to demand response in a 2013 report, including a failure to reach modest goals set in 2007 to reduce peak demand by 5%. The solution may come from a market-based program to encourage users to reduce demand during peak energy use periods. The new demand-response standards pave the way for this option.
Related Stories
| Dec 7, 2012
Georgia court limits contractors’ ability to foreclose on liens
The Georgia Court of Appeals ruled in 182 Tenth, LLC v. Manhattan Construction Company that lien claimants such as contractors, subcontractors, and materialmen, may not foreclose on a lien that includes unpaid general condition costs.
| Dec 7, 2012
San Francisco real estate records will include ‘green labels’
Ecologically-sustainable building practices, or “green labels,” will now be included on official land records maintained by San Francisco.
| Dec 7, 2012
Tokyo’s Green Building Program has reduced power consumption by 20%
Tokyo city officials calculate that its Green Building Program reduced energy consumption by 20% since its inception, a statistic they identify as the reason the power stayed on during the 2011 earthquake.
| Dec 7, 2012
New flexible options make achieving LEED certification easier on projects outside the US
A new set of Global Alternative Compliance Paths, or Global ACPs, are now available for all commercial projects pursuing LEED green building certification using the 2009 versions of the rating systems.
| Nov 29, 2012
New York contractors say they will pay tax despite a court ruling that the tax is unconstitutional
The New York Building Congress says it will voluntarily pay a tax declared unconstitutional by the courts because, it says, the money is vital to maintaining the city’s transportation infrastructure.
| Nov 29, 2012
Storms like Sandy highlight the need for stricter codes, says insurance expert
Experts on insurance, weather, and catastrophe modeling say the role of climate change in Hurricane Sandy and future storms is unclear.
| Nov 29, 2012
Quake simulation to test concrete building's strength in California
Researchers aim to gauge how buildings constructed with reinforced concrete withstand an earthquake by conducting a simulation test at a two-story building built in the 1920s in El Centro, Calif.
| Nov 29, 2012
AGC offers stormwater compliance webinar
An effective document management system is necessary to stay in compliance with new and forthcoming stormwater runoff requirements, says the Associated General Contractors of America.
