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Pacific Northwest Building Training and Assessment Center (PNW BTAC)


The UW IDL was awarded a grant through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and the US Department of Energy in their Industrial Assessment Center (IAC) and Building Training and Assessment Centers (BTAC) Program to establish a new Pacific Northwest Building Training and Assessment Center (PNW BTAC).

The PNW BTAC will network existing higher-education programs and technical assistance resources for building assessments and student experiences that will help building owners accelerate the transformation of the Pacific Northwest building infrastructure to meet net zero emissions targets. Student experiences will be central to the PNW BTAC and will be structured to combine hands-on and virtual building audit training while creating technical roadmaps for regional building owners. Well-supported programs at each partner institution will create opportunities for non-traditional students, underrepresented groups, and Tribal members. It aims to fill two gaps in building performance improvements: a trained workforce, and access to benchmarking and strategic roadmaps for energy efficiency and decarbonization, especially in disadvantaged communities.

The PNW BTAC will leverage partnerships with South Seattle College,Northwest Indian College, Pacific Northwest National Lab (PNNL), and Washington State Department of Commerce. The PNW BTAC will provide services to Washington, Oregon, and California.

NEEA BetterBricks Energy Efficient Technologies

The UW IDL developed three case studies of groundbreaking implementation of Luminaire Level Lighting Controls (LLLCs) for the Northwest Energy Efficiency Alliance. Projects included the Madrona Elementary School (Mahlum Architects), UW Founder’s Hall (LMN Architects), and Star Lake Elementary/Totem Middle School (McGranahan Architects). The case studies highlighted learning and synthesis of best practices for individually controlled light fixtures in three key areas: design, construction, and operations.

Seattle Building Tune-Up Accelerator

As part of a team that was awarded a $3.1 million, three-year grant from the US Department of Energy, Prof. Meek led implementation of a municipal-scale building-owner engagement and technical assistance process aimed at accelerating voluntary deep energy retrofits (20-
50% carbon emissions reductions) in the existing medium-sized (approximately 20,000-100,000ft²) commercial building stock in Seattle, WA, as part of a new mandatory building tune-up requirement. Leveraging a municipal ordinance mandating building tune-ups at five year intervals, the university-based research and deployment team seeks to develop a scalable pathway for creating custom technical and financial roadmaps for deep-energy retrofits that drive carbon-neutral operations.

Bullitt Center Energy Analysis

The UW IDL has performed comprehensive operational energy performance data measurement, verification, and documentation of the Bullitt Center, a five-story net-zero energy “Living Building” in Seattle, WA. The building achieves performance goals through multiple integrated strategies incorporating technologies, systems, and human behavior. Data collection included evaluating end-use energy, renewables, passive systems operation, light and comprehensive plug-load management and tenant engagement. IDL led the implementation of device-level data acquisition for commercial office equipment in service of the Bullitt Foundation’s innovative green-lease program.

This research has resulted in several publications including a poster exhibit and research paper that examine energy use, including factors that are influenced by occupant decisions.

 

  • [posters shown above] Gustin, A. (UW Architecture), Torres, (UW M. Arch. Student) I., Davis, D. (UW M.S. Design Computing Student), Meek, C., Burpee, H. (UW Architecture), Gilbride, M. (UW Architecture), “Weather and Occupancy-driven Energy Consumption at the Bullitt Center,” M. Rosenfeld Symposium at the University of California Berkeley, Poster Presentation, Berkeley CA, April 2019.