Commercial Resources
If you are a design professional, contractor, or sub-contractor in the commercial building sector, this site will answer your questions regarding the state minimum Energy Code requirements, beyond code construction, best practices, improved energy performance techniques, products and technologies. It provides cost-effective solutions, offers creative alternatives, and identifies resources to help you make informed decisions to improve the performance and operation of your building and reduce utility expenditures while improving the comfort of the tenants.
Retail and service buildings use the most total energy of all the commercial building types. This isn’t too surprising when you think of all the stores and service businesses in most towns. Offices use a large share of energy, too. Education buildings, like Arkansas schools, use 13 percent of all total energy, which is even more than all hospitals and other medical buildings combined! Lodging buildings (like hotels or dormitories) use 8 percent of all energy. Warehouses and food service (like restaurants) each use 7 percent. Public assembly buildings, which can be anything from libraries to sports arenas, use 6 percent; food sales buildings (like grocery stores and convenience stores) use 4 percent. All other types of buildings, like places of worship, fire stations, police stations, and laboratories, account for the remaining 10 percent of commercial building energy.
The most recent update to the commercial code was adopted in November of 2011. Accordingly, ASHRAE 90.1.2001 will continue to be in effect for commercial buildings until December 31, 2012. On and after January 1, 2013, ASHRAE 90.1-2007 Energy Standard for Buildings Except Low-Rise Residential Buildings or Chapter 5 of the 2009 IECC will be in effect.
COMcheck is a “deem to comply” software tool to determine compliance with ASHRAE 90.1-2001 or 2007.