COURSE DESCRIPTION

In this introductory course, explore the fundamentals of how “compliance tradeoffs” work and how this approach gives you flexibility in meeting the Nonresidential Energy Code. Learn how to get around Prescriptive requirements you want to avoid by using a combination of building features to balance your energy budget. Choose between a variety of options that are “better than and worse than Prescriptive” for envelope, mechanical, lighting and PV and battery systems to bring an example project into compliance with the Energy Code (Title 24, Part 6 or the California Building Energy Efficiency Standards) — without getting bogged down in the details.

This course does NOT address how to use the modeling software; rather it focuses on a high-level practical and conceptual look at how the Performance approach works with nonresidential projects.   

COURSE OBJECTIVES

• Compare the Prescriptive and Performance approaches to compliance with the 2022 Energy Code.
• Describe, in general terms, how Performance modeling works and what it produces.
• Use Joint Appendix 4 (JA4) to determine how alternative wall assemblies compare to nonresidential Prescriptive requirements of the 2022 Energy Code.
• Given an example nonresidential project, identify a set of “tradeoffs” among measures that likely will comply with the 2022 Energy Code using the Performance Approach.
• Summarize the commissioning requirements for nonresidential building projects.

Available CEUs:
AIA (2.0 LU | HSW); ICC (0.2 CEU); CABEC (2 CEUs)