Commercial Building Energy Audits course part of Fall Online Series

Pointing out that one way to learn about what kind of building improvements are needed is to conduct an energy audit, ASHRAE has announced offering a new course as part of its ASHRAE Learning Institute fall online course series. It will provide guidance on best practices and other information relevant for building owners, managers and government entities, the announcement added.

ASHRAE gave the following course details: The two-part Commercial Building Energy Audits course takes place on November 4 and 6 and includes a summary of materials essential for performing ASHRAE Level 1, 2 and 3 audits; time-saving tips for energy auditors; how to hire an auditor; what to ask for in a comprehensive audit report; how to build a successful energy efficiency retrofit team; tips to make site visits quicker and more effective; tools to make analysis of billing data and energy savings faster and more accurate; and tools to perform diagnostics using measured data. Courses are instructor-led and participants will earn continuing education credits and qualify for Professional Development Hours for each course completed.

“As we work to identify investment opportunities in commercial buildings, we want to ensure that any recommendations are cost effective, technically feasible and result in significant energy savings,” Jim Kelsey, course instructor, said. “Providing the best audits that we can will help move the industry forward to net zero buildings, so this course focuses on how to actually conduct good audits.”

Highlighting that new industry research showed that revenue from energy-efficient HVAC systems will grow from $17.2 billion in 2013 to $33.2 billion by 2020, he added, “That growth will not be possible without independent energy auditors who can put unbiased, engineering-based information into the hands of decision-makers.”