This is with regard to an open air shopping plaza, which is registered as a group project with 7 structures.
We received guidance to follow the “Treatment of District or Campus Thermal Energy in LEED” documentation re: how to apply our district cooling energy efficiencies across one model. To clarify – that implies that our energy model should be a single model, for the entire area within our scope of work - correct? We were also informed to be sure to include all non-contiguous buildings that fall within our LEED project boundary (“ancillary” spaces such as storage or mechanical) into the designation of those Building which they serve. (eg: if the One building has a storage room located on the parking level, it should be allocated to the One Building, despite no physical connection).
When we document this, we foresee some confusion, as the Schedules on the Minimum Energy Performance Calculator are broken down by Area Served. For example, the Building 1 includes One Building (served by package units) as well as adjacent retail (served by central plant). Do we simply report this as such? For Building Two: this is a cold dark shell being served by further tenant HVAC, however it also has contiguous ancillary mechanical spaces served by the central plant. Does this get reported as two line items for one building (Building Two?)
And, with regard to the remaining spaces served by the central plant: Do we itemize each Building in the Schedule, or can the remaining buildings be grouped into one line items, with efficiencies averaged amongst the overall square footage? (Or is there another way to allocate the energy demands vs efficiencies besides square foot?)
Is there any scenario where we would need to create separate energy models for each building?
Thank you in advance!
Marcus Sheffer
LEED Fellow7group / Energy Opportunities
LEEDuser Expert
5868 thumbs up
August 19, 2016 - 12:57 pm
If it is in all one certification then yes it could be one model. It could possible be separate models but I think would be easier to do the modeling as one with separate meters for each building. I think each building will need to demonstrate compliance with the minimum savings required.
As far as the forms go I could see that you will have some issues. In general you should report how it was modeled. You should provide a modeling narrative explaining some of the anomalies you will need to make the information fit in the form and when doing the modelings. Explanations go a long way in minimizing reviewer confusion.
You will probably need to report the total energy use in the form and then provide a breakdown of the energy use of each building in a separate document. You will probably also have to do this for the input summary tabs in the rest of the form too. I don't think that the form was created to easily accommodate multiple buildings.