A framework for monitoring-based commissioning: Identifying variables that act as barriers and enablers to the process

Harris, Nora; Shealy, Tripp; Kramer, Hannah; Granderson, Jessica; Reichard, Georg

doi:10.1016/j.enbuild.2018.03.033

Title: A framework for monitoring-based commissioning: Identifying variables that act as barriers and enablers to the process

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Abstract

The practice of monitoring-based commissioning (MBCx) using energy management and information systems (EMIS) has been shown to enable and help sustain up to 20% energy savings in buildings. Despite research that has quantified the costs, benefits, and energy savings of MBCx, the process remains under-utilized. To understand why MBCx is not more frequently adopted and how to encourage its use, this research synthesizes qualitative data from over 40 organizations, currently engaging in MBCx. The outcome of this research is a framework containing variables that emerged from the qualitative data, marked as barriers or enablers, organized by phases of the MBCx process. The framework is comprised of 51 emergent variables that fall within 13 different categories. The variables that most frequently act as barriers are data configuration, measurement & verification (M&V), developing specifications for EMIS, and data architecture. Although some variables that act as barriers for one organization were identified as enablers for another. For example, payback/ROI was considered a barrier 7 times and an enabler 3 times. One organization had difficulty making the business case for the initial investment for MBCx due to lack of cost information, while another was able to justify large investments with documented savings of previouslymore »« less

Authors:

Harris, Nora ^[1];

^[1]; Kramer, Hannah ^[2]; Granderson, Jessica ^[2];

^[3]

Virginia Polytechnic Inst. and State Univ. (Virginia Tech), Blacksburg, VA (United States). Charles Edward Via, Jr., Dept. of Civil and Environmental Engineering
Lawrence Berkeley National Lab. (LBNL), Berkeley, CA (United States). Building Technologies and Urban Systems Division
Virginia Polytechnic Inst. and State Univ. (Virginia Tech), Blacksburg, VA (United States). Myers-Lawson, School of Construction

Publication Date:: Fri Mar 16 00:00:00 EDT 2018

Research Org.:: Lawrence Berkeley National Lab. (LBNL), Berkeley, CA (United States)

Sponsoring Org.:: USDOE Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE), Energy Efficiency Office. Building Technologies Office; National Science Foundation (NSF)

OSTI Identifier:: 1436175

Alternate Identifier(s):: OSTI ID: 1548559

Grant/Contract Number:: AC02-05CH11231; DGE-1651272; DGE- 1651272

Resource Type:: Accepted Manuscript

Journal Name:: Energy and Buildings

Additional Journal Information:: Journal Volume: 168; Journal Issue: C; Journal ID: ISSN 0378-7788

Publisher:: Elsevier

Country of Publication:: United States

Language:: English

Subject:: 29 ENERGY PLANNING, POLICY, AND ECONOMY; 32 ENERGY CONSERVATION, CONSUMPTION, AND UTILIZATION; 96 KNOWLEDGE MANAGEMENT AND PRESERVATION; Monitoring-based commissioning; Framework; Energy management and information systems; Information systems; Commercial buildings

Citation Formats


                    Harris, Nora, Shealy, Tripp, Kramer, Hannah, Granderson, Jessica, and Reichard, Georg. A framework for monitoring-based commissioning: Identifying variables that act as barriers and enablers to the process.  United States: N. p., 2018. 
Web.  doi:10.1016/j.enbuild.2018.03.033.

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                    Harris, Nora, Shealy, Tripp, Kramer, Hannah, Granderson, Jessica, & Reichard, Georg. A framework for monitoring-based commissioning: Identifying variables that act as barriers and enablers to the process.  United States.  https://doi.org/10.1016/j.enbuild.2018.03.033

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                    Harris, Nora, Shealy, Tripp, Kramer, Hannah, Granderson, Jessica, and Reichard, Georg. Fri .  
"A framework for monitoring-based commissioning: Identifying variables that act as barriers and enablers to the process".  United States.  https://doi.org/10.1016/j.enbuild.2018.03.033.  https://www.osti.gov/servlets/purl/1436175.

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@article{osti_1436175,

  title        = {A framework for monitoring-based commissioning: Identifying variables that act as barriers and enablers to the process},

  author       = {Harris, Nora and Shealy, Tripp and Kramer, Hannah and Granderson, Jessica and Reichard, Georg},

  abstractNote = {The practice of monitoring-based commissioning (MBCx) using energy management and information systems (EMIS) has been shown to enable and help sustain up to 20% energy savings in buildings. Despite research that has quantified the costs, benefits, and energy savings of MBCx, the process remains under-utilized. To understand why MBCx is not more frequently adopted and how to encourage its use, this research synthesizes qualitative data from over 40 organizations, currently engaging in MBCx. The outcome of this research is a framework containing variables that emerged from the qualitative data, marked as barriers or enablers, organized by phases of the MBCx process. The framework is comprised of 51 emergent variables that fall within 13 different categories. The variables that most frequently act as barriers are data configuration, measurement & verification (M&V), developing specifications for EMIS, and data architecture. Although some variables that act as barriers for one organization were identified as enablers for another. For example, payback/ROI was considered a barrier 7 times and an enabler 3 times. One organization had difficulty making the business case for the initial investment for MBCx due to lack of cost information, while another was able to justify large investments with documented savings of previously implemented measures identified through MBCx. The framework formally validates barriers found in previous research, and can be used by practitioners to better understand common experiences with MBCx. This research also highlights the need for a similar collective data set to validate common enablers to MBCx and also the need for empirical research to determine relationships between variables.},

  doi          = {10.1016/j.enbuild.2018.03.033},

  journal      = {Energy and Buildings},

  number       = C,

  volume       = 168,

  place        = {United States},

  year         = {Fri Mar 16 00:00:00 EDT 2018},

  month        = {Fri Mar 16 00:00:00 EDT 2018}

}

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