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GCABC and BC Energy Efficiency Standards Regulations
On January 6, 2010 the GCABC held an intimate get together with David Bruce of the Ministry of Energy Mines and Petroleum Resources of BC. Representatives from PFG Glass Industries, Glass Canada, Phoenix Glass, QAI, Intertek, Kawneer Canada, Layton Consulting, Read Jones Christoffersen, and SGB Services were present.
The purpose of the meeting was to discuss the new energy efficiency regulation which is set to become the law in about 359 days on January 1, 2011. The make up of our group was designed to reflect the many different perspectives in the glazing industry including manufacturers, suppliers, installers, consultants and testing entities.
The upcoming energy efficiency regulations are anticipated to have a dramatic effect on the practice of glazing in British Columbia. Until recently the notion of energy efficiency was considered by engineers and architects as a "best practice" from a design perspective. Glazing suppliers and manufactures, offered energy efficient products as a way to gain a competitive marketing advantage.
The advent of LEED, BOMA Best and Energy Star programs, energy efficient design was injected into the consciousness of the building industry and finally reached the end user, the tenant. Ironically this brought the issue full circle - now the development community had the motivation to really start to pay serious attention to energy efficient buildings.
With the "greening" of the building code and the addition of Part 10 to the British Columbia Building Code on September 5, 2008, energy efficient design became the law. This law had a limitation; however, as it would apply only to those projects under the umbrella of a building permit. In essence this code change invoked the ASHRAE 90.1 standard for heating and ventilation design which includes the impact of fenestration and cladding.
And now enters the BC Energy Efficiency Act (BC Reg 389/93). This piece of legislation has been in existence for over a decade covering energy consuming devices including household appliances such as light bulbs and toasters. In 2006 the BC government updated the act to implement new requirements for high efficiency furnaces. In 2008 the government set it sights on windows.
The final step towards legislating changes to energy efficient fenestration has been to directly address the unique challenges of commercial glazing. Thus the pending regulations set to take effect on January 1, 2011.
So how are these changes really going to affect the glazing industry? At this stage it really isn't clear. David Bruce from the ministry has provided us with a very succinct flow chart. The way that I interpret this chart as it relates to commercial glazing (i.e. metal framed windows) can be summarized in three categories as follows: - In a residence: max U-value = 2.00 W/m2*K.
- In a commercial building: max U-value = 2.57 W/m2*K.
- Buildings designed to ASHRAE 90.1 under a building permit have no U-value restrictions.
As an aside, the U-value is also referred to as the "overall heat transfer coefficient". It describes how well a building element conducts heat. A low U-value means the element is poor conductor of heat or alternatively a good insulator.Categories 1 and 2 above are expected to have a significant impact on commercial glazing as these performance targets exceed the typical glazing specifications that the industry at large has become accustomed to.
In order to meet these U-value requirements we should expect to see more triple glazing, high performance coatings, improved spacer bar and thermal break technologies, and inert gas filled sealed units. The bread and butter clear glass insulated glazing units may become a thing of the past.
Categories 1 and 2 are really limited to new residential projects and possibly large re-glazing projects that may be completed without a building permit. In contrast, category 3 will likely impact the majority of significant projects in BC.
Interestingly, category 3, tells us that nothing really changes. The BC Green Building Code already requires that buildings be designed and built in accordance with ASHRAE 90.1.
So what's all the fuss about?
The major changes that should be expected by the glazing industry will be a change in the level of understanding. In particular we should see a heightened awareness of energy efficient fenestration products within the design community which includes architects and building envelop engineers.
Glazing contractors should expect that a maximum U-value of 2.57 W/m2*K will become a de facto standard. Estimators should look very closely at project specifications for thermal performance requirements.
Glazing consultants and testing agencies should also be prepared to brush up their thermal modeling and verification skills. Such documentation will likely also become the de facto standard for project submittals.
The NFRC (National Fenestration Research Council) has laboratory and computational modeling certification programs. Companies with NFRC certifications have to undergo regular audits. It is expected that certified simulators will be engaged early in the design process to help define project specifications. While at the same time site specific verification will become the norm during construction.
Thermal modeling is traditionally done following a "component modeling approach". This methodology requires that the engineer rely on a database of previously verified components such as spacer bars and framing members. The model is built-up from these pre-existing elements to produce a model of the completed assembly.
This approach is expected to bode well for the larger manufactures as they will have the ability to produce the necessary back up documentation for whatever component they manufacture. The smaller firms may not have the same resources to cover the costs to undertake the necessary testing and engineering.
In an effort to better understand how the new regulations will affect the glazing industry in BC the GCA intends to continue an open dialogue between all stake holders. To this end the GCABC plans to hold regular information sessions and extends an open invitation to your comments and participation in this process.
This article was written for the Glazing Contractors Association of BC by Leonard Pianalto, M.Sc., P.Eng., LEED AP. Leonard is the chair of the Canadian Glass Association technical committee as well is an engineering consultant with Read Jones Christoffersen. www.rjc.ca
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