The ASHRAE 90.1 committee

meets at every ASHRAE meeting and when needed  - as many as 4 times per year. The meeting typically last 4 days. We start on the Friday before before the ASHRAE meeting with a full day of subcommittee meetings. We

90.1 Committee  Meeting

I have been involved with Standard 90.1 since 1999 and the 2010 edition contains the first change to the purpose of the Standard that I am aware of. Before this change, I could always tell people that 90.1 was a “permit” standard. It starts with design and ends with final inspection; ends with the building permit. That is no longer true. The Purpose now reads: “To establish the minimum energy efficiency requirements of buildings, other than low rise residential buildings for:

1. design, construction, and a plan for operation and maintenance, and
2. utilization of on-site, renewable energy resources.”

The new parts are underlined. The Standard now covers operations and maintenance for the life of the building. So, now the Standard is active for the life of the building. We did this because the energy savings that are present during the first year of operation reduces over time. We hope to add requirements for training and recommissioning of the building. We have added no operation and maintenance requirements to the Standard as of the 2013 edition. We are working on strategies to enforce any requirements we add, as most jurisdictions do not have inspectors that visit the building after construction ends. We also have not required the use of renewables in the Standard. It is now clear that we have the authority to set requirements for renewable equipment. We are working to make sure that there are standardized testing procedures for this equipment so that we can set minimum efficiency standards.

Opinions expressed here are solely my own and do not express the views or opinions of ASHRAE or the 90.1 committee.