GOLDEN, Colo. — The U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE’s) National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) has developed a web-based tool to help commercial building engineers and designers better understand the energy performance of building-related products, including HVAC. The Technology Performance Exchange™ (TPEx™) is a portal designed to help manufacturers and organizations that measure and test products easily share performance data.
“Many organizations refrain from moving forward with the procurement of energy efficient and renewable energy solutions because they don’t have access to the performance data needed to evaluate and compare high impact technologies against organizational and energy performance criteria,” said Daniel Studer, TPEx project manager for NREL’s Commercial Buildings Research Group. TPEx provides a way “to exchange the information necessary to move these projects to the implementation stage.”
The TPEx uses data entry forms (DEFs), standardized documents that identify the minimum product-specific performance parameters needed to evaluate a product’s energy performance. By asking manufacturers to provide performance data using DEF-defined parameters, TPEx users are able to perform apples-to-apples comparisons of products, and find the most appropriate product for their particular use.
Utilities, industry analysts, and others interested in the energy performance of building products may also find the data provided by the TPEx to be of interest.
“Electric and gas utilities can use the TPEx to help streamline their product evaluation, incentive, and rebate program workflows,” Studer said. “Anyone who wants to investigate the energy performance of a particular product or technology class will benefit from the information provided by the TPEx.”
Currently, the TPEx accepts data for 17 different product categories, including hot-water boilers, steam boilers, compressors, rooftop units, pumps, heat pump water heaters, solar photovoltaic modules, and more. For more information and a complete list, go to the TPEx website at https://performance.nrel.gov.
Publication date: 3/17/2014
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