New CaGBC tool compares building energy with Canada-wide portfolio

The Canada Green Building Council (CaGBC) is releasing a new tool to measure the performance of existing buildings. The program, “GREEN UP,” is a means for benchmarking energy and water use, with goal-setting to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

It will also help owners and their consultants and operators identify ways to improve the performance of projects across building portfolios. Studies indicate that deep improvements in existing building energy efficiency are possible that are capable of reducing overall commercial building greenhouse gas emissions by 50-60%.

CaGBC says it has developed GREEN UP in response to a “clear industry need for a performance-based approach to energy and environmental improvements.”

The program will offer access to a national repository that includes building performance data for office, multi-family, long-term healthcare, hotel, retail, K-12 school, and government buildings.

Powerful data visualization tools will allow users to consolidate, analyze, and benchmark building performance against other ENERGY STAR buildings in their portfolio. By doing so, they are able to identify when and where they are spending energy and money, and take the necessary steps to change it.

The program will include:

The ability to normalize utility data and generate ENERGY STAR Scores (for eligible buildings);

Interactive dashboard views organized by building types and sub-types;

Quick and easy access to flexible and interactive reports; and

Decision guides that help support sustainable capital and operational investment spending.

The program comes out of a pilot study that CaGBC began in 2008 to track the energy use of tree building types: commercial office buildings, administrative buildings, and K-12 schools.

CaGBC will provide webinars on GREEN UP beginning this summer. For more information, click here.