EPA Target Finder Helps Architects Set Energy Goals

The Energy Star™ Commercial Buildings program recognizes buildings that perform in the top 25% of their class in terms of energy use. As part of that program, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) set up a Web-based tool called

Portfolio Manager. Users enter information from their energy bills into Portfolio Manager, which compares that energy use to a database of existing buildings and gives the building a percentile score between 1 and 100. Buildings that score 75 or higher and meet minimum indoor air quality requirements qualify for the Energy Star label. Once this system was set up, the Energy Star staff realized that the same tool could be used during design to set energy targets, and