by Brianna Crandall — April 20, 2015—The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Energy Star program has released Portfolio Manager DataTrends energy benchmarking analysis for 16 property types, including a first-ever look at 12 new property types.
The Energy Star Portfolio Manager is EPA’s online database of hundreds of thousands of commercial buildings that are benchmarking and tracking energy use. The tool can be used to measure and track energy and water consumption, as well as greenhouse gas emissions. It enables benchmarking of the performance of one building or a whole portfolio of buildings, all in a secure online environment.
Portfolio Manager DataTrends is an ongoing series of original research and analysis from Energy Star. It is a compilation of observations and statistics from all the buildings using Portfolio Manager to track their energy use, with the hope that the information will help inform and advance the industry.
According to EPA, among the most interesting findings is that buildings that consistently benchmark energy use save an average of 2.4 percent per year.
National trends
DataTrends shows national trends using comprehensive data from all building types, focusing on broad characteristics and trends. These include a three-year study of 35,000 buildings showing how their energy use changed over time; Trends among Energy Star-certified buildings; and water use and property characteristics of buildings benchmarking water in Portfolio Manager.
Sector-specific analyses
DataTrends also provides sector-specific analyses for the energy use of banks, courthouses, distribution centers, financial offices, hospitals, hotels, K-12 schools, medical offices, offices, retail stores, residence halls/dormitories, senior care communities, supermarkets, non-refrigerated warehouses, wastewater treatment plants, and worship facilities.
