by Brianna Crandall — October 20, 2014—Facilities managers of conference centers and other large event venues may be interested in the announcement October 16 by Hanley Wood, the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) and EMerge Alliance that what the organizations call the “world’s first” Net Zero Zone will be unveiled this week at the 2014 Greenbuild International Conference and Expo taking place at the Morial Convention Center in New Orleans October 22-24, 2014. The Zone reportedly illustrates one of the main themes of this year’s conference: resiliency.
“Driven by the innovative work of EMerge Alliance and its members, the launch of the new Net Zero Zone will make Greenbuild 2014 the first conference and expo to have exhibition space where booths are fully powered by an on-site microgrid including alternate energy generation, storage and distribution,” said Lindsay Roberts, show director, Greenbuild. “This is an important step for the trade show industry and sends a strong message to the entire green building movement that hybrid power in buildings is both possible and practical.”
The pace-setting Net Zero Zone at Greenbuild will focus on three areas:
- The Net Zero Pavilion, a specially designated exhibit area inside the expo hall, powered by the microgrid, showcasing 11 exhibitors in 1,500 square feet of exhibit space;
- Net Zero Networking Lounge where sponsor representatives and educational presentations are available to all show attendees; and
- An outdoor demonstration of typical on-site solar electricity generation that is connected directly to in-building hybrid microgrid storage and distribution equipment adjacent to the Net Zero Networking Lounge.
Designed using EMerge Alliance standards for the hybrid use of alternating current (AC) and direct current (DC) power in buildings, the Net Zero Zone showcases the efficiency, reliability and resiliency of hybrid microgrids — systems of local electric power generation, storage and distribution that can operate either in combination with the local utility grid or in isolation from it. Booths in the Net Zero Zone will demonstrate the seamless capability of autonomously operating both on, off and in combination with the local utility grid.
“The Net Zero Zone illustrates one of the main themes of this year’s conference: resiliency,” said Kate Hurst, director of conferences and events, USGBC. “At USGBC, we can’t think of a better place than New Orleans or a more important venue than the largest sustainable building conference in the world to introduce this evolved approach to electric power.”
According to EMerge Alliance President Brian Patterson, the Alliance is on a mission to create a more resilient and sustainable infrastructure for electric power in the same way the Internet created such an infrastructure for data, and the Net Zero Zone will give conference attendees a hands-on look at the technology.
The EMerge Alliance is involved in more than 50 hybrid AC/DC microgrids being tested and demonstrated at key sites around the world, including a Steel Orca data center in Princeton, New Jersey; the NextEnergy Center research facility in Detroit, Michigan; and the State of Michigan’s Treasury building in Flint.
Greenbuild, owned and operated by Hanley Wood and presented by USGBC, is the nation’s largest conference and expo dedicated to green building design and construction. The conference, aptly themed ‘Leadership Jazz’ for 2014, attracts 23,000 attendees and 600 exhibitors annually from across the green building sector, spanning commercial and residential professionals, architects, building owners and operators, students, advocates and educators. Greenbuild 2014 takes place Oct. 22-24, 2014 in New Orleans.
