Below you'll find a list of all posts that have been categorized as “Articles”
In this CEAg article, “Greenhouse Energy Audits: Steps to Improve Profitability”, ERI Senior Engineer Gretchen Schimelpfenig and Climate Resources Group Founder Sam Milton examine how energy audits can optimize greenhouse energy usage – therefore lowering costs and improving profits, while going into each stage of the audit process. Audits delve into all energy consuming systems including lighting, fans, pumps, boilers, …
In a recent CEAg article, “How Vertical Farmers Can Reduce Energy Costs with Smart Controls,” ERI Senior Engineer Gretchen Schimelpfenig explores how smart control systems are transforming energy management for California’s indoor agriculture operations. The article highlights ERI’s leadership in a CalNEXT-funded research study—backed by PG&E, SCE, and SDG&E—focused on evaluating the effectiveness of integrated control technologies in controlled environment …
There is an abundance of data all around us. Up until recently most of this data was unable to be collected for any number of reasons. Perhaps it was too labor intensive to monitor and track it, or perhaps the data was not useful enough to justify purchasing and installing equipment. Enter the Internet of Things, or IoT. The IoT …
Prior to the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in early 2020, most people would never think about how many times the air inside their office building was cycled, filtered, and ultimately exchanged for fresh outside air. However, as employees are beginning to return to the office this summer, many are thinking about how clean the air inside their office really …
Whether you’re changing out your HVAC, lighting, or performing tenant improvements, building decisions or ownership approval usually boil down to budget. Financial constraints are often the limiting factor when retrofitting systems or equipment. Sometimes facility upgrades can be justified with utility rebates, tax credits, discounts, or other monetary incentives to make your budget work. While this is effective, oftentimes the …
For many multi-tenant property owners, the process of allocating utility costs along to tenants can be a challenge. While tenant spaces can be set up with direct utility meters, this doesn’t work well where tenant spaces may be reconfigured and built out differently for each new tenant’s needs. Pro-rating energy use by the square-footage of each tenant space can provide …
Fire season is upon us. Due to California’s recent storms, there are multiple thousand-acre fires across the state that are threating homes, business, and utility infrastructure. This is nothing new from previous fire seasons in California but as time progresses, we learn new ways and methods to adapt to these conditions in the short term. During 2020, all California utilities …
One of the most complex barriers to a successfully energy efficiency project is educating the staff and other stakeholders on how and why energy is being saved. It is quite common for systems to revert back to “normal” after implementing system upgrades that significantly reduce the energy savings and all the great work that was performed. Strategic Energy Management (SEM) …
Data centers can be extremely energy intensive. The server hardware in even a small data center will account for hundreds of kilowatts of demand. Not only that, but kilowatts of computer hardware generate kilowatts of heat, which then has to be cooled to keep the servers running. Energy efficient data centers can be developed from the ground up to minimize …
During the past few months, the majority of commercial buildings have significantly ramped down their occupancy to being vacant. As buildings now prepare for reopening, the American Society for Heating, Refrigeration, and Air Conditioning (ASHRAE) created an Epidemic task for to provide recommendations and guidance for getting buildings ready for the workforce. The guidance is a great resource for building …
