List of Energy Efficiency Opportunities in Buildings

India’s building energy use accounts for 35% of the nation’s energy use, & this is growing by 8% annually. From various studies, it has been observed that there is an energy-saving potential of 30-40% in the existing commercial buildings out of which the major portion of it can be exploited by technology up-gradation & adopting operational best practices. Already hotels were recognised as designated consumers by Bureau of energy efficiency, where energy-saving targets were imposed & in a couple of years there are very high chances for all other subsectors of buildings like IT Parks, Hospitals, Multiplexes, Banks etc., to join the list. To save on energy cost & also to reduce environmental impacts it's high time now for the building industry to aggressively implement energy conservation measures and makes them greener. 

Below is the list of energy-saving opportunities in buildings:

• Seal exterior cracks/openings/gaps with caulk, gasketing, weatherstripping, etc.
• Consider new thermal doors, thermal windows, roofing insulation, etc.
• Install Roof garden to decrease building thermal load
• Infrared thermal imaging to identify and optimize the operation of idle thermal loads which will lead to reduction of at least 2% cooling load.
• Implementation of two-stage indirect evaporative cooling technology for getting high COP cooling.
• Low-grade waste heat recovery module installation can extract 6-10% waste heat energy from the chiller system.
• Install Intermetallic compound based active refrigerant agents to avoid oil fouling in the chiller system and get energy savings
• Implementation of online condenser cleaning to keep condenser approach < 4 Deg C
• Installation of hybrid power quality enhancer will provide 5 - 7% energy savings by imbalance voltage optimization, reactive power compensation and harmonic mitigation.
• Installation of Intelligent closed-loop algorithm based AC energy savers for various split and ductable ac units and optimize their run cycles
• Install windbreaks near exterior doors.
• Installation of 2-way valves and providing speed control feedback for a chilled water pump for exploring low flow high energy-saving opportunity.
• Use of high COP chillers by design. (Maglev chillers)
• Replace single-pane glass with double glazed glass.
• Look for the feasibility of installing light pipes through daylight harvesting
• Use landscaping to your advantage.
• Add vestibules or revolving doors to primary exterior personnel doors.
• Consider automatic doors, air curtains, strip doors, etc. at high-traffic passages between conditioned and non-conditioned spaces. Use self-closing doors if possible.
• Use intermediate doors in stairways and vertical passages to minimize the building stack effect.
• Use dock seals at shipping and receiving doors.
• Bring cleaning personnel in during the working day or as soon after as possible to minimize lighting and HVAC costs.

As everyone knows generally that there are many intangible benefits with green buildings include enhanced air quality, excellent daylighting, health & well-being of the occupants, safety benefits and conservation of scarce national resources. Many of the above-discussed opportunities can have a greater impact in securing most of the credits required for getting qualified as a green building also. There are around 28 points awarded for energy efficiency in IGBC green building rating.