Energy Performance Indicators Give Industries Leg Up on Benchmarking
The Nicholas Institute for Environmental Policy Solutions at Duke University reports that the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's Energy Star program in the auto manufacturing industry has cut fossil fuel use by 12 percent and reduced greenhouse gases by more than 700,000 tons of carbon dioxide, according to an EPA press release.
The report, "Assessing Improvement in the Energy Efficiency of U.S. Auto Assembly Plants," affirms EPA’s energy management strategy, particularly the importance of performance measurement and recognition for top performance. The report also demonstrates that the gap between top performing plants and others has closed and the performance of the industry as a whole has improved.
Central to this energy management approach is the Energy Star Energy Performance Indicator (EPI) for auto assembly plants, which enables industry to benchmark plant energy performance against peers and over time.
Energy Star EPIs exist or are under development for more than 20 other industries. Across these industries, EPA has recognized nearly 60 manufacturing plants with the Energy Star label, representing savings of more than $500 million and more than 6 million metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalent annually.
The program offers free online training to help organizations improve energy performance. On July 8, the Energy Star program will present "Financing Energy Efficient Upgrades with Energy Star," from 2 to 3:15 p.m. EDT. The training will explain how public sector organizations are improving energy efficiency with innovative solutions to financial barriers. Attendees will learn about financing projects in the public and private sectors, the basics of performance contracting, and how EPA’s tools and resources can help in the decision making process. This session will be repeated on Aug. 11 and Sept. 1.
To register for any of these trainings or to see other upcoming trainings, visit https://energystar.webex.com.