DOE, Major Retailers Develop Criteria for Next Gen Air Conditioners

The Department of Energy worked with industry partners, including Target (NYSE: TGT) and Wal-Mart (NYSE: WMT), to develop criteria for next-generation high-efficiency air conditioners for commercial buildings.

Members of the DOE’s Commercial Building Energy Alliances helped develop new performance standards for 10-ton capacity commercial air conditioners, also known as rooftop units (RTUs).

When built according to the requirements of the new specifications, these high-efficiency rooftop units are expected to reduce energy use by as much as 50% to 60% over the current equipment. Commercial buildings account for 18% of U.S. energy use and include significant opportunities for energy and financial savings that can help American companies be more competitive on a global scale, DOE said.

To help achieve the best-in-class rooftop units requested by industry partners, DOE National Laboratories will provide technical assistance to manufacturers or developers who want to build the more efficient units. Interested manufacturers will receive assistance in designing, constructing, measuring, and testing the new air conditioner units produced to this specification.

Manufacturers nationwide have a strong motivation to produce the more efficient units, since Target, Walmart and other participating commercial building owners have expressed an interest in buying the new units if manufacturers can meet the new energy efficient specifications at an affordable price with the range of features the companies need.

The rooftop units resulting from this specification will have an Integrated Energy Efficiency Rating (IEER) of 18 and use 50% to 60% percent less energy compared to the current ASHRAE 90.1-2010 standard, depending on location and facility type. Nationwide, if all the 10-ton commercial units sold in a given year were built using these criteria, businesses could save about $50 million a year in energy costs.

Additionally, the units will include advanced controls that support automated communication and diagnostics, enabling wireless communication to the owners’ automation systems and ensuring that the units operate at top energy and operational performance levels throughout their service life.