The First Facility Management Blog

For the first time in over 18 years, ASHRAE has proposed increases to the minimum required roof and wall insulation levels in Standard 90.1 – the national model energy code for commercial buildings. The more important news at this writing is that the Standard 90.1 committee has approved these proposed changes for the next version of the Code.

What does this mean?
The above-deck roof insulation requirements currently at R-15 go to R-20 – a 33% increase in roof insulation levels. Similar increases are proposed for walls. The next step in this process is ratification of the committee’s approval by various levels of the ASHRAE Standards development process, culminating in acceptance by the ASHRAE Board of Directors – expected in June of this year.

Why is the ASHRAE Board expected to adopt these new values?
The Board charged the 90.1 committee to deliver a new commercial building energy standard that is 30% more efficient than the 2004 version by 2010!

The actual changes are climate zone and building type specific. The ASHRAE Standard has various performance compliance mechanisms – from prescriptive requirements to computer simulations and trade-offs. But regardless of the code compliance approach used, these new insulation values establish a new benchmark for commercial building energy efficiency.

This is ASHRAE’s first step to support the emerging trend to make buildings significantly more efficient. In many ways these new insulation levels are long overdue. Architects across the country are already installing insulation at levels that exceed these values. Those architects and designers seeking beyond-code recognitions (such as LEED, Energy Star, Building America, etc.) will now go even further to deliver advanced building envelopes and higher levels of insulation. While issues of implementation and timing are yet to be fully resolved, once approved by the ASHRAE Board these new values will represent a new national standard against which all codes will be compared. Architects, specifiers and other certifying professionals will have a new standard of care to meet regarding commercial building energy efficiency.

ASHRAE Climate Zone Map
In all climate zones, insulation can dramatically help to reduce cooling loads and lower energy costs. This is predicated on existing ASHRAE requirements and independent analysis that concludes that additional roof insulation is cost effective, saves energy, and reduces pollution and carbon emissions.

The ASHRAE Standard addresses building envelope and system requirements for commercial buildings, residential buildings higher than three stories, and semi-conditioned buildings (warehouses, etc.). It is the nation’smodel standard for establishing the energy performance requirements of these building types.