Model energy codes that require 30-percent better efficiency just got a step closer to reality. New Buildings Institute’s (NBI) major code proposal, EC 147, was approved by a 6-5 vote on Oct. 30, 2009, at the International Energy Code Council (IECC) Code Development Hearings in Baltimore. The IECC is the model code recognized in federal law, green building standards, and nearly all states.
NBI, along with the American Institute of Architects (AIA) and the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), submitted the comprehensive proposal last June. NBI is a nonprofit organization working to improve the energy performance of commercial buildings.
The comprehensive proposal would codify much of NBI’s Core Performance protocol and several addenda to ASHRAE 90.1-2007. Core Performance is already referenced in several local building ordinances and state codes, as well as in voluntary utility programs.