State Government Buildings: Meeting the ENERGY STAR® Challenge

Jim Mapp, Norman Bair, and Barbara Smith, Wisconsin Division of Energy

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Abstract

Public organizations such as state government have a challenge and an opportunity in managing large and diverse building portfolios. This paper will present information on energy saving initiatives in Wisconsin state agencies over the past several decades.

Efforts include large-scale performance contracting, internally funded retrofit projects, and maintenance-level changes. Other efforts include improvement of the state’s purchasing policies, building design guidelines, and equipment specifications. Most discussion will focus on low cost approaches that worked in Wisconsin and are widely transferable to other commercial building fleets. A case study will be presented of one agency’s energy saving campaign that saved 5% in one year, primarily through lighting controls and other low cost measures.

Wisconsin state government has recently signed on to the ENERGY STAR Challenge, EPA’s challenge to commercial building owners to reduce energy use by 10%. The ENERGY STAR Challenge provides a useful roadmap to see Wisconsin’s recent past and future efforts.