Improving standards and labels with IPMVP and Six Sigma strategies

Robert Mowris and Ean Jones, Robert Mowris & Associates, USA
Kathleen Carlson, Verified, Inc., USA

Keywords

International Performance Measurement and Verification Protocol, six sigma, standards, labels, energy efficiency, reliability, cost effectiveness, performance, quality, global warming

Abstract

Efforts to improve energy efficiency and mitigate global warming through equipment and appliance standards and labels have been somewhat hampered by differences in energy consumption between actual and labeled energy use. In some cases actual energy use is 50 to 200 % greater than labeled energy use. The International Performance Measurement and Verification Protocol (IPMVP) can be used to evaluate standards and labels to improve performance. The California Public Utilities Commission, NYSERDA, the World Bank, and many state and federal agencies require adherence to IPMVP. The World Resources Institute is recommending evaluation standards such as IPMVP for the Kyoto Protocol. Greenhouse gas trading policy encourages rigorous EM&V by applying savings discount factors tied to IPMVP Options. Efforts to increase customer satisfaction, resource efficiency, and improve profitability have motivated businesses worldwide to adopt Six Sigma strategies. Motorola, General Electric, Sony, Honda, Toyota, and many other companies have adopted Six Sigma to decrease costs and increase profitability and market share. Companies implementing Six Sigma find that 70 to 80 percent of the total cost of a product or service is determined in the design stage. The higher the quality of energy efficiency designed into a product, the lower its lifecycle costs. IPMVP and Six Sigma share similar objectives with respect to reducing lifecycle costs and improving performance through measurement and verification of quality and efficiency improvements. IPMVP provides a framework to measure and verify energy efficiency performance. Six Sigma strategies provide a framework to measure and verify energy savings and performance metrics at critical steps in the market chain (i.e., design, manufacturing, installation, and service). Incorporating IPMVP and Six Sigma into appliance standards and labels will improve reliability and ensure that labeled energy use is closer to actual energy use.

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