Building Energy Exchange, Bright Power & Sustainable Energy Partnerships were acknowledged at Urjanet’s 2019 SPARK Awards for their authorship of Turning Data Into Action, a data-driven effort to implement energy efficiency measures in large multifamily buildings. The report was chosen for the SPARK Leader in Community Engagement category, applauding the authors’ use of energy audit data to provide plain-English recommendations for local stakeholders.
The SPARK Awards, hosted by utility data management company Urjanet, recognize organizations that use utility bill data to better serve their customers, community partners, and the environment. Submissions for each category were evaluated by a distinguished panel of experts including Marilyn Brown, Nobel laureate and director of Climate and Energy Policy Lab at Georgia Tech, and Tommy Marshall, interim director of FinTech Catalyst at ATDC.
Turning Data Into Action was praised for delivering quality data analysis alongside actionable ‘tearsheets’ for local building decision makers. These ‘tearsheets’ group energy conservation methods, divided by building typology, that outline a suite of recommended efficiency measures at specific phases in a building’s lifecycle. By organizing the data into digestible packages, the report enables building owners to better understand their retrofit options at critical milestones.
The SPARK award was announced amidst the passing of the Climate Mobilization Act, which includes far-reaching legislation aimed at reducing carbon emissions from NYC’s building sector. As detailed in collaborator Bright Power’s recent analysis, large multifamily building owners will be required to make challenging retrofit decisions to maintain compliance under the new legislation. Turning Data into Action provides clear insight into this decision-making process across a variety of building typologies and lifecycle ‘touchpoints.’
Turning Data Into Action was written by Richard Yancey, Talia Kula, and Ellen Abramowitz (Building Energy Exchange), Jeffrey Perlman and Sarah Newman (Bright Power), and Adam Hinge (Sustainable Energy Partnerships). Sponsorship was provided by NationalGrid and Energy Efficiency For All.
For more information about SPARK or the SPARK Awards, visit https://urjanetspark.com/.