Nexant Helps Develop Utah's High Performance Building Standard

SALT LAKE CITY, March 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Nexant played a key role in transforming the State of Utah's High Performance Building Standard (HPBS), which is a requirement for all state-funded projects. The HPBS is intended to improve the performance of buildings while reducing the total cost of ownership. In consultation with the State of Utah, Nexant engineer Chris Cox re-developed the Energy Performance section of the HPBS to establish clear energy use intensity (EUI) targets for each building type. This has streamlined the establishment of energy budgets during the building design, and simplified and reduced the cost of monitoring the energy performance over time. The revised Energy Performance section of the HPBS is more performance driven, while making it easier to understand and verify results.

"There is often a disconnect between a building's code requirements and its actual energy performance. Outcome or performance-based energy standards and codes provide low-cost and measurable ways to achieve more energy savings and influence building performance. It's exciting to see Utah is changing their standard and paving the way for more energy efficiency across the state," said engineer Chris Cox. 

The new version of the HPBS incorporates lessons learned from the past 4 years and considers new technologies. A dozen experts worked on the new draft, including VCBO, GSBS, Nexant, Spectrum, ETC Group, Morrision Hershfield, UNVC, kW Engineering, and PSOMAS. The draft was then peer reviewed by local industry professionals including Salt Lake Community College, VBFA, University of Utah, Utah Department of Transportation, Okland, Weber State University, Utah Department of Corrections, Layton Construction, AJC Architects, FFKR Architects, Utah Valley University, CRSA Architects, Dixie State University, Snow College, and Utah State University.

"Nexant implements and evaluates many energy programs across the U.S. Improving energy efficiency of the building fleet is critical  to help customers reduce the cost of managing their buildings and accelerate the clean energy transition. We are exceptionally proud of our collaboration with the State of Utah to update the HPBS, and hope it can be a model for municipal, university, state, and hospital building managers to adopt," said Executive Vice President Bryan Haney.

Key stakeholders begin training in Utah this month to start implementing this new standard.

About Nexant

Nexant is a software and consulting firm that provides innovative solutions to improve customer engagement, boost operational efficiency, and save resources. We offer expertise in demand-side management, grid management, and renewables, as well as a comprehensive suite of software designed to support these initiatives. Every day, we work with customers to reimagine the world we live in and create a more sustainable energy future. For more information on Nexant's services, contact [email protected] or visit www.nexant.com.

SOURCE Nexant