Development of a Residential Code-Compliant Calculator for the Texas Climate Vision Project

Abstract

The United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has designated four areas in Texas as having unacceptable ozone levels in excess of the National Ambient Air Quality Standard (NAAQS) limits, leading to a designation as non-attainment areas. One of those areas is Austin, a City already known for its environmental zeal. Austin owns its municipal power provider, Austin Energy (AE). Together, they have embarked on many programs to reduce greenhouse gases while maintaining service levels and providing the best return on capital. Of the stationary emissions, a large percentage is sourced to buildings that have driven Austin to adopt “above code” standards for new buildings. Austin, with assistance from the Energy Systems Laboratory (ESL), extended the IECC 2006 to further strengthen building codes. Funding from the US Department of Energy (DOE) and the Texas State Energy Conservation Office (SECO) has provided an opportunity for Austin Energy to team with ESL to implement a two-year project called the “Texas Climate Vision” (TCV). The mission of TCV is to realize 20%-40% above code homes using a combination of better codes, improved processes, inspection, and information technology. This paper provides an overview of the permitting process of a single-family house and how the web-based software collects, calculates and certifies above-code compliance for each home, while aggregating data and providing value to builders, inspectors and Austin Energy.