The Northwest Energy Efficiency Council (NEEC) is proud to announce that it received the 2018 ENERGY STAR® Award for Excellence for its outstanding efforts to promote Energy Star’s mission, products, and the importance of energy efficiency for the economy through its various programs. NEEC’s accomplishments will be recognized by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the U.S. Department of Energy at a ceremony in Washington, D.C. on April 20, 2018.
NEEC, an ENERGY STAR partner since 2002, will be honored for work in promoting ENERGY STAR programs and products that meet ENERGY STAR specifications for energy efficiency through its Building Operator Certification (BOC) program, support of the City of Seattle’s Benchmarking ordinance with the Energy Star Portfolio Manager Help Desk and supporting local jurisdictions with data analytics and visualization tools using building energy datasets from Energy Star Portfolio Manager.
Catering to the interests of local governments, NEEC offers innovative energy data analytics and visualization techniques to advance energy efficiency. In the past couple of years, NEEC has worked with over five local jurisdictions including Bellevue, Mercer Island, Issaquah, Washington State, King County, etc., in supporting quality checks of Energy Star Portfolio Manager accounts and utilizing their building energy performance data to provide actionable information for energy savings. NEEC specializes in offering customized dashboards, infographics and other visualization techniques using Energy Star Portfolio Manager’s energy data, which are helpful in identifying gaps, energy performance trends and informed decision making for the policymakers.
Since 2011, NEEC has administered the Help Desk for the City of Seattle Energy Benchmarking and Reporting Program. NEEC coordinates and provides hands-on energy benchmarking workshops, drop-in sessions and in-depth email and phone support to help customers navigate the U.S. EPA’s ENERGY STAR Portfolio Manager to benchmark buildings to meet City of Seattle’s benchmarking requirements. The current compliance rate is with a similar compliance percentage anticipated for the 2018 reporting deadline. The Help Desk continues to take next steps in engaging customers in a discussion of energy efficiency improvements and promoting the National Building Competition, ENERGY STAR certification as well as sending referrals to local utility incentive and rebate programs.
NEEC also administers the Building Operator Certification (BOC®) program which trains and certifies commercial and institutional building’s facility staff in best practices for energy efficiency. This includes benchmarking building performance through ENERGY STAR’s Portfolio Manager software tool and in specifying the purchase of ENERGY STAR products and equipment. Over 16,000 building operators have received a BOC credential across the United States. The national BOC® program is administered through a network of licensed providers who train building technicians in BOC best practices in 37 states and D.C. with diverse climate zones in the East, Midwest, Southeast, and Pacific Coast. These providers contributed to the achievements recognized with this award. They include City University of New York, Gwinnett Technical College, International Building Operators Association, Lakes Regions Community College, Midwest Energy Efficiency Alliance, Northwest Water & Energy Education Institute, Pennsylvania College of Technology, South Carolina Technical College System,South-central Partnership for Energy Efficiency as a Resource, Santa Fe Community College, Southeast Energy Efficiency Alliance, S&W Enterprises, and University of Hawaii.
“In an industry undergoing rapid transformation, ENERGY STAR remains a trusted name in promoting energy efficient equipment and practices, and the Northwest Energy Efficiency Council (NEEC) is honored to be a long-term partner,” said Kerry Meade, Executive Director of NEEC. “Our work supporting the City of Seattle in its successful energy benchmark program and NEEC’s ongoing training of building operators rely on ENERGY STAR to underpin success.”
“The 2018 ENERGY STAR award winners have demonstrated real leadership, showing how American families and businesses can save energy, save money, and reduce air emissions,” said Bill Wehrum, EPA Assistant Administrator for Air and Radiation.
In 2016 alone, ENERGY STAR certified products, homes, buildings, and plants helped Americans save over $30 billion in energy costs and approximately 400 billion kilowatt-hours of electricity and while achieving broad emissions reductions.
For a complete list of 2018 winners and more information about ENERGY STAR’s awards program, visit www.energystar.gov/awardwinners.
About Northwest Energy Efficiency Council
The Northwest Energy Efficiency Council (NEEC) is a non-profit business association of the energy efficiency industry. NEEC’s mission is to promote policies and programs that enhance market opportunities for energy efficiency. NEEC is a national provider of a range of services from Energy Benchmarking technical support to training and credentialing through the Building Operator Certification (BOC®) program.
About ENERGY STAR
ENERGY STAR® is the simple choice for energy efficiency. For over 25 years, EPA’s ENERGY STAR program has been America’s resource for saving energy and protecting the environment. Join the millions already making a difference at energystar.gov. More background information about ENERGY STAR can be found at energystar.gov/about and energystar.gov/numbers.
Thousands of industrial, commercial, utility, state, and local organizations—including more than 40 percent of the Fortune 500®—rely on their partnership with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to deliver cost-saving energy efficiency solutions. Together, since 1992, ENERGY STAR and its partners have helped save American families and businesses over $450 billion and over 3.5 trillion kilowatt-hours of electricity while also achieving broad emissions reductions—all through voluntary action.