Standards & Compliance Briefing: Efficient Monitors, ASHRAE Data Centers, Geothermal

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The Super-Efficient Equipment and Appliance Deployment Initiative – a coalition of national energy agencies – announced a worldwide competition aimed at improving energy efficiency in computer monitors. The SEAD Global Efficiency Medal competition for displays will recognize the most energy-efficient computer monitors on the global market as well as emerging technologies that have the potential to reduce future energy use. Globally, computer displays account for 30 to 40 TWh of electricity consumption each year, equivalent to the output of ten or more mid-sized coal fired power plants, SEAD said.

Addendum cs to ANSI/ASHRAE/IES Standard 90.1-2010, Energy Standard for Buildings Except Low-Rise Residential Buildings, is open for advisory public review until February 3. The revision proposes changes to definitions for computer rooms and data centers in standard 90.1 to create a distinction between facilities covered by 90.1 and those which are intended to be under the scope of ASHRAE Standard 90.4P, Energy Standard for Data Centers and Telecommunications Buildings, proposed by in late 2012, ASHRAE said.

NSF International has released American National Standards for Ground-Source Geothermal Piping Systems – NSF/ANSI 358-1, which evaluates safety and performance of polyethylene piping. This new standard will be referenced in the 2015 International Mechanical Code, and it provides assurance that certified geothermal products meet minimum performance and safety requirements, reducing potential liability, and increasing confidence and product acceptance in the marketplace, NSF said.

The ANSI Homeland Security Standards Panel has released a report examining approaches to safeguarding international supply chains as a follow-up to a September conference in Washington, DC. The report includes discussion on the value of a single system of global supply chain standardization, based on a uniform conformity assessment approach, Continuity Central said.

University of Connecticut’s Laurel Hall, a 67,000-square-foot classroom building on the Storrs campus, has received LEED Gold certification for new construction. It is the first new building at UConn to reach this level of certification since the university adopted a policy in 2007 for sustainable methods in all major projects. Laurel Hall design features include energy-saving window glazing, low-flow valves and faucets, high-performance insulation, and use of rapidly renewable materials such as bamboo and recycled copper, the university said.

The Estelle Siebens Science Center at Buena Vista University in Storm Lake, Iowa has earned LEED Gold certification for existing buildings. The university set up a sustainability task force to manage the certification process, which included updates to the building's waste stream processes and a chemical policy for cleaning and lawn care, the Storm Lake Pilot Tribune said.

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