Data tool gets BETTER results, gaining accolades for innovation
Research and development (R&D) has its own “red carpet” night, much like any other industry that shapes the way people live and work. For 56 years, that night has been the prestigious R&D 100 Awards to celebrate innovative products and technologies.
It’s an award that honors ideas-come-to-life like the Building Efficiency Targeting Tool for Energy Retrofits (BETTER) tool we co-created with Lawrence Berkeley National Lab (LBNL) and Johnson Controls. This open-source, data-driven tool benchmarks a building’s energy use and quantifies actual energy, cost, and greenhouse gas reduction potential. Dovetailing with our energy efficiency portfolio, BETTER can help an organization make more informed decisions regarding energy efficiency improvements.
Even better, you can conduct the analyses remotely. No on-site audits or inspections required, which means contractors can continue to create building retrofit plans while social distancing. Additionally, BETTER ensures equity. Buildings in economically disadvantaged communities can benefit from no-cost, low-cost, and capital improvement recommendations.
And it’s already a proven success. Prince William County Public Schools, the second largest school division in Virginia, relied on a beta version of BETTER to quantify the energy and cost savings potential of its buildings. Florida Gulf Coast University is incorporating BETTER's energy analytics into its sustainability-focused Environmental and Civil Engineering curriculum.
The project also won LBNL’s own 2020 Director’s Award for Exceptional Achievement in Technology Transfer. Congratulations, team!
Learn more about ICF careers in technology.
