The first client to benefit from our partnership with simuwatt® to streamline the energy audit process, NASA’s Langley Research Center (LaRC) is home to many buildings of advanced age, resulting in inefficiencies and indoor environment control challenges. Proper control of the indoor environment is particularly important to the teams at Langley given the sensitive and critical nature of their research. LaRC partnered with Clark Nexsen’s energy team on two separate occasions to retrocommission 21 buildings to address these concerns and support their overall energy efficiency goals.
LaRC’s building types spanned office, laboratory, and large-volume testing facilities of varying age and construction. Our team’s retrocommissioning process included the following major systems: HVAC systems and controls, distribution systems, supplemental loads, and lighting. Our team completed initial data gathering, preliminary evaluations, extensive on-site data gathering and occupant interviews, lighting system evaluation, energy modeling, and payback/return on investment (ROI) analysis. Through this process, we identified opportunities for minor repair, energy conservation, occupant and equipment condition improvements, and longer-term capital improvements.
Ultimately, our retrocommissioning recommendations will feed into and support many future energy efficiency projects on the LaRC’s campus. Once completed, the positive impact on energy use and occupant comfort will be dramatic.