Introduction
The more Forest Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture, facility managers know about energy use trends in their facilities, the better equipped they will be to manage their facilities for energy efficiency. Advanced metering technology can monitor the amount of energy used at a facility and how the usage changes over time. Metering information can be collected for entire facilities or for specific areas, such as a shop. Managers can use the data acquired from these metering systems (figure 1) to identify ways to save energy and to document the cost savings afterward.
The Energy Policy Act of 2005 (Public Law 109-58) requires that all Federal buildings be metered to monitor the amount and efficiency of electricity usage by 2012. Individual agencies are required to develop policies that comply with the act (http://www1.eere.energy.gov/femp/regulations/epact2005.html).
The Forest Service will require that advanced meters and advanced metering systems be installed in buildings larger than 10,000 gross square feet (see sidebar for definitions of advanced meters and metering systems). The Forest Service intends to collect data from the metering systems periodically so the data can be used to analyze energy conservation strategies.
Figure 1—A typical high-end meter suitable for
monitoring
the electrical
feed from an electric utility
to a Forest Service facility.
Some Federal buildings do not have individual meters. Monitoring energy usage at these facilities is difficult without advanced metering systems.
Advanced Meters—Meters that can measure and record data at specified intervals (the Forest Service's specifications require a 15-minute interval) and communicate the data to a remote location in a format that can be easily integrated into an advanced metering system. The meters must collect data daily or more frequently.
Advanced Metering System—A system that collects time-differentiated energy use data from advanced meters over a network as scheduled or as requested. The system can provide daily energy use data and can support features related to energy use management, procurement, and operations.
- The Forest Service will require
advanced power meters and advanced
metering systems for buildings larger than
10,000 gross square feet.
- Facility managers can use data
collected by the meters to identify
opportunities for energy savings.
- The Missoula Technology and
Development Center installed and
evaluated four advanced power meters
produced by two manufacturers.
- The PowerLogic ION Enterprise software, which allows persons to view metering data using a Web browser, was recommended for Forest Service use
