An issue for any company that wants to increase their sustainability and reduce energy costs and related carbon emissions is increasing the energy efficiency of existing buildings. In some cases, the insulation used during construction has degraded and performance has dropped, and in other cases older buildings were built with no insulation in the walls whatsoever, which makes a project to increase the efficiency of the building envelope challenging. Heat loss and gain through walls, roofs, and ceilings can cost organizations thousands in heating and cooling expenses per month.
According to the U.S. Department of Energy’s Buildings Energy Data Book, in 2010 41% percent of U.S. primary energy was consumed by the buildings sector, compared to 30% by the industrial sector and 29% by the transportation sector. The top three end uses in the commercial sector were space heating, lighting, and space cooling, which represent close to half of commercial site energy consumption.
This data means that companies of all types, that are working to meet sustainability and corporate responsibility goals to reduce energy costs, should not overlook the savings from upgrading the insulation of their building envelope. With advanced nanotechnology based coatings, like Syneffex™ Energy Protect™, retrofit insulation for buildings is now possible without major replacement or construction costs.
Older Buildings – More Energy Waste
The most difficult types of buildings to insulate are older ones built pre-1950s. Many of these include multiple rows of single pane windows, as well as solid block wall construction that make it difficult to insulate with traditional materials. Replacing 40,000 s.f. of windows can be cost prohibitive even though it means savings down the road. Companies are looking for short payback-periods on their energy saving initiatives with ideally low initial investments and significant energy savings near term.
The advancement in nanocoatings, spearheaded by Syneffex™, has helped thousands of companies reduce costs in a number of ways related to energy savings and surface protection. The patented technology has been in use worldwide since 2004 and represents an advancement in insulation technology. The coatings incorporate a micro-sized nanotechnology based material with nano-sized internal architecture that has a very low thermal conductivity to provide a combination of performance advantages. The clear insulation coating acts like other true insulators, reducing heat conduction, while also providing resistance to moisture, corrosion, mold growth, and UV rays.
Independent Testing Data: The reduction of thermal transmission as tested to ISO 8990:1999 “Standard Test Method for Steady-State Thermal Performance of Building Assemblies” over 8cm cement wall sections with plaster, was 34.8% at a standard 3-coat coverage.
Implementing Building Envelope Efficiency
A benefit of a paint-on application is that you have the flexibility to apply thermal insulation coatings over your entire building envelope at once, or divide your application into zones to be applied over time, focusing on the highest energy saving potential first. This allows companies the flexibility of fitting an energy efficiency retrofit of their building into their budgets and using energy savings from initial installations to pay for subsequent installations to other areas of the building or other facilities.
Consistent Material Performance and Substantial Energy Savings
When estimating your ROI, Syneffex™ recommends using the ranges of reported energy savings from building envelope customers over the last 11+ years of 20%-40% and estimating reduction of energy used for heating and cooling in three segments for an overall picture – low (20% savings), medium (30% savings), and high (40% savings). This type of calculation will allow you to estimate your ROI based upon best and worst case scenarios and plan your efficiency project accordingly. Of course, you can also contact us – and we will be happy to calculate your potential cost, payback period and ongoing ROI in the form of continuing energy savings.
As with any efficiency upgrade, do your homework and take a look at current costs and potential savings. Utilizing the benefits of new nanotechnology based solutions, like Energy Protect™, to reduce building operational costs can put you on the leading edge of sustainability while giving you an advantage over your competitors.
Check out Energy Protect™ HERE
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Reference: https://web.archive.org/web/20170215080953/http://buildingsdatabook.eren.doe.gov/ChapterIntro1.aspx
