The Federal Smart Buildings Accelerator provided federal facilities with education, technical support, and assessments to promote smart buildings and efficient buildings technologies.
Federal Energy Management Program
October 15, 2024
minute read time
A grid-interactive efficient building is an energy-efficient building that uses smart technologies and on-site distributed energy resources to provide demand flexibility while co-optimizing for energy cost and utility and occupant benefits. The Federal Smart Buildings Accelerator successfully promoted smart buildings and grid-interactive technologies across federal agencies, revealing high interest but challenges with funding and implementation.
In alignment with the Energy Act of 2020, the U.S. Department of Energy's Federal Energy Management Program (FEMP) launched the Federal Smart Buildings Accelerator (FSBA) to promote the adoption of smart building and grid-interactive efficient building (GEB) technologies across federal facilities. The FSBA, which was introduced at Energy Exchange 2022 and concluded in September 2024, supports federal government–wide goals such as resilience, energy savings, broadly electrifying and decarbonizing government activities, using renewable energy on a 24/7 (full-time) basis, and transitioning to zero-emissions fleets.
Key Takeaways
The accelerator provided education and technical assistance at participating federal facilities. This technical assistance revealed several key takeaways and opportunities:
- Education—While there is high interest in GEB technology, there is also a lack of knowledge about getting started, indicating a need for more education around the implementation of GEB technology.
- Technologies—Most technology interest was in GEB and energy management information system software, on-site generation, and electric vehicles.
- Technical assistance—All sizes and types of facilities, across all agencies, need technical assistance.
- Staffing—Opportunities for improvements abound, but many agencies face challenges due to limited staffing and time for GEB technology adoption.
- Funding—With limited funding available for necessities like maintenance, agencies face challenges in significantly upgrading their buildings' equipment to enable measurable shift and savings.
Technical Support
In addition to education and technical assistance, the FSBA offered robust technical support to all participating sites. This support included:
- Overviews of utility programs, such as demand response and tiered pricing
- Technology assessments with recommendations for GEB readiness
- Renewable energy studies using the National Renewable Energy Laboratory's REopt® tool to evaluate the distributed energy and resilience potential at each site
- Data center assessments to identify opportunities for future GEB-ready upgrades
- Activities such as Treasure Hunts, the Re-tuning Challenge, and collaborative project facilitation.
Accelerator Participants
Over a dozen sites across eight federal agencies participated in the FSBA. The section below describes the FSBA partner sites and outcomes.
Department of Commerce
National Institute of Standards and Technology, Boulder, CO, and Gaithersburg, MD
Outcome: Technical assistance and education on energy management information system (EMIS) and GEB; REopt analysis conductedDepartment of Defense
Navy Camp Barret, Quantico, VA
Outcome: Assessment of performance contract and microturbines; REopt analysis conductedDepartment of Energy
Y12, Oak Ridge, TN
Outcome: REopt analysis conducted; further education on GEB opportunitiesDepartment of Homeland Security
National Law Enforcement Communication Center, Orlando, FL
Outcome: Data center assessment conducted; REopt analysis; and further education on GEB opportunitiesDepartment of the Interior
Bureau of Land Management (BLM) Canyon, Dolores, CO
Outcome: REopt analysis conducted; further education on GEBBLM Northwest Oregon District Office, Salem, OR
Outcome: REopt analysis conducted; further education on GEBNational Park Service Mount Rushmore, Keystone, SD
Outcome: REopt analysis conducted, education on GEB, and electric vehicle assessmentEnvironmental Protection Agency (EPA)
EPA Environmental Science Center, Fort Meade, MD
Outcome: Further education on GEB opportunities; Treasure Hunt collaborationEPA Edison Environmental Center, Edison, NJ
Outcome: Further education on GEB opportunities; Treasure Hunt collaborationGeneral Services Administration (GSA)
GSA Mobile Federal Courthouse, Mobile, AL
Outcome: Further education on GEB opportunities; Treasure Hunt collaborationGSA DC headquarters, Washington, DC
Outcome: Further education on GEB opportunities; offered data center assessment, Re-Tuning, and Treasure HuntGSA Chicago Courthouse, Chicago, IL
Outcome: Further education on GEB opportunities; discussed project facilitator collaborationVeterans Administration (VA)
VA Rocky Mountain Regional Veterans Administration Medical Center, Aurora, CO
Outcome: Further education on GEB; review of performance contract; collaboration offered for a project facilitator
Results from the Federal Smart Buildings Accelerator
The FSBA made significant strides in promoting smart buildings and GEB technologies across federal agencies, laying the groundwork for future advancements in energy efficiency. By providing education, technical assistance, and facility assessments, the FSBA helped agencies identify both opportunities and challenges in adopting GEB technologies. As the FSBA concludes, it highlights the ongoing need for continued education, funding, and technical support to ensure federal buildings can fully transition to energy-efficient, grid-interactive operations.
"The FSBA was very successful in educating federal agencies about the benefits of GEB technologies," said Jason Koman, FEMP Smart Facilities program lead. "However, funding and resources pose barriers to wider adoption. As federal facilities continue exploring smart building technologies, ongoing investment will be critical to achieving our energy efficiency and resilience goals."
Tools and Resources
As part of the Federal Smart Buildings Accelerator, FEMP developed resources to help federal agencies explore GEB technologies, benefits, and use cases.
Workbook
FEMP's Grid-Interactive Efficient Buildings Strategies and Technologies Guidance Workbook helps building owners, energy managers, and facility managers prioritize potential grid-interactive strategies, technologies, and electrification and controls upgrades in federal and commercial buildings.
Technical Reports and Fact Sheets
The Key Grid-Interactive Building Technologies for Federal and Commercial Facilities report provides an overview of key GEB technologies and their potential for deployment in federal and commercial facilities.
The Guide for Grid-Interactive Buildings for Federal Agencies report provides an overview of GEB characteristics and benefits and how to analyze, identify, and implement GEB retrofit opportunities.
The Grid-Interactive Efficient Buildings Support Federal Facility Decarbonization fact sheet describes how GEBs can enable demand flexibility that has the potential to reduce electrical infrastructure costs and transform the grid edge, where buildings connect to the power grid.
The Best Practices for Smart Grid-Interactive-Efficient-Building-Ready Performance Contracts fact sheet provides steps for incorporating GEB energy conservation measures into performance contracts.
The Cybersecurity Considerations and Research Pathways for Grid-Interactive Efficient Buildings fact sheet describes how cybersecurity practices are essential for interconnected building systems.
The Best Practices for Resilience in Smart Grid-Interactive Efficient Buildings fact sheet outlines processes and considerations to guide the design and operation of GEBs in ways that promote facility resilience.
Case Studies
Carl T. Hayden Veterans Affairs Medical Center: Smart Buildings Case Study