Tools & Resources

Procedures and Ratings

National Fenestration Rating Council provides procedures for rating window systems that are often required by state energy codes:
http://www.nfrc.org

See also a useful flowchart describing procedures for site-built or custom projects:
http://nfrc.thecornerstonepros.com/documents/Site-BuiltGuidelines.pdf

Computer Simulation Programs

WINDOW 5.0 is a publicly available computer program for calculating total window thermal performance indices (i.e. U-values, solar heat gain coefficients, shading coefficients, and visible transmittances). WINDOW 5.0 provides a versatile heat transfer analysis method consistent with the updated rating procedure developed by the National Fenestration Rating Council (NFRC) that is consistent with the ISO 15099 standard. The program can be used to design and develop new products, to assist educators in teaching heat transfer through windows, and to help public officials in developing building energy codes.

THERM is a state-of-the-art, Microsoft Windows™-based computer program developed at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL) for use by building component manufacturers, engineers, educators, students, architects, and others interested in heat transfer. Using THERM, you can model twodimensional heat-transfer effects in building components such as windows, walls, foundations, roofs, and doors; appliances; and other products where thermal bridges are of concern. THERM's heat-transfer analysis allows you to evaluate a product's energy efficiency and local temperature patterns, which may relate directly to problems with condensation, moisture damage, and structural integrity.

Optics5 allows the user to view and modify glazing data in many new and powerful ways. Optical and radiative properties of glazing materials are primary inputs for determination of energy performance in buildings. Properties of composite systems such as flexible films applied to rigid glazing and laminated glazing can be predicted from measurements on isolated components in air or other gas. Properties of a series of structures can be generated from those of a base structure. For example, the measured properties of a coated or uncoated substrate can be extended to a range of available substrate thickness without the need to measure each thickness. Similarly, a coating type could be transferred by calculation to any other substrate.

WINDOW 5.0, THERM, and Optics5 have been developed by LBNL and are available over the web:
http://eetd.lbl.gov/btp/software.html

The tools are accepted by NFRC for rating window systems. In some cases, these tools can be applied by NFRC-certified simulators, test labs and inspection agencies to determine ratings for non-standard products.

Daylighting algorithms and tools are described in detail in the International Energy Agency Task 21 Daylight in Buildings publication: "Daylight in Buildings: A Source Book on Daylighting Systems and Components".
See http://eetd.lbl.gov/Bookstore.html under Practical Guides & Tools for Energy Users for "Daylight in Buildings: A Source Book on Daylighting Systems and Components".
For those residing outside of U.S. or Canada, please visit: http://www.iea-shc.org. Download the hyperlinked report 8.9.3 "Daylight Simulation: Methods, Algorithms, and Resources" from the CD-ROM directory.

RADIANCE is a lighting and daylighting visualization tool developed by LBNL and is available over the web:
http://eetd.lbl.gov/btp/software.html
This program can model very sophisticated window systems and complex systems, given BTDF measured data.

Daylighting and Electric Lighting Simulation Engine (DElight) is a simulation engine for daylight and electric lighting system analysis in buildings. The program's origin was the LBNL SUPERLITE program from the 1980s, but the new version has updated the code and added new capabilities. It accepts a bidirectional transmittance distribution function (BTDF) and calculates daylight factors. The program can analyze complex systems, where the daylighting window aperture is treated as a directional light fixture and coupled to the interior space. An exterior radiance model is being developed that takes into account how exterior obstructions modify the BTDF incoming flux.
http://eande.lbl.gov/Task21/DElightWWW.html

DOE-2 and EnergyPlus are public domain programs developed by LBNL and other team members:
http://eetd.lbl.gov/btp/software.html

The DOE-2 program for building energy use analysis provides the building construction and research communities with an up-to-date, unbiased, well documented public-domain computer program for building energy analysis. DOE-2 is a portable FORTRAN program that can be used on a large variety ofcomputers, including PC's. Using DOE-2, designers can quickly determine the choice of building parameters which improve energy efficiency while maintaining thermal comfort. A user can provide a simple or increasingly detailed description of a building design or alternative design options and obtain an accurate estimate of the proposed building's energy consumption, interior environmental conditions and energy operation cost. DOE-2 has been used by national labs, universities, and industry for hundreds of studies of products and strategies for energy efficiency and electric demand limiting. Examples include advanced insulating materials, evaporative cooling, low-E windows, switchable glazing, daylighting, desiccant cooling, cogeneration, gas-enginedriven cooling, cool storage, effect of increased ventilation, sizing of thermal energy storage systems, gas heat pumps, thermal bridges, thermal mass, variable exterior solar and IR absorptance, and window performance labeling.

EnergyPlus is a new-generation building energy simulation program based on DOE-2 and BLAST, with numerous added capabilities. The initial version of the program, EnergyPlus 1.0, was released in April 2001. EnergyPlus includes a number of innovative simulation features - such as sub-hour time steps, built-in template and external modular systems that are integrated with a heat balance-based zone simulation - and input and output data structures tailored to facilitate third party module and interface development. Other capabilities include multi-zone airflow, moisture adsorption/desorption in building materials, radiant heating and cooling, and photovoltaic simulation.

A general list of tools offered by the U.S. Department of Energy are available over the web at:
http://www.eren.doe.gov/buildings/tools_directory/software.html

American Professional and Manufacturer's Organizations

American Architectural Manufacturers
Association (AAMA)
1827 Walden Office Square, Suite 104
Schaumberg, IL 60173-4268
Phone: (847) 303-5664/Fax: (847) 303-5774 www.aamanet.org

American Institute of Architects (AIA)
1735 New York Ave.. N. W.
Washington, DC 20006
Phone: (202) 626-7300 www.aia.org

American National Standards Institute (ANSI)
11 West 42nd Street, 13th Floor
New York, NY 10036
Phone: (212) 642-4900/Fax: (212) 398-0023 www.ansi.org

American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air Conditioning Engineers, Inc. (ASHRAE)
1791 Tullie Circle, NE
Atlanta, GA 30329-2305
Phone: (404) 636-8400/Fax: (404) 321-5478
www.ashrae.org

American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM)
100 Barr Harbor Drive
West Conshohocken, PA 19428-2959
Phone: (610) 832-9598/Fax: (610) 832-9599
www.astm.org

American Solar Energy Society
2400 Central Avenue, G-1
Boulder, CO 80301-2843
Phone: (303) 443-3130/Fax: (303) 443-3212
www.ases.org

Illuminating Engineering Society of North America (IESNA)
120 Wall Street, Floor 17
New York, NY 10005
Phone: (212) 248-5000
Fax: (212) 248-5017
www.iesna.org

International Code Council (ICC)
5203 Leesburg Pike, Suite 708
Falls Church, VA 22041
Phone: 703-931-4533
www.intlcode.org

National Fenestration Rating Council (NFRC)
8484 Georgia Avenue, Suite 320
Silver Spring, MD USA 20910
Phone: (301) 589-1776/Fax: (301) 589-3884
www.nfrc.org

Window and Door Manufacturers Association (WDMA)
1400 East Touhy Avenue, Suite G-54
Des Plaines, IL 60018
Phone: (847) 299-5200/Fax: (847) 299-1286

Canadian and International Organizations
Canadian Standards Association
178 Rexdale Boulevard
Rexdale, Ontario M9W 1R3
Phone: (416) 747-4000

Canadian Window and Door Manufacturers Association
27 Goulbourn Avenue
Ottawa, Ontario K1N 8C7
Phone: (613) 233-9804

International Energy Agency
Solar Heating and Cooling Programme
1808 Corcoran Street, NW
Washington, DC 20009
Phone: (202) 483-2393/Fax: (202) 265-2248
www.arch.vuw.ac.nz/iea/index.html

International Energy Agency
Center for the Analysis and Dissemination of Demonstrated Energy Technologies (CADDET)
www.ornl.gov/CADDET/caddet.html

International Standards Organization (ISO)
1, rue de Varembe
Case postale 56
CH-1211 Geneva 20
Switzerland
Phone: + 41 22 749 01 11/Fax: + 41 22 733 34 30
www.iso.ch/welcome.html

National Research Council of Canada
Institute for Research in Construction (IRC)
1500 Montreal Road, Building M-24
Ottawa, Ontario K1A 0R6
www.cisti.nrc.ca:80/irc/irccontents.html

Standards Council of Canada
45 O'Connor Street, Suite 1200
Ottawa, Ontario K1P 6N7
Phone: (613) 238-3222/Fax: (613) 995-4564
www.scc.ca

Government, Research, and Educational Organizations

Center for Sustainable Building Research
College of Design
University of Minnesota
1425 University Avenue SE
Minneapolis, MN 55455
Fax: 612-626-7424
www.csbr.umn.edu

Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI)
3412 Hillview Avenue, Palo Alto, CA 94304-1395
EPRI Lighting Information Office: (800) 525-8555
www.epri.com

Florida Solar Energy Center (FSEC)
1679 Clearlake Road
Cocoa, FL 32922
Phone: (407) 638-1000/Fax: (407) 638-1010
www.fsec.ucf.edu

Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL)
Building Technologies Department
Environmental Energy Technologies Division
Lawrence Berkeley Laboratory, Berkeley, CA 94720
Phone: (510) 486-6845/Fax: (510) 486-4089
eetd.lbl.gov/BT.html

Lighting Research Center
Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute
21 Union St.
Troy, NY 12180 USA
Phone: 518-687-7100
Fax: 518-687-7120 or 518-687-7121
www.lrc.rpi.edu

National Renewable Energy Laboratory
Center for Buildings and Thermal Energy Systems
1617 Cole Blvd.
Golden, CO 80401
(303) 384-7520
Fax: (303) 384-7540
www.nrel.gov

National Technical Information Service (NTIS)
www.fedworld.gov/ntis/ntishome.html

Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL)
Building Envelope Systems and Materials
P.O. Box 2008
Oak Ridge, TN 37831-6070
Phone: 423-574-4345
www.ornl.gov/roofs+walls

U.S. Department of Energy's EREN: Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy Network
www.eren.doe.gov

U.S. Department of Energy
www.doe.gov

U.S. Government's Federal Information Network
www.fedworld.gov