A Recipe for ABC Multifamily Retrofits: Technologies, Financing, and Project Delivery

Lead Performer: Rocky Mountain Institute (RMI) – Boulder, CO

Buildings

March 16, 2023

Lead Performer: Rocky Mountain Institute (RMI) – Boulder, CO
Partners:
-- Open Market ESCO, LLC – Boston, MA
-- Signetron Inc. – Berkeley, CA
-- TK Fabricate – Syracuse, NY
-- Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory – Berkeley, CA
DOE Funding: $5,000,000             
Cost Share: $1,250,000
Project Term: December 2022 – October 2026
Funding Type: Advanced Building Construction FOA Award

Project Objective

In this Phase 2 ABC Integrated Building Retrofit project, the project team will apply integrated whole building retrofit solutions to two low-income multifamily buildings in different climate zones with one located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, and the other one located in Cudahy, California. The approach consists of integrated mechanical system pods, prefabricated ductwork, and high-performance envelopes including prefabricated insulated wall panels that are integrated with digital workflow automation techniques to streamline the design, manufacturing, and delivery processes. The project incorporates financing, business, integrated design and delivery model development.

The goal of this project is to:

  • Demonstrate whole building retrofit solutions that improve efficiency through a combination of ABC technologies, design and project delivery process improvements, and a scaling model to rapidly accelerate uptake of deep energy retrofits in multifamily buildings.
  • Validate that the retrofit package, which includes Integrated Mechanical System Pods (IMSPs) and high-performance prefabricated envelope panels, and other deep energy retrofit measures, will achieve energy savings of 75% from historic EUIs for space heating, space cooling, and water heating through a Zero Over Time, phased decarbonization approach for future electrification.
  • Advance IMSP-C (designed for applications in buildings with central HVAC and DHW systems) development, including integration with prefabricated envelope panels, and begin commercial launch of the product by the end of the award period.

Project Impact

The project will produce the following outcomes:

  • ABC whole building retrofit demonstrations on two buildings in different climate zones.
  • IMSP-C ready for commercial launch.
  • Replicable project screening calculator and whole building retrofit design and delivery package ready for scale by solution providers.

Contacts

DOE Technology Manager: Eric Werling
Lead Performer: Maggie Huang, Rocky Mountain Institute

RELATED INFORMATION

Visit the following pages for information on the Phase 1 prototype projects that preceded this Phase 2 demonstration project: