IoT now helping make smart wine? Read Write, April 4, 2016. Image credit: JESHOOTS The Internet of Things (IoT) is transforming the agricultural industry through facilitating high precision crop control, useful data collection and automated farming, with an emphasis on water management, waste reduction and cost effectiveness. Today farms can leverage IoT to remotely monitor soil … Read more
Enforcing Energy Efficiency by Starting From Oneself IEN, April 4, 2016. Image credit: bmbyars Beginning service in 1999, the headquarters of Delta Electronics, Inc. in Taiwan is a 9-storey office building with three underground floors. It was the first office building in Neihu Science Park using the solar PV system (5 KW). Renovating the office building … Read more
Bright lights big city: do energy-efficient LED lights cause unexpected ecological damage? PLoS Blogs, March 24, 2016. Image credit: InSapphoWeTrust Planet earth runs on light energy. Light energy from the sun powers photosynthetic processes in plants and different wavelengths of light cue these plants to flower, move their leaves, and grow taller. These same cues influence … Read more
Hydronic Zoning Offers Exceptional Comfort, Versatility ACHR News, March 21, 2016. Image credit: Caleefi S.P.A. In forced-air systems, zoning offers a way to control the indoor environment in several different areas throughout the home in order to meet the occupants’ comfort needs. Likewise, hydronic zoning grants residents control over the temperatures in their living spaces … Read more
IoT Leader Secures $25 Million in Equity Financing to Expand Software Solutions Enlighted, February 29, 2016. Image credit: kropekk_pl Enlighted, Inc., the leading provider of Internet of Things (IoT) solutions for commercial buildings, today announced the company secured $25 million in Series D funding to accelerate its IoT app development and expand international distribution to France, … Read more
Shedding Light on the Benefits of ENERGY STAR Certified Windows, Doors, and Skylights Energy Star, March 10, 2016. Image credit: StockSnap Did you know, ENERGY STAR certified windows, doors, and skylights now perform better than ever? “Why’s that?,” you ask. As of January 1, 2016, ENERGY STAR improved the performance requirements for these products. Here’s how: Climate … Read more
Study finds LED lights provide improved energy efficiency and production for growing food crops in space Phys.Org, March 24, 2016. Image credit: Philips Philips Lighting has collaborated with The University of Arizona Controlled Environment Agriculture Center (CEAC) to test energy efficient ways to grow food that will help feed astronauts on missions to the moon, … Read more
L.J. Eldredge, ERS, for Zondits March 23, 2016. Image credit: Anton Fomkin Solid state lighting uses light-emitting diodes, or LEDs, as sources of illumination rather than electrical filaments, plasma (e.g., fluorescent lamps), or gas. LEDs can be found in any style of lighting fixture, be it a decorative pendant or a linear strip, and while fluorescent … Read more
Nick Collins, ERS, for Zondits March 22, 2016. Image Credit: unsplash In this article we’ll review the general purpose of building envelopes by looking at “the perfect wall.” This concept comes from Building Science Corporation (BSC) and is based on centuries of envelope system successes and failures. BSC’s perfect wall is not proprietary information; instead, it … Read more
We’ve built an entire house in a lab to dispel common energy efficiency myths EconoTimes, March 19, 2016. Image credit: University of Salford Press Office A common piece of advice is to turn your thermostat to 21°C to ensure an energy efficient and comfortable home. However, work by my colleagues and I found older thermostats can … Read more