Federal agencies, state and local governments, and industry face a number of goals, often executively and legislatively driven, aimed at reducing their energy and water consumption. Enhancing the agility, skills, and knowledge base of the building workforce is a crucial component for accomplishing these goals. Tracks within this theme will explore the strategies and workforce development efforts that have been used to successfully meet these goals – and updates on the policies that drive them.

Technical Tracks:

• Workforce Development and Engagement (Energy Exchange*)
• Policy and Strategies (Energy Exchange*)
• Partnering Strategically with FEMP (Energy Exchange*)
• Organizational Strategies (Better Buildings Summit)

Federal agencies, state and local governments, and industry face a number of goals, often executively and legislatively driven, aimed at reducing their energy and water consumption. Ensuring continuity of operations in federal buildings is key to mission assurance. The energy management community is increasingly called to enhance energy and water resilience and security through energy-savings projects and infrastructure investments while keeping overall grid reliability and cybersecurity in mind. Tracks within this theme will explore successful strategies, projects, business models, and planning efforts used to mitigate these threats.

Technical Tracks:

• Achieving Mission Driven Resilience (Energy Exchange*)
• Continuity of Operations: Resilience and Contingency Solutions (Energy Exchange*)
• Distributed Generation: Contribution to Resilience (Energy Exchange*)

Through cost-effective design, operation, and maintenance of buildings and campuses, building owners and operators can reduce costs and lower stress on the grid. Increasingly, the building energy management community must consider holistic approaches to facility planning, technology integration, and power supply to ensure individual project success. Tracks within this theme will explore the technologies, tools, strategies, and quality assurance processes for optimized, smarter, buildings.

Technical Tracks:

• Building Optimization Essentials (Energy Exchange*)
• Data Literacy (Energy Exchange*)
• Data Driven Results (Better Buildings Summit)

Technology changes rapidly, but once installed it can have energy and water impacts that last for decades. Tracks within this theme will explore both fundamental and emerging high impact building technologies and systems; from the fundamentals of energy management topics to the technologies currently being piloted by innovators and early adopters. Successful deployment strategies, lessons learned, and implementation models will be discussed.

Technical Tracks:

• Emerging Technologies (Energy Exchange*)
• Cybersecurity Technologies and Control Systems (Energy Exchange*)
• Notes From the Field: Using High Impact Technologies (Better Buildings Summit)

Energy efficiency is a powerful way to reduce operating costs, improve the reliability of buildings, and enhance grid reliability. Upfront costs, however, can be a major barrier to implementation. Tracks within this theme will explore different financing models, strategies, and partnership options for energy-saving projects and infrastructure investments – many of them without up-front capital costs.

Technical Tracks:

• Financing and Performance Contracting (Energy Exchange*)
• M&V and Performance Assurance / Utility Partnerships (Energy Exchange*)
• Financing for Efficiency and Renewables Projects (Better Buildings Summit)

Energy management can face significantly different challenges and solution sets based on specific technology areas or economic sectors. Tracks within this theme will explore the latest in energy management topics from specific sector perspectives, including water and manufacturing.

Technical Tracks:

• Water Management and Resilience (Energy Exchange*)
• Fleet (Energy Exchange*)
• Energy & Water Nexus Strategies (Better Buildings Summit)
• Manufacturing (Better Buildings Summit)
• Multifamily (Better Buildings Summit)
• Partner Meet-ups (Better Buildings Summit)
• Better Buildings Workshops (Better Buildings Summit)
• Data Centers (Better Buildings Summit)