Upgrading Labs and Research Facilities

According to the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), laboratory facilities consume 5 to 10 times more energy per square foot than typical office buildings.

As a leader in energy engineering and construction, CEG helps building owners and managers upgrade mission-critical labs and research facilities. We analyze existing systems within the facilities, and design and implement turnkey solutions that increase energy efficiency, enhance resilience and energy security, and modernize equipment in the labs and research spaces. We guarantee performance and leverage creative project financing to deliver comprehensive projects that meet sustainability, operational, and resilience goals.

Experience Delivering Laboratory Solutions

CEG understands the complex solutions needed to retrofit research and lab facilities and is capable of working in high-performance buildings with narrowly defined operational parameters. CEG has considerable experience working on “mission-critical” projects that rely on precise construction logistics to avoid interfering with important on-site research. In the last five years, we have developed, implemented, and/or verified performance period savings for over $150 million of projects on mission-critical federal laboratories or research campuses.

Significant Impact

Laboratory facilities typically consume 5 to 10 times more energy per square foot than typical office buildings according to NREL, and specialty labs can consume as much as 100 times more energy than similarly sized commercial buildings. However, they are often excluded from ESPC projects because of the unique challenges they represent. Unlike other building types, a laboratory has HVAC and energy considerations that cannot be deferred.

Potential Solutions

• VAV fume hood control

• Heat recovery systems

• High-efficiency HVAC

• Retro-commissioning

• Cogeneration

• On-site renewable energy

• Energy-monitoring systems

• Energy-efficient laboratory equipment

• Demand control ventilation

Leading the Charge

The EPA and DOE Laboratories have outlined the importance of upgrading the nation’s laboratory space with their Labs for the 21st Century program, and CEG aims to rise to the challenge by providing efficiency solutions for these energy-intensive facilities. By leveraging our experience working with energy efficiency upgrades, we can produce cost-saving solutions, whether a lab or research facility is associated with a government, institution, or private sector firm.