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U.S. Department of Energy Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy
Whole Foods Market, a BBA member, installed night curtains to cover the refrigerated produce cases when stores are closed.

Installation of night curtains

Whole Foods Market, a BBA member, installed night curtains to cover the refrigerated produce cases when stores are closed. This strategy lowers the cooling load on the refrigeration case by about 40% during unoccupied periods.



Join the Better Buildings Alliance

Commercial buildings—our offices, schools, hospitals, restaurants, hotels and stores—consume nearly 20 percent of all energy used in the United States. We spend more than $200 billion each year to power our country's commercial buildings. Unfortunately, much of this energy and money is wasted: a typical commercial building could save 20 percent on its energy bills simply by commissioning existing systems so they operate as intended. Energy efficiency is a cost effective way to save money, support job growth, reduce pollution, and improve competitiveness.

Through the Better Buildings Alliance, members in different market sectors identify specific barriers and work with the U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE) exceptional network of research and technical experts to develop and deploy innovative, cost-effective, energy-saving solutions that lead to better technologies, more profitable businesses, and better buildings in which we work, shop, eat, stay, and learn.

Better Buildings Alliance Sign-Up Form

Building owners and operators can join the Better Buildings Alliance (BBA) by completing the sign-up form.

BBA Members agree to:

Commit

  • Assign a company representative who is authorized to represent your organization in BBA.
  • Share your organization-wide energy savings goals, encouraged to be a multi-year goal saving 2% of energy annually.

Act

  • Work to achieve your goals and monitor progress through publicly available tools, such as the ENERGY STAR® Portfolio Manager.
  • Participate in at least one BBA workgroup or activity, such as a sector-specific workgroup or a cross-cutting or technology-specific effort/group (i.e., the development or implementation of new specifications for an innovative technology).

Share

  • Share your successes and help other BBA members replicate your results.
  • On an annual basis provide an update on your energy savings and progress toward meeting your goals. Together we can show significant progress toward reducing our energy impact.

DOE agrees to:

Assist

  • Provide information and energy efficiency implementation models to help BBA members improve the energy performance of their building portfolios.
  • Work with BBA members to create new resources to help them overcome efficiency challenges and increase the availability of highly efficient products and technologies.

Connect

  • Provide a neutral, third-party platform for sector peers to address common challenges.
  • Connect members with financial allies for financing solutions.

Inform

  • Keep members informed through regular BBA communications and webinar series.
  • Provide access to DOE and trusted third-party information and technical resources.