Refrigeration Project Team

Commercial refrigeration uses roughly 1.3 quads per year of source energy, about 7% of total commercial use. In supermarkets, groceries, convenience stores, and restaurants, refrigeration can account for up to half of a building's total energy use and increase the amount of space conditioning required.

Better Buildings Alliance (BBA) Refrigeration Project Team members work to improve the efficiency of new refrigeration systems and components, including display cases, coolers and freezers, compressor systems, and controls. Members also focus on improving the energy efficiency of existing refrigeration systems through operational procedures or retrofit options. Current members, listed below, represent many of the nation's most energy-innovative companies with large-scale refrigeration loads.

If you would like to work on the Refrigeration Project Team and are a BBA member, email the BBA coordinator. If you are not a member, learn more about joining BBA.

Project Team Initiatives

Guide for Retrofitting of Open Refrigerated Display Cases with Doors: The Refrigeration Project Team developed this guide, in conjunction with industry representatives, in order to outline best practices to maximize energy savings when adding doors to previously open display cases.
Refrigeration Commissioning Guide: The team is currently producing a commissioning guide for supermarket refrigeration systems in collaboration with the American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers.

Resources

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's GreenChill Partnership: GreenChill is an EPA Partnership with food retailers to reduce refrigerant emissions and minimize global warming and ozone layer impacts.
ENERGY STAR^® Commercial Refrigerators and Freezers: The ENERGY STAR^® program maintains a directory of qualified self-contained commercial refrigeration equipment. ENERGY STAR models can provide energy savings of up to 35% over baseline units.
DOE Commercial Refrigeration Equipment Rulemaking Page: View past and current DOE energy conservation standards and test procedure rulemaking documents, including discussion of energy-efficient technologies and full analytical results.

Additional Information

Read meeting minutes from the BBA Refrigeration project team conference call on January 29, 2013. Sign up to receive updates from the Refrigeration Project Team or request more information.