Biden’s Carbon Emissions Bill Misses Big, Commercial Windows Not Addressed – PR Web

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FreMarq Innovations | Curtain Walls for Maximum Performance

“The economic and carbon-emission ramifications for not addressing commercial windows and curtain walls are too astounding to be ignored. The fastest and only way to net zero is to conserve energy.” —Todd Frederick, President of FreMarq Innovations

The Biden Administration recently introduced the Climate Smart Buildings Initiative. Unfortunately, these efforts will have limited benefits without addressing commercial windows and curtain walls. The bill proposes systematically modernizing public buildings by “increasing on-site clean electricity generation, adding the latest clean energy technology… installing efficient lighting and insulation, and installing and integrating electric vehicle supply equipment.”(1) “Commercial building systems like lighting and HVAC are routinely updated and replaced, but windows and curtain walls are expected to last for up to 50 to 100 years without replacement,” says Todd Frederick, Founder and President of FreMarq Innovations, who after 40 years of being in the industry develop the most economic and energy efficient curtain wall and window system for commercial building in the market today.

Curtain walls have become the standard in commercial buildings, however due the conductivity of the aluminum framing it is the most inefficient part of a building’s façade.

A well-constructed building facade with an adequate thermal break can reduce energy consumption by 50%, which is especially impactful because building climate control is one of the top energy demands.(2) The thermal efficiency of windows and curtain walls has a consequential and ongoing impact on energy consumption.(3)

“The building sector alone generates nearly 40% of global CO2 emissions annually,” Frederick says, “more than any other sector. If we are really going to hit our carbon emission reduction targets this needs to be addressed today. ”

Historical Upsurge of High Rises…and Their Downfall

In the beginning, high- rise buildings solved a significant problem. They accommodated larger properties on a smaller land footprint, making them more affordable to build and operate in densely populated areas. Unfortunately, their steel and glass construction created energy-inefficient fenestration (arrangement and design of windows and doors in a building).

According to research from the University College London’s Energy Institute, “Electricity use, per square foot of floor area, is nearly 2.5 times greater in high-rise office buildings of 20 or more stories than in low-rise buildings of six stories or less…and gas use also increases with height, by around 40%. As a result, total carbon emissions from gas and electricity from high-rise buildings are twice as high as in low-rise.” While double-paned windows have added minimal efficiencies, the energy efficiency of high rises buildings falls far short of potential.

“In the 70s the R-Value of single paned windows was R-1—and in the 80’s with the development of double pane glass, a windows R value increased to R-2,” said Frederick. “Today, after 50 years the R-value of a window performance has only improved to less than R-3.”

Frederick saw the economic and energy drain caused by inefficient commercial windows and curtain walls and set out in 2016 to solve this problem. He identified the biggest hurdle not as the glass itself but in the design and engineering of the framing. His team spent six years researching and developing the most energy-efficient framing system available on …….

Source: https://www.prweb.com/releases/bidens_carbon_emissions_bill_misses_big_commercial_windows_not_addressed/prweb18843650.htm

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