ASTM E2797-22

4.1?UsesThis practice is intended for use on a voluntary basis by parties who wish to conduct a BEPA on a building. The process defined in this practice involves the collection of building energy consumption information, some of which may be collected as part of E2018 PCA or E1527 ESA. The practice is intended primarily as an approach to conducting a standardized inquiry designed to identify representative building energy performance in connection with a commercial property involved in a real estate transaction. This practice is intended to reflect a commercially practical and reasonable inquiry.

4.2?Clarifications on Use:?

4.3?Who May ConductA 4.4?Additional ServicesAs set forth in Section 13, additional services may be contracted for between the 4.4.1?Benchmarking Additional ServiceAny benchmarking system selected relies on critical data in generating its output, so the validity of the data collection process directly impacts the integrity and usefulness of the benchmarking systems results. Utilization of this practice and adoption of its data collection approach can serve to enhance the integrity of the benchmarking process for all transactional stakeholders in a standardized, fully transparent, uniform, and consistent manner. Notwithstanding, building energy consumption information should always be evaluated within the context in which it is collected and building 4.5?PrinciplesThe following principles are an integral part of this practice and are intended to be referred to in resolving any ambiguity or exercising such discretion as is accorded the 4.5.1?Uncertainty Not Eliminated in BEPANo 4.5.2?Not ExhaustiveThis practice is not meant to be an exhaustive assessment. There is a point at which the cost of information obtained or the time required to gather it outweighs the usefulness of the information and, in fact, may be a material detriment to the orderly completion of a real estate transaction. One of the purposes of this practice is to identify a balance between the competing goals of limiting the costs and time demands inherent in performing a 4.5.3?Level of Inquiry is VariableNot every building will warrant the same level of assessment. The appropriate level of assessment will be guided by the type of property subject to assessment and its complexity, the needs of the user, and the information already available or developed in the course of the inquiry.

4.6?Rules of EngagementThe contractual and legal obligations between a 1.1?PurposeThe purpose of this standard is to define a commercially useful practice in the United States of America for conducting a building energy performance assessment (BEPA) on a building involved in a commercial real estate transaction and subsequent reporting of the building energy performance information. The practice is intended to provide a methodology to the 1.2?Building Energy PerformanceThis practice defines building energy performance as the buildings total annual energy consumption and cost for heating, cooling, electricity, and other related uses. Energy consumption, for example, includes total electricity purchased; purchased or delivered steam, hot water, or chilled water; natural gas; fuel oil; coal; propane; biomass; or any other matter consumed as fuel and any electricity generated on site from renewable/alternative energy systems (for example, wind energy generator technology, fuel cells, microturbines or solar photovoltaic systems).

1.3?ObjectivesObjectives in the development of this practice are to: (1) define a commercially useful practice for collecting, compiling, and analyzing building energy performance information associated with a building involved in a commercial real estate transaction; 1.4?DocumentationThe scope of this practice includes data collection, compilation and reporting requirements. Documentation of all sources, records, and resources relied upon in the investigation is provided in the report.

1.5?Considerations Outside the ScopeThe use of this practice is limited to the collection, compilation, and analysis of 1.6?Organization of This PracticeThis practice has 13 sections and 11 appendices. The appendices are included for informational purposes only and are not part of the procedures prescribed in this practice.

1.7?UnitsThe values stated in inch-pound units are to be regarded as the standard. The values given in parentheses are mathematical conversions to SI units that are provided for information only and are not considered standard.

1.8?This practice cannot replace education or experience and should be used in conjunction with professional judgment. Not all aspects of this practice may be applicable in all circumstances. This ASTM standard practice is not intended to represent or replace the standard of care by which the adequacy of a given professional service must be judged, nor should this practice be applied without consideration of a buildings many unique aspects. The word standard in the title means only that the practice has been approved through the ASTM consensus process.

1.9?Nothing in this practice is intended to create or imply the existence of a legal obligation for reporting of energy, performance, or other building-related information. Any consideration of whether such an obligation exists under any federal, state, local, or common law is beyond the scope of this practice.

1.10?This standard does not purport to address all of the safety concerns, if any, associated with its use. It is the responsibility of the user of this standard to establish appropriate safety, health, and environmental practices and determine the applicability of regulatory limitations prior to use.

1.11?This international standard was developed in accordance with internationally recognized principles on standardization established in the Decision on Principles for the Development of International Standards, Guides and Recommendations issued by the World Trade Organization Technical Barriers to Trade (TBT) Committee.