ASHRAE Standard 90.1 has requirements to address the energy used for heating, cooling, ventilation, interior lighting, hot water, and a few other end uses. The standard defines these components of energy use as regulated. But there is a multitude of unregulated energy use within the building that is not addressed by the standard, including:
- All the things that are plugged into convenience outlets such as personal computers, printers, coffee machines, refrigerators and desk lamps;
- Commercial refrigeration equipment such as walk-in refrigerators, walk-in freezers, and other equipment common to restaurants, food stores, and convenience stores;
- Transportation systems such as elevators, escalators, and moving walkways;
- Special ventilation systems, for instance to remove carbon monoxide from parking garages;
- Grills, ovens, fryers, steam trays, and other cooking equipment in restaurants and cafeterias;
- Compressed air systems in manufacturing and warehouse facilities; and
- Specialized equipment in laboratories, hospitals, and manufacturing plants.
Energy modelers and software developers must be able to distinguish between regulated and unregulated energy use since this is an important factor in determining the PCI target for compliance with 90.1-2016. In this case, the target performance cost index (PCIt) assumes that the unregulated energy use is neutral for both the proposed design and the baseline building, and the procedure for determining PCIt has adjustments for the percent of unregulated energy.