Special CAP Adjustments

Previous topics included discussion of how EnergyCAP makes adjustments to the baseline for such factors as floor area changes and weather. Although EnergyCAP can take these variables into account using standard adjustment equations, sooner or later you'll probably need to make some "special" adjustments to the baseline. You can make adjustments for special situations such as: 

• Addition of new equipment
• Changes in occupancy
• Other special one-time, recurring, or continuous changes
• Marginal pricing considerations 

Special baseline adjustments (called CAP Adjustments) provide a means for fine-tuning Cost Avoidance in order to give credit for the appropriate level of energy savings. Many changes that take place in buildings today result in increased energy usage. This increased energy usage tends to cancel out energy savings, giving the appearance of low or zero savings. EnergyCAP's special adjustments can restore the true calculation of Cost Avoidance. The following graph shows what happens when new loads — due to building additions, added occupants, or new equipment — are added after the baseline year.

Addition of New Loads 

As this graph shows, there was a reduction from the baseline year to the current, but the addition of new loads in the current year obscures the savings. In fact, the numbers show that the usage increased in the current year — a negative savings! 

The solution is to increase the baseline to show what would have been used in the baseline period if the new loads had been in place then. The following graph illustrates this approach, showing the net savings.

To create a CAP adjustment:

1. Open Meter Properties and click the CAP Adjustments tab.

2. Determine and select the type of adjustment:

• One-time adjustments:
  For example, add 50,000 KWH to the adjusted baseline in March 2006 because you hosted a conference and used more than normal energy that month. (Select the continuous option for one-time adjustments.)
• Continuous adjustments:
  For example, add 50,000 KWH to the adjusted baseline starting in March 2006 and continuing each month to account for the addition of a new PC training laboratory.
• Recurring adjustments:
  Use the recurring option for an adjustment that recurs each year for a certain date range. For example, add 50,000 KWH to the adjusted baseline each June and July to account for summer school which you hold now but didn't hold during the baseline year. 

3. Enter a start date and end date of the adjustment, unless it continues indefinitely.
4. Select one of the thirteen adjustment methods: 

• Add X per day to without CAP use.

Use this for fixed loads. For example, new lighting has been added to a room. The lighting is 10,000 watts, which is 10 KW. The lighting operates 12 hours a day, five days a week. 110 KW x 12 hours/day x 5 days/week = 600 KWH/week. On a seven day basis, this averages out to 85.7 KWH per day. 

• Add X% to without CAP use.

Use this adjustment for loads that vary in the same manner as the overall bill varies, such as with changes in number of occupants, hours of occupancy, or floor area changes. If the hours of occupancy increase by 10%, you may estimate that total energy will increase by 10%.  (Normally, you will let EnergyCAP automatically adjust the baseline for floor area changes. When the floor area changes, EnergyCAP automatically prorates the baseline an equal amount (a 15% floor area increase causes a 15% baseline adjustment). In some cases, you may want to use a different percentage. You may estimate that a 15% floor area increase will only increase energy use by 9% because the new addition is more energy efficient. In this case, turn off the automatic floor area adjustment on the Meter Properties-CAP tab and create a special adjustment for 9%.  One last important note about percentage adjustments: you should not create two that run concurrently. For example, do not create a 50% adjustment that runs concurrently with a 10% adjustment. Results will vary depending upon which percentage is applied first, and you have no way to control the order. When a second adjustment is needed, terminate the first adjustment and start a new adjustment that incorporates both needs.) 

• Add X% to heating weather usage.

This adjustment handles only weather sensitive loads, and will only be active when 1) a day has heating degrees, and 2) there is a weather adjustment in effect. 

• Add X% to cooling weather usage.

This adjustment handles only weather sensitive loads, and will only be active when 1) a day has cooling degrees, and 2) there is a weather adjustment in effect. 

• Replace the without CAP use with X per day.

This option allows you to discard the without CAP usage created by EnergyCAP and replace it with another value. This can be used for one-time situations in which you need to adjust a single bill.
NOTE: A simpler way to make a single-month adjustment is from the Savings tab in the Cost Avoidance Manager: click on the appropriate month to view the daily Use or Demand charts, then click the Manually Adjust button to enter a value manually.

• Replace the without CAP cost with X per day.

This option allows you to discard the without CAP cost created by EnergyCAP and replace it with another value. This can be used for one-time situations in which you need to adjust a single bill.

• Calculate Cost Avoidance using incremental cost on avoided use only.

This option uses a stipulated unit cost, called the marginal or incremental unit price, times the avoided use. This approach is described in IPMVP as an alternative to rate schedule modeling.

• Calculate savings with usage unit cost X.XX. 

This option overrides the default value of average unit cost and replaces it with a stipulated unit cost.

• Turn off Cost Avoidance (savings = 0, no loss/no gain).  

This option allows you to turn off Cost Avoidance for a meter for a period of time or indefinitely.  Example - A building has been leased out to a tenant.  You want to keep the meters in the system so that historical usage and Cost Avoidance will appear on reports, but you don't want the system to calculate ongoing Cost Avoidance. 

• Calculate Cost Avoidance using average unit cost on avoided use only. 

This option causes Cost Avoidance to be calculated as average unit cost (from today’s bill) times the avoided usage. This is different than the standard calculation because average unit cost is normally multiplied times the usage without CAP (i.e. the adjusted baseline usage).

• Add X.XX% to the demand without CAP. 

Use this adjustment for demand loads that vary in the same manner as the overall bill varies, such as with changes in number of occupants or floor area changes. If the number of occupants increases by 10%, you may estimate that total demand will increase by 10%.  Normally, you will let EnergyCAP automatically adjust the baseline for floor area changes. When the floor area changes, EnergyCAP automatically prorates the baseline an equal amount (a 15% floor area increase causes a 15% baseline adjustment). However, in some cases, you may want to use a different percentage

• Add X.XX per day to the demand without CAP.

Use this for new loads impacting demand. For example, additional lighting has been added to a room. The lighting is 10,000 watts, which is 10 KW.

• Replace the Demand without CAP with X.XX per day.

This option allows you to discard the without CAP demand created by EnergyCAP and replace it with another value. This can be used for one-time situations in which you need to adjust a single bill.
NOTE: A simpler way to make a single-month adjustment is from the Savings tab in the Cost Avoidance Manager: click on the appropriate month to view the daily Use and Demand charts, then click the Manually Adjust button to enter a demand value manually.

Select the desired calculation options and click the Calc Savings button to process the adjustment. After calculations are complete, select the Savings tab and click on any desired bills to open the Savings Details window and see the impact of special adjustments.

NOTE: All special adjustments are noted in the Explanation text box in the Savings Detail window.

Special Adjustment Processing Sequence in EnergyCAP Cost Avoidance

The order of processing for adjustments can sometimes be significant.  For example, if you add 100 KWH per day to a meter and then add 10%, the result will be different than if you add 10% FIRST, and then add 100 KWH per day.  The CAP Adjustments tab in the Meter Properties window has an interface feature that allows you to alter the sequence in which adjustments are processed. Just click on the desired adjustment to highlight it; then reposition it in the list using the up/down arrows. 

IMPORTANT NOTE: It is highly recommended that only one % adjustment be in effect for any given time period, and that the % adjustment be performed first (i.e. it appears at the top of the list of special adjustments for the meter).