Air handler units are being replaced with variable-frequency drive fans for better efficiency and more tenant control. Occupied spaces will have demand-control ventilation and air quality monitoring, and the whole building will get an upgrade of existing building controls for better HVAC performance, with the addition of metering.

“It was challenging exploring ides that might not be implemented, looking at the ideas on the edges of the bell curve, not the middle of the road,” says Carol Fluhrer, RMI’s energy consultant. “And it’s never been done on such scales. It was challenging to not be creative.”