About Us +
Researchers in the Building Technology & Urban Systems Division (BTUS) at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory develop data and technologies that increase energy efficiency and improve the health, safety and comfort of building occupants, in the United States and worldwide.

We work closely with industry partners, academics and government officials to achieve these goals, and share our research widely
Research +
We are at the forefront of cutting-edge research that redefines building technology and explores all areas of urban systems.

We have been leaders for decades in developing energy-efficient windows, improving indoor air quality, coming up with new ideas to fix the nation's electricity grid, and so much more.

Visit our research areas at the right to find out more.
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Publications +
Enjoy presentations from Building Technology & Urban systems research experts on a wide variety of topics in the areas of building energy efficiency, the electricity grid and how it relates to buildings and much more.
- Presentations
News
Tools & Guides +
Explore our tools, guidebooks and software and download for free.

We offer a variety of technologies designed to simulate and model real-world circumstances to assist in energy-saving programs and help building owners build better buildings. These tools can help calculate performance of building systems like windows and shades, help consumers and builders pick the best windows for a variety of applications and much more.

Publications

Publications By Research Area

2012

Cheung, H.Y Iris, Steven Lanzisera, Judy Lai, Richard E Brown, Stephen Dawson-Haggerty, Jay Taneja, and David Culler."Detailed Energy Data Collection for Miscellaneous and Electronic Loads in a Commercial Office Building."2012 ACEEE Summer Study on Energy Efficiency in Buildings (2012).

Peffer, Therese, Daniel Perry, Marco Pritoni, Cecilia Aragon, and Alan K Meier."Facilitating energy savings with programmable thermostats: evaluation and guidelines for the thermostat user interface."Ergonomics 56.Issue 3: Ergonomics and Sustainability (2012). DOI

Nordman, Bruce, Ken Christensen, and Alan K Meier."Think Globally, Distribute Power Locally: The Promise of Nanogrids."Computer 45.9 (2012). DOI

Brown, Richard E, Louis-Benoit Desroches, Karina Garbesi, and Alan K Meier."Achieving Extreme Efficiency: How to get the job done when energy is extremely expensive and scarce."2012 ACEEE Summer Study on Energy Efficiency in Buildings (2012).

Bourassa, Norman, Leo I Rainer, Evan Mills, and Joan Glickman."The Home Energy Scoring Tool: A Simplified Asset Rating for Single Family Homes."2012 ACEEE Summer Study on Energy Efficiency in Buildings (2012).

Parker, Danny S, Evan Mills, Leo I Rainer, Norman Bourassa, and Gregory K Homan."Accuracy of the Home Energy Saver Energy Calculation Methodology."2012 ACEEE Summer Study on Energy Efficiency in Buildings (2012).

Sims, Michelle, and Alan K Meier."An Examination of the Recertification Processes of Building Certification Systems."2012 ACEEE Summer Study on Energy Efficiency in Buildings (2012).

Pritoni, Marco, Therese Peffer, Jessica Granderson, Margarita Kloss, Alan K Meier, and Cecilia Aragon."Folk Labeling: Insights on Improving Usability and Saving Energy Gleaned from After-Market Graffiti on Common Appliances."2012 ACEEE Summer Study on Energy Efficiency in Buildings (2012).

Mills, Evan."Health Impacts of Fuel-based Lighting." (2012).

Chojnowski, D, K Straub, Evan Mills, and T White."Online Communities for Creating Change: Home Energy Pros."2012 ACEEE Summer Study on Energy Efficiency in Buildings (2012).

2011

Peffer, Therese, Marco Pritoni, Alan K Meier, Cecilia Aragon, and Daniel Perry."How people use thermostats in homes: A review."Building and Environment 46.12 (2011). DOI

Meier, Alan K, Cecilia Aragon, Therese Peffer, Daniel Perry, and Marco Pritoni."Usability of Residential Thermostats: Preliminary Investigations."Building and Environment 46.10 (2011) 1891-1898. DOI

Perry, Daniel, Cecilia Aragon, Alan K Meier, Therese Peffer, and Marco Pritoni."Making Energy Savings Easier: Usability Metrics for Thermostats."Journal of Usability Studies 6.4 (2011) 226-244.

Leighty, Wayne, and Alan K Meier."Accelerated electricity conservation in Juneau, Alaska: A study of household activities that reduced demand 25%."Energy Policy 39.5 (2011). DOI

Cheung, Hoi Ying, Alan K Meier, and Richard E Brown."Energy savings assessment for digital-to-analog converter boxes."Energy Policy 39.3 (2011) 1312-1317. DOI

Meier, Alan K, Cecilia Aragon, Daniel Perry, Therese Peffer, Marco Pritoni, and Jessica Granderson."Measuring the Usability of Appliance Controls."Energy Efficiency in Domestic Appliances and Lighting Conference (2011).

Pasquier, Sara, and Alan K Meier."Creating long-term electricity savings from short-term crises."ECEEE Summer Study on Energy Efficiency (2011).

Perry, Daniel, Cecilia Aragon, Alan K Meier, and Marco Pritoni."Developing standards for affordances on embedded devices: poster abstract."IConference ’11 (2011). DOI

Meier, Alan K, Therese Peffer, Marco Pritoni, Cecilia Aragon, and Daniel Perry."Facilitating energy savings through enhanced usability of thermostats."ECEEE Summer Study on Energy Efficiency (2011).

Mills, Evan, and Arne Jacobson."From Carbon to Light: A New Framework for Estimating Greenhouse Gas Emissions Reducitons from Replacing Fuel-Based Lighting with LED Systems.."Energy Efficiency (2011). DOI

Hermelink, Andreas, and Alan K Meier."Introduction to Panel 6 Innovations in buildings and appliances."ECEEE 2011 SUMMER STUDY (2011).

2010

Claybaugh, Erin S, Adam Z Weber, and Sarah Jenson."Transforming Business as Usual: Applying Market Transformation Lessons to Green Procurement at the U.S. House of Representatives."2010 ACEEE Summer Study on Energy Efficiency in Buildings (2010).

Rubinstein, Francis M, and Abby I Enscoe."Achieving Energy Savings with Highly-Controlled Lighting in an Open-Plan Office." (2010).

Mills, Evan, and J Tracy."Illuminating The Pecking Order in Off-Grid Lighting: A Demonstration of LED Lighting for Saving Energy in the Poultry Sector."Light & Engineering 19.4 (2010).

2009

Sanchez, Marla C, Gregory K Homan, Judy Lai, and Richard E Brown."Calendar Year 2007 Program Benefits for U.S. EPA Energy Star Labeled Products: Expanded Methodology." (2009).