Energy Efficiency MicroNews: New Motor Efficiency Standards, DOE Money, ThinkEco, EnerNOC, Philips, Desso and More

The US Department of Energy proposed new motor efficiency standards just in time for Thanksgiving. This is something to feast on, says Andrew deLaski of the Appliance Standards Awareness Project in his blog. Power motors are responsible for about half of the electricity used by U.S. industry. The proposed standards are expected to save businesses $23 billion over 30 years.

ThinkEco has won the Best in Lighting/Energy Efficiency for the Global Cleantech Cluster Association 2013 Later Stage Award. Chosen by venture capital and private equity investors and serial entrepreneurs, the GCCA’s Global Top 10 Winners represent the best of the association’s nearly 50 member clusters and over 10,000 member companies.

More about ThinkEco’s Global Cleantech Cluster Association award for lighting efficiency

The U.S. Department of Energy is offering $19 million to reduce both hardware and non-hardware costs of solar energy. Of that, $9 million will go toward pushing the limits of photovoltaic efficiency.

More about the Energy Department’s $19 million in funding for reducing the cost of solar energy

Austin Energy selected EnerNOC to help expand the utility’s Power Saver Load Co-op demand response program. The focus will be on developing a plan for automated demand response using the OpenADR 2.0 standard.

More about Austin Energy’s plan to expand the Power Saver Load Co-op demand response program

Andrew Cuomo, Governor of New York, awarded $4.8 million for projects that explore new technologies to make buildings in New York State more energy efficient. This is the second of six rounds of funding under the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority’s Advanced Buildings Program, which will provide a total of $25 million over the next three years. NYSERDA is partnering with manufacturers, research scientists, building owners and property managers interested in developing and applying new and emerging energy-efficient technologies that offer improved energy and environmental performance. Award winners include Autronic Plastics, Ephesus Lighting, OLEDWorks, Brookhaven National Laboratory, and Ecovative Design among others.

More about the $4.8 million for energy-efficient buildings in New York

The Center for Green Schools at the U.S. Green Building Council, in conjunction with the World Green Building Council, announced the 29 founding members of the Global Coalition for Green Schools. Each of the 29 founding members have committed to establishing and leading a national coalition for green schools within each of their respective countries. Members of the coalition will share best practices, resources and case studies, provide tools and infrastructure to this growing network, and introduce programs, initiatives and campaigns that can be replicated around the world.

More about the Global Coalition for Green Schools and the Center’s international efforts

Philips and Desso have formed a partnership to develop solutions that combine LED lighting with light transmissive carpet. This innovation aims to unlock the potential of LED integration into surfaces to transform the way people interact with information and their environment in offices, hotels, conference centers and other public buildings. The solution is designed for high traffic areas and comes in different colors, shapes and sizes.

More about Philips and Desso’s LED lighting and transmissive carpet

Soraa plans to open a new state-of-the-art GaN on GaN LED fabrication facility plant in Buffalo, New York that will employ hundreds of workers. The new facility is expected to open in 2015.

More information on Soraa’s GaN on GaN LED technology and bulbs