Topics covered on this page include:
- Reporting: Sending a Benchmarking Submission
- Reporting: View Results and Track Progress
1. Reporting: File a Benchmarking Submission
It is easy for you to see trends and to track improvement for your entire portfolio of buildings with a variety of standard graphs and reports in Portfolio Manager. Follow these steps to view reports about your properties and to assess progress.
Step 1 – Run a data quality check. Click on the “Summary” tab for your property. Under “Data Quality for this Property”, click the “Check Data Quality” button. Run the check for the year ending “December 2015.” The data checker will identify any potential problems in the data you entered.
A common first-time error is “Less than 12 Full Calendar Months of Bills.” Revisit the identified meter and make sure all of 2015 is covered, with no gaps.
For other common errors, you can check the Portfolio Manager FAQ at portfoliomanager.energystar.gov/pm/help.
You can re-run the checker once you have made any necessary corrections. Once you are satisfied that you have addressed any errors, proceed to the next step.
Step 2 – Enter any contextual information about your building’s energy performance. Click on the “Details” tab and scroll down to “Property Notes.” You should enter here any relevant contextual information about your building that you want to be included when energy metrics are publicly disclosed.
You must also record here if:
a) You used any default energy values;
b) You estimated floor area or a property use detail;
c) If you chose to use self-metered energy data instead of utility-provided data, and what the difference is;
d) Reporting was completed by a tenant who leases the whole building.
Click “Save Notes” when you’re done. Need more space for contextual information? If your information does not fit into the 1000-character limit, you may provide it by emailing it to buildingefficiency@atlantaga.gov.
The top of this same page provides information on your building’s energy performance. Many buildings will receive an Energy Star rating, which is a percentile score for energy performance as compared to similar buildings in the U.S., after normalizing for operating hours, size, climate, etc. A score above 75 indicates a highly efficient building. However, this comparative dataset is not available for all building types. Other users will see the building’s weather normalized source energy use intensity, which is the energy consumption per square foot adjusted for weather. This estimates what energy use intensity would have been in a year with normal weather conditions.
Step 3 – Add your Atlanta Building ID Number. This identifier helps ensure that your energy and water report is attributed to the right building during compliance checks. Stay on the “Details” tab, and scroll down to the Unique Identifiers box. Click on “Edit.”
Under “Standard IDs,” select “Atlanta Building ID.” Enter your six-digit Atlanta Building ID and click “Save”.
Atlanta Building ID’s can be located at http://ditweb.atlantaga.gov/br/, by calling the Atlanta Help Desk (404-604-3665), or by calling 311.
Step 4 – Report your data to the City of Atlanta. You will be taken to the Respond to Data Request page in Portfolio Manager.
Under Your Response, select from the drop-down menu which properties to include in the response. Click Generate Response Preview.
Data Quality Note: If the data or account has any issues an alert message will pop up on the next page. Please click “read more” to fix the issue before sending or contact the Atlanta Help Line at 404-604-3665 if you are not able to resolve the issue.
If there are no data quality alerts, scroll down to Templates & Reports and find the item that says “Atlanta Custom Reporting Template for 2015”. Select “Send Response” from the Action drop-down list next to the report name.
Electronically sign your report by entering your login information and clicking E-Sign Response. Once your information is confirmed, click Send Data. You will receive a confirmation email informing you that your data has been submitted to the City of Atlanta.
THAT COMPLETES THE 2016 REPORTING REQUIREMENTS – CONGRATULATIONS!
2. Reporting: View Results and Track Progress
It is easy for you to see trends and to track improvement for your entire portfolio of buildings with a variety of standard graphs and reports in Portfolio Manager. Follow these steps to view reports about your properties and to assess progress.
Step 1 – Click the Reporting tab to view graphs and reports for a property or portfolio.
Step 2 – Click on the Charts & Graphs options to instantly see colorful graphs of how your portfolio or group of properties is performing. You can print graphs or download the images to incorporate into a presentation or document.
It is also possible to scroll through the available Charts & Graphs by holding down the left mouse button; though, it is much easier to scroll through the available Charts & Graphs from the next page—just click on the picture.
Step 3 – The following metrics are displayed on the Charts & Graphs Page of the Reporting Tab:
- Energy Star Score
- Source EUI
- Site EUI
The Charts & Graphs page for each of these metrics contains the following graphics:
- Average Baseline Period Metric, Average Current Period Metric, and Change in Average Metric
- Eligibility for Energy Star or Comparison to National Median
- Metric by Group
- Metric by Property Type
You can also print or download the graphics to incorporate into a presentation or document. The groups or types of buildings displayed in each chart can be edited by clicking the Select Groups or Select Types link.
Step 4 – At the bottom of the Charts & Graphs page for each metric, there is a Raw Data for these Charts & Graphs The following tables are available for each metric:
- Averages by group
- Averages by property type
- Averages by state
- Complete reference table
Click on Averages by Property Type arrow to display the raw data.
Step 5 – Click the Previous Report or Next Report to see other pre-defined Charts & Graphs.
Step 6 – Return to the Reporting Page by clicking the Reporting Tab. There are 8 pre-defined report templates under the Templates & Reports A template is the framework for a report. A report must be generated from the template before you can view metrics about your properties.
Template Type – Each report template has an icon to the left of the Name field that indicates the type of report. The pre-defined reports have an icon that looks like a spreadsheet. Custom report templates have an arrow superimposed on the icon for the pre-defined reports, such as the icon shown for the Utility Summary report below.
Template Status – The Status for each report is displayed to the right of the Name field. The status for the template displays the time at which the last Action for that template was performed.
Template Action – The Action field for each template is drop-down list showing available actions. If no report has been previously generated, then the only available action is to Generate New Report. Once a report has been generated from the template, then additional actions will appear in the Action menu.
Select Generate New Report for the Energy Performance template.
Step 7 – The next step in generating a report from the Energy Performance template is to define the details of the metrics displayed in the report.
Timeframe – The timeframe specifies the desired performance period and the performace period against which to compare. Current Year provides a report for the most recent 12 months.
Property to Include – These are the properties that will be included in your report. If One Property is selected, then another dropdown menu will appear with a list of your properties from which the desired property can be selected. If All Properties are selected, then a report will be generated for all properties in your portfolio. If Multiple Properties are selected, then a Select Properties button will appear that links to a checklist to select desired properties.
Review Included Metrics – This section displays a table of metrics that will be included in the report. Hover over the blue items for additional information. These metrics cannot be changed in a predefined template, but a new custom template can be created on the Reporting page if desired.
Select Compare Baseline Year for the timeframe. Select All Properties for Selected Properties. Then, click Generate Spreadsheet.
Step 8 – A notification will appear on the Reporting Page. The newly generated report will be highlighted in green.
From the Action menu, select View Current Report.
Step 9 – The Energy Performance Report will be displayed for all of your properties. This report can be downloaded as a spreadsheet by clicking the Download Report button or downloaded to XML via the Download XML
Any questions?
For technical assistance please email benchmarkhelp@southface.org or call 404-604-3596.
Atlanta Building Efficiency 