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Energy & Cost Savings
Measured savings, utility program economics, and the business case for daylighting and lighting controls.
A Meta-Analysis of Energy Savings from Lighting Controls in Commercial Buildings
Published by Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory in 2011 · Full text
LBNL review of 240 savings estimates from 88 papers finds lighting controls cut lighting energy 24% (occupancy), 28% (daylighting), 31% (personal tuning), 36% (institutional tuning) and 38% (combined); simulations overstate daylighting savings.
Commercial Building Toplighting: Energy Saving Potential and Potential Paths Forward
Published by U.S. Department of Energy (prepared by TIAX LLC) in 2008 · Full text
TIAX study for DOE finds skylights with lighting controls cut lighting energy 35-55%, paying back in 4-10 years under high open ceilings but 30-40 years where light wells are needed; national potential about 0.4 quads.
Commissioning for Optimal Savings from Daylight Controls
Published by Energy Center of Wisconsin in 2013 · Brief + original
Energy Center of Wisconsin field study of 20 daylit spaces finds as-found daylighting controls captured only about half their potential; one to two hours of recommissioning raised median lighting savings from 23% to 63%.
Daylight Metrics and Energy Savings
Published by Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory in 2009 · Full text
LBNL-4585E paper explaining why the daylight factor fails as a daylighting metric, introducing climate-based daylight modeling and useful daylight illuminance, with New York Times and VELUX case studies and a discussion of realized energy savings.
Energy Efficiency Market Report 2014 (Executive Summary)
Published by International Energy Agency in 2014 · Brief + original
IEA executive summary sizing global energy efficiency investment at $310-360 billion in 2012 and showing that efficiency gains in 11 member countries avoided 1,337 Mtoe in 2011, more than the total final energy use of the European Union.
Energy Treasure Hunt Guide: Simple Steps to Finding Energy Savings
Published by U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, ENERGY STAR in 2014 · Full text
EPA ENERGY STAR's step-by-step guide to running a three-day employee Energy Treasure Hunt that finds low- and no-cost operational savings; partner examples include $12 million found at five Merck plants and $218,000 at one Intertape site.
Harvest Daylighting's Bright Potential With Ongoing Monitoring
Published by Building Operating Management in 2014 · Brief + original
Building Operating Management feature on why daylight harvesting systems drift from their design savings and how commissioning, monitoring, and retuning restore them, citing a 20-space study where recommissioning raised savings from 20% to 50%.
Quantifying National Energy Savings Potential of Lighting Controls in Commercial Buildings
Published by Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory in 2012 · Full text
LBNL meta-analysis of 240 savings estimates from 88 studies finds lighting controls save 24% (occupancy) to 38% (combined strategies) of lighting energy, and full ASHRAE 90.1-2010 adoption could cut national commercial lighting energy about 19%.
Small Box Retail: Think Outside the Energy Box
Published by Energy Manager Today in 2014 · Brief + original
Energy Manager Today column explaining why stores under 10,000 square feet lagged on energy management systems and how low-cost cloud-connected controls change the math, with lighting at up to 40% of a store's load.
The Best Value for America's Energy Dollar: A National Review of the Cost of Utility Energy Efficiency Programs
Published by American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy in 2014 · Brief + original
ACEEE review of 2009-2012 utility program data from 20 states finds electricity efficiency costs an average 2.8 cents per kWh, one-half to one-third the cost of new generation, and gas efficiency 35 cents per therm.
The Program Administrator Cost of Saved Energy for Utility Customer-Funded Energy Efficiency Programs (Appendices)
Published by Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory in 2014 · Full text
Appendices to the 2014 LBNL cost-of-saved-energy study: history of the metric, the program typology and data glossary, database QA/QC methods, discount-rate selection, levelized CSE tables by sector and program type, and the regression framework.
Codes, Standards & Compliance
Energy codes, daylighting requirements, ENERGY STAR criteria, and OSHA fall protection for skylights.
Daylighting in Codes and Standards: A Simple Overview
Published by Acuity Brands (Sunoptics) in 2013 · Brief + original
Two-page Sunoptics/Acuity Brands reference sheet (2013) that indexes where daylighting appears in nine codes and standards, from ASHRAE 90.1-2010 and IECC-2012 to California Title 24-2013 and LEED 2009, with section numbers for each.
ENERGY STAR Climate Zone Map and Qualification Criteria for Skylights (Version 5.0)
Published by ENERGY STAR (U.S. EPA / DOE) in 2009 · Full text
One-page ENERGY STAR Version 5.0 (April 2009) criteria sheet: U-factor and SHGC limits for windows, doors, and skylights in the Northern, North-Central, South-Central, and Southern climate zones, with the U.S. zone map.
Five Global Regulations Shaping Ventilation and Daylight-Centric Building Design
Published by Architecture & Design in 2026 · Brief + original
Architecture & Design (Australia) article from February 2026 in which VELUX's Anders Dam Vestergaard walks through five overseas rules, from the 2024 EPBD recast to California Title 24, and what each could mean for Australian skylight and ventilation practice.
Massachusetts Stretch Energy Code (780 CMR Appendix 115.AA)
Published by Massachusetts Board of Building Regulations and Standards / Department of Energy Resources in 2010 · Full text
Massachusetts' opt-in Stretch Energy Code amendments to IECC 2009: commercial buildings over 100,000 sq. ft. must beat ASHRAE 90.1-2007 by 20%, skylights are capped at 3% of roof area (5% with automatic daylighting controls), and lighting controls are mandatory.
OSHA Fall Protection for Skylights: An Observation of Protection Versus Compliance
Published by Sunoptics (Acuity Brands) in 2014 · Brief + original
Five-page review by Sunoptics executive Grant Grable that walks through OSHA 1926 (construction) and 1910 (occupied buildings) skylight rules and argues that an unscreened plastic dome, however strong when new, is not lifetime fall protection.
Health, Well-Being & Productivity
What research says about natural light, sleep, comfort, and worker performance.
Balancing Sustainability, Efficiency, and Well-Being Through Daylighting
Published by Facility Executive in 2026 · Brief + original
Facility Executive column (June 2026) by Kingspan Light + Air's Neall Digert arguing that daylighting is the one strategy that advances decarbonization, 40-80% lighting-energy cuts and occupant well-being at once, if planned early with modeling.
Health, Wellbeing & Productivity in Offices: The Next Chapter for Green Building (Executive Summary)
Published by World Green Building Council in 2014 · Brief + original
Two-page executive summary of the World Green Building Council's 2014 report arguing that, because staff costs are roughly 90% of operating costs, office design features such as daylight matter more financially than energy savings.
Lighting People Remain Divided Over Human-Centric Lighting
Published by Inside Lighting in 2026 · Brief + original
Inside Lighting's May 2026 account of the dispute between circadian researcher Martin Moore-Ede and the Illuminating Engineering Society over ANSI/IES RP-46-25, the recommended practice for daytime lighting and its physiological effects.
Optimizing Daylighting Performance: Considerations to Maximize Daylighting for Health, Efficiency and Sustainability
Published by Buildings in 2025 · Brief + original
Buildings magazine's November 2025 guide to daylighting design covering interior layout, reflectance, orientation, climate, glazing and skylight options, IES light levels, LEED and WELL metrics, and the health and energy case.
The Benefits of Daylight through Windows
Published by Lighting Research Center, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in 2003 · Brief + original
The Lighting Research Center's 88-page 2003 literature review on whether daylight through windows improves productivity, health and financial return, concluding that windowless space rents about 20% less and skylights measurably lift retail sales.
The Benefits of Glass: A Literature Review on the Qualitative Benefits of Glass on Building Occupants
Published by University of Michigan Taubman College of Architecture and Urban Planning in 2012 · Brief + original
University of Michigan literature review, prepared for Guardian Industries in 2012, compiling evidence that daylight and views through glass raise office test scores up to 20%, school scores 21%, retail sales 0-6% and cut hospital stays by 2.6 days.
The Benefits of Natural Light
Published by Architectural Lighting in 2014 · Brief + original
Architectural Lighting's 2014 survey of daylighting research by Kevin Van Den Wymelenberg: 20-60% lighting-energy savings with daylight controls, retail and school performance gains, a 20% rent penalty for windowless space, and the circadian case for daylight.
Workers in Windowless Offices Lose 46 Minutes of Sleep a Night
Published by Fast Company (Co.Design) in 2014 · Brief + original
Fast Company's Co.Design report on a University of Illinois study in which office workers without windows slept 46 minutes less on work nights and scored lower on all eight health-survey dimensions than colleagues with daylight.
Design & Installation Guides
How to size, place, specify, and install skylights and daylighting systems correctly.
Daylight Dialect
Published by Architectural Lighting in 2008 · Brief + original
Architectural Lighting column (March 2008) by Kevin Van Den Wymelenberg on why designers cannot agree on what "daylit" means, tracing daylight factor's limits and the rise of dynamic metrics such as daylight autonomy, with a nine-term glossary.
Designing the Lit Environment
Published by Architectural Lighting in 2008 · Brief + original
Architectural Lighting article (2008) by Kevin Van Den Wymelenberg arguing for holistic lighting design: why daylight-responsive controls capture only about 25 percent of predicted savings, and how integrated design, HDR imaging and tunable color temperature could close the gap.
Installing Skylights: A Roofer's Guide to Installation Best Practices
Published by Roofing Magazine in 2024 · Brief + original
Roofing magazine feature (May/June 2024) by FGIA's Glenn Ferris on leak-free commercial skylight installation: AAMA 1607 details for low-slope single-ply and steep standing-seam roofs, post-install water testing, and fall-protection screens.
Skylighting Design Guidelines (Advanced Simulation Guidebook, Volume II)
Published by Energy Design Resources in 2014 · Brief + original
140-page California utility guidebook (2nd edition, 2014; originally Heschong Mahone Group, 1998) on designing unit-skylight toplighting for commercial and industrial buildings: daylight basics, glazing and light wells, photosensor controls, code compliance, and the SkyCalc sizing tool.
Case Studies & Field Reports
Measured results from real buildings, from big-box retail to net-zero feasibility studies.
How a JLL Building Saves Energy, Makes $80K
Published by Energy Manager Today in 2014 · Brief + original
Q&A with JLL's general manager at 77 West Wacker in Chicago on how demand response earned the 1-million-square-foot tower $75,000 to $80,000 in 2014, including $13,000 to $15,000 a day during the polar vortex.
Natural Interior Daylight Brings Light and Joy to Berkeley West Library
Published by Eneref Institute in 2014 · Brief + original
Eneref Institute case report on Berkeley's 9,500-square-foot net-zero West Branch Library, where roughly 30 north-tilted skylights, half of them venting, light the reading room and staff report more patrons staying longer.
Net Zero Energy Feasibility Study: Summary Report
Published by Maclay Architects for Efficiency Vermont in 2015 · Brief + original
Efficiency Vermont study modeling six building types finds net-zero-ready construction uses 57% to 74% less energy than 2015 Vermont code and costs less to own from year one for homes and offices; an office/manufacturing building needs incentives to beat code.
Technical Evaluation of the McKinney, Texas Experimental Store
Published by Oak Ridge National Laboratory in 2009 · Full text
ORNL's three-year (2006–2008) monitored evaluation of Wal-Mart's experimental McKinney, Texas supercenter versus a reference store: daylighting saved about 150,000 kWh/yr, LED case lighting 15–20%, PV arrays hit 87% of expectations, and HVAC retrofits cut over 400,000 kWh/yr.
Grid Reliability & Power Outages
Outage trends and utility outlooks that shape the resilience case for daylit buildings.
Blackout: Extreme Weather, Climate Change and Power Outages
Published by Climate Central in 2014 · Brief + original
Climate Central’s analysis of 28 years of federal outage data finds weather caused 80 percent of major U.S. power outages from 2003 to 2012, affecting 147 million customers and costing $20 billion to $55 billion a year.
Eaton Blackout Tracker: United States Annual Report 2014
Published by Eaton in 2014 · Brief + original
Eaton logged 3,634 reported U.S. power outages in 2014, up 12 percent from 2013, affecting 14.2 million people. California led all states for the sixth year; weather and equipment failure were the top causes.
The Future of Energy and Utilities: An IBM Point of View
Published by IBM Institute for Business Value in 2014 · Brief + original
IBM’s 12-page 2014 white paper maps the next decade for utilities: rising renewables, prosumers, and new entrants force three imperatives — become an energy integrator, serve a “customer of one,” and run on analytics.
Industry & Sustainability Outlook
Where distribution, manufacturing, and sustainable design are heading.
More Car Manufacturing Jobs Move South to Mexico
Published by USA Today in 2015 · Brief + original
USA Today’s June 2015 report tracks auto production shifting to Mexico and the U.S. South: Mexico built one in five North American vehicles in 2014, heading to one in four by 2020, with $7 billion in new plant investment.
Perspectives on Distribution Center Design
Published by JLL (Jones Lang LaSalle) in 2013 · Brief + original
JLL’s 2013 white paper names prismatic skylights with daylight harvesting the leading energy-saving change in distribution center design, with one- to three-year paybacks, alongside LED cold storage, 36-foot clear heights, and safer docks.
Planning for a Sustainable Future: The Ideas That Will Shape EHS & Sustainability Management in the Year to Come
Published by NAEM (National Association for Environmental Management) in 2014 · Brief + original
NAEM’s inaugural 2014 trends report, built on 26 interviews with corporate EHS leaders and outside experts, finds sustainability maturing into a risk-based business strategy focused on energy and water, supply chains, climate adaptation, and long-term planning.
Why Sustainable Design Still Matters
Published by Modern Materials Handling in 2014 · Brief + original
Modern Materials Handling’s February 2014 feature finds green warehouse design returning with the construction rebound, led by efficient lighting, prismatic skylights with photocells, and site strategy, with lighting paybacks often under three years.
Zero Energy Buildings: A Critical Look at the Definition
Published by National Renewable Energy Laboratory in 2006 · Full text
NREL conference paper comparing four net-zero-energy building definitions (site, source, cost, emissions) across seven monitored low-energy buildings, showing that the definition chosen can change required PV size several-fold and steer design toward efficiency, fuel switching, or demand management.