Join us for the Smart Buildings Exchange 2026!

Smart Buildings Center

Energy Efficiency Innovation Center, Tool Library & Data Visualization

Seattle Building Emissions Performance Standards & Seattle Energy Code for existing buildings: What BEPS & SEC requirements apply to your building?Ā 

By

Webinar Date: Ā June 8th , 2026
Time:Ā 12 pm to 2 pm
Cost: Free!
Please join us for the webinar ā€œSeattle Building Emissions Performance Standards & Seattle Energy Code for Existing Buildings: What BEPS & SEC Requirements Apply to Your Building?ā€ hosted by the Smart Buildings Center and Building Potential, the Building Operator Certification (BOC) program, and the City of Seattle Office of Sustainability and Environment.
This session is intended for anyone impacted by these policies, including building operators and facilities professionals, building owners, property managers, and service providers. Attendees will gain a clearer understanding of how BEPS and Seattle Energy Code requirements apply to existing buildings and what to expect for compliance.
Registration Link:Ā https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_za1FKvKtR6uex-xBiqne6g

WA Commerce Webinar: Cool Classrooms on a Budget: How Federal Energy Tax Credits Can Help

By

Monday, May 11 @ 1-2pm PT

Register here

As warmer weather returns, district leaders will face an uncomfortable reality: many classrooms without cooling are unable to keep students and staff safe in todayā€™s climate. Several school districts are tapping into a reliable source for their heating and cooling: the ground. Hear from Seattle Public Schools and McKinstry about how school districts can incorporate ground-source heat pumps to support comfortable classrooms, minimize demands on maintenance staff, improve building resilience and reduce air pollution.

Schools can save up to 50% on the cost of installing this modern HVAC solution with non-competitive, uncapped federal funding available through 2034. Washingtonā€™s Clean Energy Tax Credit Assistance Program (CETCAP) provides free legal, technical, and filing support to help schools secure these dollars.

Leave this webinar with an understanding of ground-source heat pumps as a modern HVAC solution, including considerations for implementation, operations, and maintenance, and how all school districts can unlock this technology with federal funds.

Clean Building Performance Webinar Series and New and Updated Guidance Documents

By

CBPS Webinar Series: How to submit a Tier 1 compliance application

The first compliance deadline for Tier 1 buildings over 220,000 square feet is approaching quickly. To help building owners and their teams, the Clean Buildings team is hosting a webinar on how to submit a Tier 1 compliance application through the Clean Buildings Portal.

Join us onĀ May 6, 2025, at 10 a.m.Ā This session is designed for all Tier 1 covered buildings and will walk participants through accessing the portal, setting up shared access, connecting your compliance application to ENERGY STAR Portfolio Manager, and completing the submission. Whether you’re preparing your first application or want to make sure everything is submitted correctly, this webinar will provide step-by-step guidance and helpful tips.

 

REGISTER TO PARTICIPATE

 

New and updated guidance documents added

We’ve updated and added new guidance documents! Visit the Clean Buildings Document LibraryĀ to review new and updated guidance documents.

Updated:

New

FREE Webinars at The Lab at City Light May – June

By

Our friends at the The Lab at City Light want you to know about some upcoming Webinars. Don’t miss your chance to enroll in these free sessions from The Lab at City Light! Learn more about The Lab at: Lighting Design Lab

Selling Energy Projects with Pro Forma Thinking
May 14, 2026Ā |Ā 10:00 – 11:00 amĀ |Ā OnlineĀ |Ā Free
Youā€™ll also see how real-world capital pathways (C-PACE, performance contracting, Energy-as-a-Service, green bonds and tax credits) snap into a pro forma narrative that gets to ā€œyes.ā€ Youā€™ll leave with a practical story arc, a sharper value stack and model inputs you can reuse to move bold projects from ā€œinterestingā€ to funded.
Performance Commissioning: Delivering High-Performance Buildings and Enabling Electrification
May 21, 2026Ā |Ā 10:00 am – 11:30amĀ |Ā OnlineĀ |Ā Free
In this session, youā€™ll learn what performance commissioning is, how it differs from traditional approaches, and why it is essential for both new construction and retrofit projects. Youā€™ll also gain insight into how it supports electrification and ensures reliable, efficient, and long-term building performance.
Urban Business District Lighting Review
May 28, 2026Ā |Ā 10:00 am – 11:00amĀ |Ā OnlineĀ |Ā Free
This discussion will offer a review of human perception leading to practical tips on how to consider effective lighting including concepts. Real world examples will be used to illustrate effective design approaches as well as some cautionary tales.
Deliver High Performance Heat Pump Retrofits
June 4, 2026Ā |Ā 10:00 – 11:00 amĀ |Ā OnlineĀ |Ā Free
In this session, David Richardson will layout a blueprint for how you can add High Performance Heat Pump Retrofits to your product offerings and avoid the most common pitfalls.

ICYMI This Week at the Smart Buildings Center & Building Potential

By

This week we hosted our third session in our SBX Plus webinar series, How to Utilize Diagnostic Tools to Identify Energy Savings.Ā The presentation showcased how modern diagnostic tools uncover hidden inefficiencies in building systems and pinpoint actionable energy-saving opportunities.Ā You can catch this recording, register for future sessions, and find more information and registration opportunities for Smart Buildings Exchange webinars and in person conference here.
Jorge Melendez, Senior Specialist of Conservation and Efficiency ProgramsĀ at Southern California Edison, Robby Martin, Building Analytics Business Development Lead at ATS Automation and Britton Rife, Senior Project Manager at the SBC and Building Potential covered practical approaches to utilizing specific diagnostic tools, analyzing data, prioritizing improvements, and validating results. Many regions have access to commercial tool lending libraries, check them out here:

Washington & Oregon

Smart Buildings Center ā€“Ā https://www.smartbuildingscenter.org/tool-library/


Idaho

University of Idaho ā€“ Integrated Design Lab ā€“Ā http://idlboise.com/about-erl


California

Pacific Gas & Electric ā€“Ā www.pge.com/tools

Sonoma County ā€“Ā http://sonomacounty.ca.gov/General-Services/Energy-and-Sustainability/Tool-Lending-Library/

Southern California Edison ā€“Ā https://www.sce.com/business/consulting-services/energy-education-centers

San Diego Gas & Electric ā€“Ā https://www.sdge.com/energy-innovation-center/tool-and-book-lending-library


New York

CUNY Building Performance Lab ā€“Ā https://nycenergytools.com/

Registration Open for Smart Buildings Exchange (SBX) 2026!

By


Early-bird registration for SBX 2026 is now open at www.sbxconference.org

Register now!

The Smart Buildings Center is excited to host the 6th annual Smart Buildings Exchange (SBX) in 2026! SBX 2026 includes a year-round virtual series, SBX Plus, offering engaging, expert-led live webinars, and an in-person Fall Conference (November 9-10 in Seattle) featuring workshops, keynotes, panel discussions, and networking. Learn more below and register for both SBX Plus & the Fall Conference now and save!

Building Potential members can receive a 15% discount on SBX registration. Please contact [email protected] to receive a discount code before registering.

SBX Plus (Virtual)
Please join us for our next SBX Plus virtual session on Artificial Intelligence, Fault Detection & Diagnostics for Predictive Maintenance on Wednesday, March 18th from 11am-12pm PST. Hear three case study examples about how AI-driven fault detection and diagnostics has transformed building operations from reactive to predictive. Learn about how advanced analytics can identify equipment issues early, reduce downtime, and lower maintenance and energy costs. Register at the link below to attend!

Fall Conference (In-Person)
This yearā€™s Fall Conference theme ā€“ Accelerating Performance at the Speed of Innovation ā€“ will respond to the call to action heard at SBX 2025 to accelerate the pace of change needed to drive the clean energy market transformation. Stay tuned in the coming weeks for more details on sponsorships opportunities, agenda details, and an open call to submit topics and speakers for consideration. Register at the link below to join us for SBX Plus and the SBX Fall Conference!

Early-bird SBX 2026 registration

Contact Us

Smart Buildings Center
Pacific Tower
1200 12th Ave. S., Suite 110
Seattle, WA 98144

206-538-0832

[email protected]

Smart Buildings Center is a project collaboration with Building Potential