Data Standards Ecosystem

What are the BPI Data Standards?

The BPI data standards are designed to help collect and transfer information about the characteristics of residential buildings and upgrade projects. This data can be shared with any party involved in a home performance or energy-efficiency program, including contractors, program administrators, utilities, federal agencies, and others. In addition, HPXML allows home performance data to be seamlessly shared with the financial, real estate, insurance, and other appropriate industries. This creates a standardized way to collect project information and to share that information to facilitate market growth.

The two primary data standards, BPI-2100  and BPI-2200  are closely related and are used together to implement HPXML:

  • BPI-2100-S-2013: Standard for Home Performance-Related Data Transfer
  • provides requirements for an extensible mark-up language (XML) standard data transfer protocol that can be used to transfer home performance-related data.
  • BPI-2200-S-2013: Standard for Home Performance-Related Data Collection
  • provides a standard vocabulary for describing terms related to buildings, energy consumption, and energy conservation measures. Each of the data elements defined in BPI-2200 can be transferred using HPXML via the methodology outlined in BPI-2100.

BPI will be developing additional data collection standards, of which BPI-2101-S-2013 has been completed. Each of these standards specifies a set of data elements to be collected at specific points during the implementation of an energy efficiency program (e.g. the audit, project completion, etc.). While HPXML is capable of transferring a wide variety of data elements, any one program or jurisdiction will only need a small sub-set in most cases. To facilitate adoption of the data standards and to reduce variation between jurisdictions, which can be costly for software providers and contractors, BPI WG-5 in coordination with stakeholders from across the industry have started developing the following data collection standards:

  • BPI-2101-S-2013: Standard Requirements for a Certificate of Completion for Residential Energy Efficiency Upgrades
  • This standard identifies a set of data elements for certificates that document the completion of a whole-house energy upgrade (HEU) and individual energy conservation measures (ECMs). The set of data elements required for inclusion in the certificate will provide a clear, easy-to-understand description of the HEU or ECMs, including information about major energy-related improvements implemented and, if relevant, predicted energy savings or other performance indicators. The certificate is designed to be used as a reference document by real estate agents, appraisers, and other professionals during the home sale process, and can be uploaded into Multiple Listing Service (MLS) databases. Home Performance with ENERGY STAR’s Certificate of Completion template, available to Program Sponsors, complies with BPI-2101 to assure consistency of data elements.
  • Draft: Standard for Home Energy Auditing Data Collection with Energy Modeling Tools
  • This draft standard represents the minimum data necessary for energy modeling tools to capture during an energy audit and transfer by HPXML to home performance programs. The standard is designed to promote consistency between programs and facilitate cost efficiency in the implementation of HPXML through alignment to a standardized specification.
  • Draft: Standard for Home Energy Job Completion Data Collection with Energy Modeling Tools
  • This draft standard represents the minimum required data necessary to be captured by energy modeling or other data collection tools during a home energy upgrade and transfer by HPXML to home performance programs. The standard is designed to promote consistency between programs and facilitate cost efficiency in the implementation of HPXML through alignment to a standardized specification.

The Role of BPI Working Group 5

BPI Working Group 5 (BPI WG-5) is a volunteer effort with representation from program administrators, implementers, software developers, and government agencies. The group is an official Building Performance Institute committee tasked with developing and maintaining standards related to the collection and transfer of energy efficiency and home performance-related data. BPI WG-5 is responsible for maintaining the standards, and it works to ensure that the standards can meet the needs of various market actors. As a program administrator, you may want to familiarize yourself with this group, as they can serve as an invaluable resource to assist in the implementation of the BPI data standards, facilitate changes in the standard, and answer questions about the standards. To contact the BPI WG-5 or to get involved, email them at hpxml@homeperformance.org.

Data Standards and the U.S. DOE’s Building Energy Data Exchange Specification (BEDES)

The BPI data standards were developed to serve the single family residential sector (i.e. 1-4 unit buildings). Since the creation of HPXML, and with shared objectives, the US Department of Energy has begun the development of the Building Energy Data Exchange Specification, referred to as BEDES (pronounced “beads” or /bi:ds/). BEDES is a dictionary of terms, definitions, and field formats which was created to help facilitate the exchange of information on building characteristics and energy use. It is intended to be used in tools and activities that help stakeholders make energy investment decisions, track building performance, and implement energy-efficient policies and programs.

Since the initiation of the BEDES effort, BPI WG-5 and representatives from the DOE have coordinated efforts to maintain interoperability between the two standards. The primary difference between the two efforts is one of scope, as the BPI data standards are designed for single-family residences, while BEDES is designed to include all building types — both commercial and residential.

For more information on visit the BEDES website.

Home Performance with ENERGY STAR logo

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