Codes & standards
rating and labeling system that
may be needed for participation
in certain energy e;ciency programs.
California’s updated Title 24 energy
performance requirements for site-built
commercial fenestration, now in e;ect,
specifies use of CMA. (;e alternative
is to use either Title 24 default values or
the less-accurate method based on simple
equations provided within Title 24.)
Using CMA
NFRC administered a pilot program last
fall for the CMA, which included testing
and refining its software, called CMAST
(Component Modeling Approach
Software Tool). Participation was open
to all commercial fenestration stakeholders, including glazing contractors and
commercial fenestration manufacturers.
CMAST is a rating tool that pro-
duces whole product energy performance
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values based on components selected
from databases. ;ose online libraries contain NFRC-approved spectral
data for glazing from the International
Glazing Database, and thermal performance data of frame cross sections
and spacer component materials.
;e values CMAST generates are intended for code compliance and the comparison of fenestration systems. CMAST
values satisfy the NFRC 100/200
requirement in ASHRAE 90.1. ;e program is based on ideal, standard conditions as specified in NFRC 100/200.
After a product is modeled in
CMAST, the party responsible for the
fenestration ratings and getting the
rating certificate on a project, known
as the “specifying authority,” contacts
an NFRC Approved Calculation Entity
(ACE) to calculate the energy performance ratings. (;e specifying authority
might be an architect, a manufacturer
of fenestration, a glazing subcontractor, etc.) When this process is complete,
the specifying authority signs a license
agreement with NFRC and the ACE
issues a label certificate, which lists the
fenestration ratings for an entire project.
While the label certificate reflects
certified ratings at the NFRC standard
testing size, there is an option to include
ratings of the actual size as an addendum.
;e ratings generated using the CMA
program are limited to fenestration. Some
stakeholders have expressed interest in
developing ratings for infill materials
(e.g., spandrel glazings) but this capability currently is not included in the CMA
program. As always, NFRC is open
to suggestions and recommendations
regarding new products and procedures.
NFRC continues to organize We-binars on CMA, and its sta; is available to answer technical questions. To
learn more, visit http://www.nfrc.org/
CMAprogram.aspx.
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The author is NFRC’s chief executive officer. He
can be reached at jbenney@nfrc.org.
