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      RISK FRAMEWORK FOR ENERGY PERFORMANCE CONTRACTING BUILDING RETROFITS

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          Abstract

          Energy performance contracting (EPC) has emerged as a useful project financing and delivery tool for building retrofits, particularly among building ownerships which have experienced reduced funding for capital projects. Through EPC, a contractor (called the EPC contractor or the energy service company) guarantees minimum energy savings performance and enables the building owner to finance the project using utility savings over the length of the project (which is typically 12–15 years, or longer). Despite its growing use, there is a dearth of literature regarding a contractor's risks related to the delivery and execution of EPC building retrofits. This is particularly important as the performance guarantee effectively transfers project performance risk from the owner to the EPC contractor. This research proposes a project factors-based risk framework for EPC building retrofits, initially developed through a comprehensive review of relevant literature and project documents and refined through the elicited expertise of 19 highly experienced EPC contracting professionals. A Delphi technique-based expertise elicitation strategy was used to confirm the findings of the a priori (literature-based) framework and provide additional analysis related to risk causes and control measures as well as relative risk importance. This information was used to construct a refined risk framework which provides insight into the lengthy project performance period during the earliest phases of the project's life cycle. This has the advantage of providing rapid screening of the project factors that can potentially lead to the greatest project performance risks.

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          Consulting the oracle: ten lessons from using the Delphi technique in nursing research.

          The aim of this paper was to provide insight into the Delphi technique by outlining our personal experiences during its use over a 10-year period in a variety of applications. As a means of achieving consensus on an issue, the Delphi research method has become widely used in healthcare research generally and nursing research in particular. The literature on this technique is expanding, mainly addressing what it is and how it should be used. However, there is still much confusion and uncertainty surrounding it, particularly about issues such as modifications, consensus, anonymity, definition of experts, how 'experts' are selected and how non-respondents are pursued. This issues that arise when planning and carrying out a Delphi study include the definition of consensus; the issue of anonymity vs. quasi-anonymity for participants; how to estimate the time needed to collect the data, analyse each 'round', feed back results to participants, and gain their responses to this feedback; how to define and select the 'experts' who will be asked to participate; how to enhance response rates; and how many 'rounds' to conduct. Many challenges and questions are raised when using the Delphi technique, but there is no doubt that it is an important method for achieving consensus on issues where none previously existed. Researchers need to adapt the method to suit their particular study.
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            Knowledge systems for sustainable development.

            The challenge of meeting human development needs while protecting the earth's life support systems confronts scientists, technologists, policy makers, and communities from local to global levels. Many believe that science and technology (S&T) must play a more central role in sustainable development, yet little systematic scholarship exists on how to create institutions that effectively harness S&T for sustainability. This study suggests that efforts to mobilize S&T for sustainability are more likely to be effective when they manage boundaries between knowledge and action in ways that simultaneously enhance the salience, credibility, and legitimacy of the information they produce. Effective systems apply a variety of institutional mechanisms that facilitate communication, translation and mediation across boundaries.
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              Recruitment of hard-to-reach population subgroups via adaptations of the snowball sampling strategy.

              Nurse researchers and educators often engage in outreach to narrowly defined populations. This article offers examples of how variations on the snowball sampling recruitment strategy can be applied in the creation of culturally appropriate, community-based information dissemination efforts related to recruitment to health education programs and research studies. Examples from the primary author's program of research are provided to demonstrate how adaptations of snowball sampling can be used effectively in the recruitment of members of traditionally underserved or vulnerable populations. The adaptation of snowball sampling techniques, as described in this article, helped the authors to gain access to each of the more-vulnerable population groups of interest. The use of culturally sensitive recruitment strategies is both appropriate and effective in enlisting the involvement of members of vulnerable populations. Adaptations of snowball sampling strategies should be considered when recruiting participants for education programs or for research studies when the recruitment of a population-based sample is not essential.
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                Author and article information

                Journal
                jgrb
                Journal of Green Building
                College Publishing
                1552-6100
                1943-4618
                1943-4618
                Spring 2016
                : 11
                : 2
                : 93-115
                Author notes

                1. PhD, LEED AP BD+C, Michigan State University, School of Planning, Design, and Construction, 552 W, Circle Drive, East Lansing, MI 48824, berghorn@ 123456msu.edu

                2. PhD, LEED AP, Michigan State University, School of Planning, Design, and Construction, 552 W, Circle Drive, East Lansing, MI 48824, syalm@ 123456msu.edu

                Article
                jgb.11.2.93
                10.3992/jgb.11.2.93.1
                b85aa404-def4-4d90-b4c7-25d566bbb78a
                ©2016 by College Publishing. All rights reserved.
                History
                Page count
                Pages: 23
                Categories
                RESEARCH

                Urban design & Planning,Civil engineering,Environmental management, Policy & Planning,Architecture,Environmental engineering
                controlling operating costs,building retrofits,projected utility savings,energy performance contracting (EPC),project performance risks,energy efficient building practices

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