IPMVP M&V guide

How ClimaMind Runs IPMVP Measurement and Verification

ClimaMind uses IPMVP when a customer needs settlement-grade savings evidence. The workflow starts before deployment, fixes the measurement boundary and baseline, and preserves the data, assumptions, adjustments, and reports needed for contract, incentive, financing, or third-party review.

IPMVP is not our default pilot report. It is a paid M&V service for projects where the savings number will be used for settlement or external review.

Scope an IPMVP M&V planDownload PDFReview data requirements

The customer is willing to use the savings number for contract settlement, shared savings, incentives, financing, or third-party review.

The customer can provide utility, meter, BAS, schedule, occupancy, maintenance, and override records for the agreed boundary.

The project can define the baseline period, reporting period, excluded events, adjustment method, dispute process, and report cadence before control begins.

Field attachment

Download the field M&V guide

A site-ready PDF for engineers and owner representatives: IPMVP option selection, BAS and meter data requirements, baseline workflow, exclusion logs, acceptance checks, and a worked Option B example.

PDF · 15 pages · Field checklist and templates

Download PDF

IPMVP options

We choose the option from the measurement boundary.

The method is not a sales menu. It is selected in the M&V Plan after the controlled equipment, meters, baseline data, and settlement purpose are known.

Option B

Retrofit isolation or system-level measurement

This is the preferred path when ClimaMind controls a clear central plant or HVAC subsystem and the affected equipment can be metered or measured directly.

Use for chilled-water plants, chiller groups, pumps, towers, or bounded HVAC systems where control actions and energy meters align.

Option C

Whole-facility measurement

This path uses whole-building meters when the customer wants total facility performance or when multiple measures have interactive effects.

Use only when savings are large enough to be visible above whole-building noise and weather, schedule, occupancy, and tenant changes can be adjusted.

Option D

Calibrated simulation

This is a specialized path for projects where measured baseline or reporting-period data is unavailable or unreliable and a calibrated model is justified.

Use only with a separate modeling scope, calibration evidence, uncertainty disclosure, and reviewer budget.

Workflow

ClimaMind runs IPMVP as a pre-agreed M&V workflow.

01

Gate

Decide whether IPMVP is needed

We first confirm whether the customer actually needs settlement-grade M&V. Many pilots only need a standard ClimaMind measurement report. IPMVP is reserved for higher-stakes savings claims.

  • 01Use IPMVP for settlement, shared savings, incentives, financing, or third-party review.
  • 02Do not use IPMVP when the customer will not share complete data.
  • 03Do not call a post-hoc analysis settlement-grade if no M&V Plan existed before deployment.

02

Step

Write the M&V Plan before control starts

The M&V Plan is the project contract for how savings will be determined. It fixes the measurement boundary, IPMVP option, data sources, baseline, reporting period, adjustment rules, and approval process.

  • 01No signed M&V Plan before deployment means no settlement-grade savings claim after deployment.
  • 02The plan defines how negative savings, missing data, excluded periods, and disputed intervals are handled.
  • 03The plan names who approves adjustments and whether a third-party reviewer is involved.

03

Step

Lock the baseline and reporting method

Savings are the difference between measured reporting-period energy and what the agreed baseline says would have happened under the same conditions.

  • 01Baseline variables can include weather, wet-bulb temperature, cooling load, operating hours, schedule, occupancy, and production.
  • 02Model form, data aggregation, coefficients, outlier rules, and quality metrics are frozen before settlement reporting.
  • 03Routine adjustments handle expected variables; non-routine adjustments handle structural changes outside normal operation.

04

Step

Verify operation, not just the bill

ClimaMind keeps an operational evidence trail so the savings calculation can be connected to actual control windows and site behavior.

  • 01Recommended or written control actions are tied to timestamps, affected equipment, and operating modes.
  • 02Manual overrides, alarms, maintenance periods, faults, and comfort exceptions are visible in the record.
  • 03Reporting windows must satisfy the operating criteria agreed in the M&V Plan.

05

Step

Publish the settlement report and audit package

Each report shows the calculation, data coverage, adjustments, uncertainty, and any disputed periods. The underlying artifacts are retained for review.

  • 01Energy savings, demand savings, cost savings, and fees are reported separately.
  • 02Approved non-routine adjustments are shown explicitly rather than hidden inside the final number.
  • 03The audit package includes raw data, cleaned data, exclusions, model artifacts, report version, and approvals.

Data

Settlement-grade M&V depends on complete, time-aligned data.

Source

Minimum

Owner

Utility bills

12 months; 24-36 months preferred for whole-facility models

Customer

Interval meters or HVAC submeters

Hourly or daily; 15-minute interval preferred

Customer / meter vendor

BAS trend data

Temperatures, status, setpoints, commands, plant modes, and key equipment signals

Customer / ClimaMind

Schedule, occupancy, and production context

Enough to explain normal operating variation

Customer

Maintenance, faults, alarms, and manual override logs

Time, affected equipment, reason, and duration

Customer / ClimaMind

Weather data

Dry-bulb; wet-bulb and humidity preferred for cooling plants

ClimaMind

Settlement report

What each report contains

  • Measurement boundary and energy sources
  • Baseline period and reporting period
  • Data sources, gaps, and exclusions
  • Routine adjustment model and locked coefficients
  • Approved non-routine adjustments
  • Operational verification evidence
  • Energy, demand, cost, and shared-savings calculation
  • Uncertainty, model quality, and disputed intervals
  • Appendix with data dictionary, point list, meter list, and report version

Boundaries

What ClimaMind will not claim

  • We do not present standard pilot measurement as IPMVP-compliant.
  • We do not provide settlement-grade savings when the customer refuses complete data access.
  • We do not retrofit an IPMVP claim after deployment if no plan was agreed upfront.
  • We do not treat whole-building savings as HVAC savings unless the boundary and model support it.
  • We do not hide negative savings, excluded intervals, or disputed periods.

FAQ

Direct answers about ClimaMind and IPMVP

Does ClimaMind always use IPMVP?

No. IPMVP is used when the customer needs settlement-grade M&V. Standard pilots use a lighter ClimaMind measurement workflow.

Can IPMVP be added after the project starts?

A project can add stronger reporting later, but it should not be called settlement-grade IPMVP unless the measurement plan, baseline, boundary, and adjustment rules were agreed before the relevant reporting period.

Which IPMVP option does ClimaMind prefer?

For bounded HVAC control projects, ClimaMind usually starts with Option B because it can align the measurement boundary with the controlled plant or subsystem. Option C or D may be used when the project facts require them.

Is this a guarantee of savings?

No. IPMVP defines how savings are measured and verified. Any guarantee, payment formula, or shared-savings term must be separately defined in the contract.

Reference basis

External standards and public references

EVO IPMVPEVO: What is M&VEVO: Principles of M&VDOE FEMP M&V options