Commercial New Construction

Investing in energy efficiency is just good business

Alliant Energy's Commercial New Construction program offers free energy design assistance and cash incentives to help Iowa business owners and developers build in energy efficiency—before construction starts.

• Two tracks to meet your needs
• Design team incentives
• Construction Incentives
• Program requirements and how to apply
• Structure newsletter

Whether your business is commercial or industrial, let Alliant Energy-Interstate Power and Light Co. (Alliant Energy-IPL) help make your next project Efficient by Design.

Immediate return on investment

Energy-efficient buildings use less energy, cost less to operate and impact the environment less than conventional buildings. According to ENERGY STAR®, organizations that improve their energy performance outperform their competitors by as much as 10 percent.

Our Commercial New Construction program provides a unique opportunity for team members to participate in an integrated design process that uses building performance simulation modeling to identify and implement cost-effective energy efficiency strategies which add significant investment value to the project.

Reap the rewards

Design your next project with energy efficiency in mind and reap the rewards:

• Use less energy
• Save money on operating costs
• Protect the environment by reducing greenhouse gas emissions
• Offer employees a more comfortable work environment
• Increase employee productivity

Our Commercial New Construction program will help you identify and implement strategies that will give your business a competitive advantage.

Two tracks to meet your needs

Custom Track follows the Commercial New Construction program’s traditional approach of high performance new buildings. Buildings designed in this track are typically modeled to save 30 to 40 percent more than the State of Iowa energy code. The ideal time to enroll is before the end of schematic design phase or as you begin design development. 

Custom Plus Track goes beyond the traditional Custom Track in energy design analysis and results. This track is intended to help building owners or developers achieve 40 to 60 percent and higher energy savings above the State of Iowa energy code. This track will also provide modeling for one of the following:

• Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED)
  (Energy & Atmospheric Credit 1)
• Energy Star
• 2030 Challenge
• Federal tax credits or other energy goals

Enrollment for the Custom Plus Track must occur during the space-type programming phase, or just following architect selection.

Custom Plus Track projects that do not achieve a minimum of 30 percent energy savings better than the State of Iowa energy code may receive a reduced construction incentive to offset some of the additional energy design assistance costs associated with early energy modeling and daylighting analysis unique to the track.

 Design team incentives

Participating in the Commercial New Construction program is easy. Here's how the energy design assistance phase works:

1. The design team or owner submits a screening form [PDF] to pre-qualify for the program. This should be done as early as possible in the design process.
2. Alliant Energy-IPL will screen the project to verify that it meets program guidelines.
3. If the project is accepted, Alliant Energy-IPL's energy design consultants will meet with the design team to develop optional energy conservation strategies and estimated incremental costs.
4. The energy design consultant will provide a final energy report to the owner and the design team, describing implementation, energy savings and simple paybacks for potential strategies.
5. The building owner and design team will choose the strategies to be incorporated into construction.

Types of building systems

A wide variety of building systems will be analyzed in the energy design assistance process, including:

Design team incentives

Alliant Energy-IPL contracts with an independent consultant to facilitate design team collaboration on various energy-saving strategies. A design team participation incentive—based on the square footage of the building—is offered to offset all or most of the team members' expenses associated with working with our energy consultant.

Alliant Energy-IPL offers the following design team participation incentive:

Construction Incentives

The more energy saved the more incentive you earn. Following design of the project, the design team will provide a copy of the final construction documents to Alliant Energy-IPL’s energy consultant. The consultant will then review the documents and compare them to the energy-efficiency strategies selected by the owner.

The construction documents report will allow the owner to adjust/add energy-saving strategies and to confirm if certain options are no longer being considered. Elimination of certain strategies may result in a lower construction incentive than originally projected during the energy design phase.

After completion of the building, Alliant Energy-IPL’s consultant will provide a final energy verification report. Construction incentives will be paid to the building owner based on the electric and gas savings modeled and verified as installed by the consultant.

A minimum energy savings of 15 percent better than State of Iowa code is required for construction incentives to be awarded. Incentives will be paid to the owner/developer upon receipt of the final energy verification report.

Construction incentives

Construction incentives range for electric use range from six cents per kilowatt-hour (kWh) for 15 percent savings to 19 cents per kWh for 60 percent plus savings above Iowa code. For gas usage, construction incentives range from 60 cents per therm for 15 percent savings to $1.90 per therm for 60 percent plus savings above Iowa code.

Construction incentives are structured to significantly reduce the estimated incremental cost of qualifying high-efficiency strategies.

Program requirements and how to apply

The Commercial New Construction program is available to retail electric and/or natural gas customers of Alliant Energy-IPL. To qualify, new commercial buildings and building renovation projects must be located within the Alliant Energy-IPL Iowa service territory. A minimum energy savings of 15 percent better than State of Iowa Code is require for construction incentives to be awarded.

If you participate in the Commercial New Construction program, your project will be ineligible for other Alliant Energy-IPL energy efficiency programs. Projects that are not enrolled in the Commercial New Construction program may still qualify for standard or custom rebates on heating and cooling systems, lighting and other energy-efficiency measures.

How to apply

To participate in Alliant Energy's Commercial New Construction program, Contact your Alliant Energy account manager, or download, print and complete the screening form:

Download the Commercial New Construction screening form [PDF]

Complete the form, making sure to include your contact information, building size and type, and anticipated project schedule. Then email it to commercialnewconstruction@alliantenergy.com, fax your completed form to 319-786-4146 or mail to:

Alliant Energy
Commercial New Construction Program - CR GO-8
200 First Street SE
P.O. Box 351
Cedar Rapids, IA 52406-0351

New construction projects that are already through design development should consider the Custom Rebates Program.

Structure newsletter

Structure is a quarterly electronic newsletter geared toward design professionals. It offers timely information on new construction topics such as daylighting concepts and whole building design. Through the newsletter, Structure recipients can access an on-line library of technical, business and engineering documents and resources as well as our "Ask an Expert" hotline service. There is no usage limit, all questions and answers are held in strict confidence, and answers are typically issued within 24-48 hours. Access the Structure newsletter.