CHAPTER 12. LIFE-CYCLE COST SUB-GROUP ANALYSIS 

TABLE OF CONTENTS 

12.1 INTRODUCTION ............................................................................................................ 12-1 

12.2 SUB-GROUP ANALYSIS ............................................................................................... 12-1 

12.2.1 CRE Customer Sub-Group ................................................................................ 12-1 

12.2.2 Life-Cycle Cost and Payback Period Results for Small Business Sub-Group .. 12-5 

REFERENCES ........................................................................................................................ 12-10 

LIST OF TABLES 

Table 12.2.1 Census Data for Supermarket and Other Grocery Business Class by 

Number of Establishments per Firm.................................................................. 12-2 

Table 12.2.2 Census Data for Convenience Store Business Class by Number of 

Establishments per Firm .................................................................................... 12-3 

Table 12.2.3 Census Data for Convenience Store with Gasoline Station Business Class 

by Number of Establishments per Firm............................................................. 12-4 

Table 12.2.4 Mean LCC Savings by Equipment Class and Trial Standard Level, Small 

Business Sub-Group and All Business Types (2007$)*.................................... 12-6 

Table 12.2.5 Percentage of Customers Showing Positive Life-Cycle Cost Savings by 

Equipment Class and Trial Standard Level, Small Business Sub-Group 

and All Business Types (2007$)*...................................................................... 12-7 

Table 12.2.6 Mean Payback Period by Equipment Class and Trial Standard Level, 

Small Business Sub-Group and All Business Types (2007$)*.......................... 12-8 

Table 12.2.7 Percentage of Customers Showing PBP Less Than 3 Years, by Equipment 

Class and Trial Standard Level, Small Business Sub-Group and All 

Business Types*................................................................................................. 12-9 

12-i 

EERE-2006-BT-STD-0126 COMMENT 52.2 
 

12-ii 

EERE-2006-BT-STD-0126 COMMENT 52.2 
 

CHAPTER 12. LIFE-CYCLE COST SUB-GROUP ANALYSIS 

12.1 INTRODUCTION 

The life-cycle cost (LCC) sub-group analysis evaluates impacts on any identifiable 

groups of customers of commercial refrigeration equipment (CRE) who may be 

disproportionately affected by amended energy conservation standards. The U.S. Department of 

Energy (DOE) accomplished this, in part, by analyzing the LCC and payback period (PBP) for 

those CRE customers who fall into any specific sub-groups. 

DOE used the LCC spreadsheet model to estimate the impact on CRE sub-groups. DOE 

developed this LCC spreadsheet model to conduct the LCC and PBP analyses for both CRE 

customers, as described in Chapter 8, Life-Cycle Cost and Payback Period Analyses. The 

standard LCC and PBP analyses (see Chapter 8) for CRE includes various types of food-sales 

businesses that use commercial refrigeration equipment. The LCC spreadsheet model allows for 

the identification of certain sub-groups of businesses, which can then be analyzed by sampling 

only that sub-group. Chapter 8 explains in detail the inputs to the LCC spreadsheet model used 

in determining the LCC and PBP. The LCC spreadsheet model is accessible over the internet 

(http://www1.eere.energy.gov/buildings/appliance_standards/commercial/refrigeration_equipme 

nt.html). 

12.2 SUB-GROUP ANALYSIS 

12.2.1 CRE Customer Sub-Group 

DOE identified small businesses as a sub-group that possibly could be disproportionately 

affected by the amended energy conservation standard for CRE units. DOE was concerned that 

increases in the purchase price of commercial refrigeration equipment could have negative 

impacts on small businesses (i.e., those with low annual revenues). To identify small businesses, 

DOE used size standards from the Small Business Administration (SBA) to define which 

business entities are considered to be small. The SBA established size standards for types of 

economic activity, or industry, under the North American Industry Classification System 

(NAICS).1 

The SBA defines a small business from a customer perspective by either its annual 

receipts (i.e., revenues) or its number of employees. Assembly, education, food services, office, 

and retail businesses are generally defined to be small if annual receipts are $6 million or less. In 

the case of the retail food sales business, the SBA defines as small businesses supermarkets and 

other grocery stores and convenience stores with less than $25 million in total annual sales. For 

specialty stores (e.g., meat markets, bakeries, fish and seafood markets) and beer, wine and 

liquor stores, this limit is set at less than $6.5 million in annual sales. According to the Food 

Marketing Institute, the average supermarket had sales of approximately $15 million in 2006, so 

a small business could be represented as ownership of one or two average-size supermarkets or a 

chain of smaller grocery or convenience stores. 

The Food Marketing Institute defines independent stores as a retailer with 1 to 10 stores, 

so most small supermarkets or grocery businesses as defined by SBA would be classified as 

12-1
 

EERE-2006-BT-STD-0126 COMMENT 52.2 
 

 

 

 

 

 

independent grocery stores by the industry as opposed to being chain stores. A somewhat larger 

chain of convenience stores could still be classified as a small business. 

In examining the total CRE sales to entities that might be considered as small businesses, 

DOE analyzed detailed statistical data from the 2002 CBECS2

 for the three of the four business 

types identified in this analysis: (1) supermarkets and grocery stores, (2) convenience stores 

(including specialty food stores), and (3) convenience stores without gasoline stations. Because 

of the large chain presence as well as the need for larger stores to deal with merchandise, 

multiline line retailers were presumed to not fall into the small business category. 

The 2002 census examines sales and total number of establishments for retail firms and 

provides this information categorized by number of sales establishments per firm, as shown in 

Table 12.2.1 through Table 12.2.3. From the census data, it is possible to identify the number of 

firms in each category, the number of establishments in each category, total employment in each 

category, and the total sales in each category. It is then possible to develop average statistics for 

each category in terms of number of establishments per firm, total sales per establishment, and 

total sales per firm. From the latter, one can estimate whether a category, in terms of number of 

establishments per firm, is composed largely from firms that might be classified as small 

businesses. This is first shown in Table 12.2.1, for supermarket and other grocery firms. If the 

average annual sales per firm in a category are substantially less than $25 million, the category 

as a whole was considered likely composed of small businesses. If the average annual sales per 

firm are substantially greater than $25 million, the category as a whole was unlikely to be 

composed of small business. When the average sales per firm were close to the threshold, it was 

assumed that approximately 50 percent would likely be considered small businesses. 

Table 12.2.1 Census Data for Supermarket and Other Grocery Business Class by Number 

of Establishments per Firm 

Supermarkets & other grocery (except convenience) stores 

Average Avg. Firm is 

Number of Total Establishments Sales per Sales per Small 

Firms Employment per Firm Establishment Firm Business 

All firms 42,318 2,437,750 1.6 5975 9340 TRUE 

Single unit firms 39,912 461,199 1.0 1487 1487 TRUE 

Multiunit firms 2,406 1,976,551 10.9 12802 139610 FALSE 

Firms with 1 establishment 792 23,775 1.0 3465 3465 TRUE 

Firms with 2 establishments 695 55,560 2.0 5071 10142 TRUE 

Firms with 3 or 4 establishments 420 66,531 3.3 6350 21122 TRUE 

for ~50% 

Firms with 5 to 9 establishments 268 89,434 6.5 7925 51512 FALSE 

Firms with 10 to 24 establishments 130 133,065 14.9 10592 158221 FALSE 

Firms with 25 to 49 establishments 48 104,431 34.2 10262 351054 FALSE 

Firms with 50 to 99 establishments 16 90,809 72.8 12445 905409 FALSE 

Firms with 100 establishments or more 37 1,412,946 437.0 15556 6797970 FALSE 

Fraction of establishments considered small business 0.647 

Fraction of firms classed as small business 0.983 

Fraction of employment in small businesses 0.235 

Fraction of sales in small businesses 0.186 

12-2
 

EERE-2006-BT-STD-0126 COMMENT 52.2 
 

 

 

 

 

 

These same data are tabulated for convenience stores (including specialty food stores and 

beer, wine, and liquor stores as was done in the LCC analysis). Because the size standards are 

different for convenience stores versus specialty food and beer, wine, and liquor stores, the 

results are first shown separately, and then aggregated in Table 12.2.2. 

Table 12.2.2 Census Data for Convenience Store Business Class by Number of 

Establishments per Firm 

Number of 

Firms 

Total 

Employment 

Average 

Establishments 

per Firm 

Sales per 

Establishment 

Sales per 

Firm 

Avg. 

Firm is 

Small 

Business 

Convenience stores 

All firms 25,527 

Single-unit firms 24,854 

Multiunit firms 673 

Firms with 1 establishment 340 

Firms with 2 establishments 161 

Firms with 3 or 4 establishments 86 

Firms with 5 to 9 establishments 39 

Firms with 10 to 24 establishments 19 

138,316 

93,482 

44,834 

3,010 

2,263 

2,352 

2,331 

2,132 

1.1 

1.0 

6.5 

1.0 

2.0 

3.2 

6.5 

13.8 

698 

570 

1423 

1015 

1010 

1186 

1112 

1118 

798 

570 

9217 

1015 

2019 

3846 

7214 

15415 

TRUE 

TRUE 

TRUE 

TRUE 

TRUE 

TRUE 

TRUE 

TRUE 

Specialty food stores &

Beer Wine and Liquor Stores 

Firms with 25 to 49 establishments 12 

Firms with 50 to 99 establishments 10 

Firms with 100 establishments or more 6 

All firms 45,085 

Single-unit firms 43,131 

Multiunit firms 1,954 

Firms with 1 establishment 976 

Firms with 2 establishments 485 

Firms with 3 or 4 establishments 266 

Firms with 5 to 9 establishments 127 

Firms with 10 to 24 establishments 59 

Firms with 25 to 49 establishments 19 

3,461 

5,643 

23,642 

262,587 

193,189 

69,398 

8,604 

9,773 

6,618 

5,773 

6,694 

4,786 

38.9 

70.4 

288.5 

1.2 

1.0 

5.3 

1.0 

2.0 

3.3 

6.3 

15.2 

35.7 

914 

1231 

1926 

773 

693 

1109 

1111 

1581 

1259 

1155 

1635 

1374 

35579 

86670 

555755 

917 

693 

5853 

1111 

3162 

4157 

7332 

24910 

49085 

FALSE 

FALSE 

FALSE 

TRUE 

TRUE 

TRUE 

TRUE 

TRUE 

TRUE 

TRUE for 

~ 45%* 

FALSE 

FALSE 

Firms with 50 to 99 establishments 11 

Firms with 100 establishments or more 11 

Fraction of establishments considered small business 

Fraction of firms classed as small business 

Fraction of employment in small businesses 

Fraction of sales 

5,767 

21,383 

72.4 

391.5 

1090 

815 

78873 

319255 

FALSE 

FALSE 

0.879 

0.997 

0.815 

0.804 

* True for specialty food stores but false for liquor stores 

12-3
 

EERE-2006-BT-STD-0126 COMMENT 52.2 
 

 

 

 

 

Finally, the data are tabulated for combination gasoline stations with convenience stores 

in Table 12.2.3. 

Table 12.2.3 Census Data for Convenience Store with Gasoline Station Business Class by 

Number of Establishments per Firm 

Gasoline stations with convenience stores 

Avg. 

Average Firm is 

Number of Total Establishments Sales per Sales per Small 

Firms Employment per Firm Establishment Firm Business 

All firms 44,361 722,047 2.1 1993 4209 TRUE 

Single-unit firms 39,457 255,812 1.0 1501 1501 TRUE 

Multiunit firms 4,904 466,235 11.1 2351 25998 FALSE 

Firms with 1 establishment 1,418 14,582 1.0 2062 2062 TRUE 

Firms with 2 establishments 1,220 23,073 2.0 2058 4117 TRUE 

Firms with 3 or 4 establishments 849 26,686 3.4 2126 7196 TRUE 

Firms with 5 to 9 establishments 646 33,665 6.4 1966 12648 TRUE 

Firms with 10 to 24 establishments 485 58,089 14.8 1991 29441 FALSE 

Firms with 25 to 49 establishments 163 43,196 34.1 2061 70261 FALSE 

Firms with 50 to 99 establishments 57 30,103 68.4 2228 152453 FALSE 

Firms with 100 establishments or more 66 236,841 404.8 2652 1073415 FALSE 

Fraction of establishments considered small business 0.576 

Fraction of firms classed as small business 0.988 

Fraction of employment in small businesses 0.530 

Fraction of sales 0.475 

What is first clear from examining these data is that the majority of firms in each business 

class are considered small businesses. This is true for commercial businesses in the United 

States at large. According to the SBA, 99 percent of all U.S. businesses fall under the SBA 

definition of small business.3 However, the data in Table 12.2.1 show that less than 20 percent 

of the sales and less than 24 percent of the employment in the supermarket/grocery business 

class occurs in small businesses. The financial statistics of the class are generally not well 

characterized by small businesses. This is contrasted with convenience stores shown in Table 

12.2.2. In the convenience store business class, approximately 80 percent of the sales and 82 

percent of the employment occurs in small businesses. Convenience stores with gasoline 

stations, shown in Table 12.2.3, are more mixed with slightly less than 50 percent of the sales 

and slightly more than 50 percent of employment occurring in entities fitting the definition of 

small businesses. 

In examining the four business classes considered in the LCC analysis in Chapter 8, DOE 

considered which business class would be substantially considered representative of small 

businesses and with the potential to be adversely affected under this rulemaking. DOE does not 

have sufficient information to correlate annual revenues or the likelihood of a purchaser being a 

small business with the costs of more efficient CRE units to identify the sub-group of small 

businesses in the building sample. However, DOE believes that the results from the LCC 

sub-group analysis provide an adequate indication of whether the small business sub-group 

would be disproportionately advantaged or disadvantaged by a proposed standard. Convenience 

12-4
 

EERE-2006-BT-STD-0126 COMMENT 52.2 
stores in particular appear be much more representative of small businesses overall. 

Convenience stores and specialty stores, such as meat markets and liquor stores, pay higher 

electricity prices compared to the other business classes, but use similar amounts of electricity 

for the same type of equipment. Convenience stores were estimated to typically face somewhat 

higher costs of capital (i.e., a difference estimated in Chapter 8 as 250 basis points, or 2.5 

percent). In addition, for the sub-group analysis, it was assumed that convenience stores that are 

not represented by a national chain have no access to national accounts and, therefore, face 

higher wholesale and retail markups for initial equipment purchases, and, therefore, experience 

higher equipment prices. This is somewhat offset by the likelihood that they will keep the 

equipment for longer periods, resulting in longer average equipment lifetimes. DOE believes 

that this trend is likely common in small grocery stores as well. Overall, however, the lower the 

cost of electricity and the higher the cost of capital, the more likely it is that an entity would be 

disadvantaged by the requirement to purchase more efficient CRE units. 

Based on the analysis, DOE has used data for convenience stores as a representative 

proxy for small business CRE purchasers, but with the added assumption of no access to national 

account purchasing, resulting in higher equipment costs. This has been defined as the 

representative sub-group for the LCC sub-group analysis. With the exception of the equipment 

cost, all other inputs to the LCC and PBP spreadsheet model for the small business sub-group 

were the same as for convenience stores considered in the rulemaking (e.g., total installed costs, 

repair costs, maintenance costs, discount rates). 

12.2.2 Life-Cycle Cost and Payback Period Results for Small Business Sub-Group 

Table 12.2.4 summarizes the LCC savings results for the small business sub-group for 

each of the CRE equipment classes, and compares them to the results for the total sample of 

business types used in the overall LCC analysis. 

Table 12.2.5 compares the percentages of customers showing LCC savings for the two 

groups of businesses—namely, the small business sub-group and the total sample of all business 

types considered for this CRE rulemaking. Similarly, Table 12.2.6 summarizes the mean PBP 

results for the two groups, and Table 12.2.7 compares the percentages of the two groups 

experiencing payback periods of less than 3 years. The baseline in all cases is the baseline 

efficiency level used in the life-cycle cost analysis (level 1). Results are provided by TSL for 

each of the 15 CRE equipment classes. As is evident from the LCC and PBP results, the overall 

impact of a potentially higher CRE efficiency level on the small business sub-group is 

qualitatively similar to the impact on the full sample of business types that use CRE units 

covered by this rulemaking. The LCC savings are somewhat higher for the small business 

sub-group, with the impacts of higher discount rates on first cost offset by the higher cost of 

energy and the increased lifetime compared to the overall population. The maximum LCC 

savings are obtained at TSL 3 in all equipment classes but VCT.SC.I, and HCT.SC.I, where it is 

TSL 4 for the small business sub-group. Based on this analysis, as a recognizable sub-group, 

small businesses would expect no additional negative impact from increased CRE efficiency 

levels compared with the full sample of CRE customers considered in the rulemaking. 

12-5
 

EERE-2006-BT-STD-0126 COMMENT 52.2 
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Table 12.2.4 Mean LCC Savings by Equipment Class and Trial Standard Level, Small 

Business Sub-Group and All Business Types (2007$)* 

TSL 1 TSL 2 TSL 3 TSL4 TSL5
 

VOP.RC.M 

VOP.RC.L 

VOP.SC.M 

VCT.RC.M 

VCT.RC.L 

VCT.SC.I 

VCS.SC.I 

SVO.RC.M 

SVO.SC.M 

SOC.RC.M 

HZO.RC.M 

HZO.RC.L 

HZO.SC.M 

HZO.SC.L 

HCT.SC.I 

Small Business 

All Business Types 

Small Business 

All Buildings 

Small Business 

All Business Types 

Small Business 

All Business Types 

Small Business 

All Business Types 

Small Business 

All Business Types 

Small Business 

All Business Types 

Small Business 

All Business Types 

Small Business 

All Business Types 

Small Business 

All Business Types 

Small Business 

All Business Types 

Small Business 

All Business Types 

Small Business 

All Business Types 

Small Business 

All Business Types 

Small Business 

All Business Types 

$1,746 

$1,344 

$4,534 

$3,501 

$1,094 

$842 

$416 

$320 

$1,001 

$762 

$3,811 

$2,941 

$902 

$704 

$1,177 

$907 

$752 

$583 

$521 

$405 

$538 

$419 

$875 

$668 

$440 

$344 

$857 

$670 

$272 

$211 

$1,764 

$1,308 

$5,882 

$4,500 

$1,624 

$1,209 

$868 

$657 

$5,639 

$4,137 

$6,451 

$4,893 

$1,703 

$1,321 

$1,209 

$896 

$1,138 

$853 

$1,106 

$851 

$1,152 

$887 

$1,383 

$1,047 

$803 

$615 

$1,574 

$1,215 

$1,022 

$775 

$2,443 

$1,788 

$6,064 

$4,610 

$2,145 

$1,549 

$3,484 

$2,375 

$7,454 

$5,450 

$6,944 

$5,234 

$2,314 

$1,757 

$1,738 

$1,274 

$1,565 

$1,136 

$1,290 

$945 

$1,397 

$1,063 

$1,466 

$1,102 

$1,156 

$861 

$2,364 

$1,784 

$1,055 

$797 

$2,443 ($3,463) 

$1,788 ($3,959) 

$5,549 $5,549 

$3,938 $3,938 

$2,145 $131 

$1,549 ($451) 

$3,458 $3,458 

$2,339 $2,339 

$7,447 $7,447 

$5,419 $5,419 

$6,949 $6,949 

$5,217 $5,217 

$2,314 $2,314 

$1,757 $1,757 

$1,738 ($2,637) 

$1,274 ($2,974) 

$1,565 $61 

$1,136 ($355) 

$1,290 ($948) 

$945 ($1,458) 

$1,383 $1,383 

$1,040 $1,040 

$1,466 $1,466 

$1,102 $1,102 

$1,129 $1,129 

$826 $826 

$2,352 $2,352 

$1,761 $1,761 

$1,057 $1,057 

$785 $785 

* Energy savings calculated compared to baseline. Values in parentheses stand for negative LCC savings 

12-6
 

EERE-2006-BT-STD-0126 COMMENT 52.2 
 

Table 12.2.5 Percentage of Customers Showing Positive Life-Cycle Cost Savings by 

Equipment Class and Trial Standard Level, Small Business Sub-Group and 

All Business Types (2007$)* 

TSL 1 TSL 2 TSL 3 TSL4 TSL5
 

VOP.RC.M 

VOP.RC.L 

VOP.SC.M 

VCT.RC.M 

VCT.RC.L 

VCT.SC.I 

VCS.SC.I 

SVO.RC.M 

SVO.SC.M 

SOC.RC.M 

HZO.RC.M 

HZO.RC.L 

HZO.SC.M 

HZO.SC.L 

HCT.SC.I 

Small Business 

All Business Types 

Small Business 

All Buildings 

Small Business 

All Business Types 

Small Business 

All Business Types 

Small Business 

All Business Types 

Small Business 

All Business Types 

Small Business 

All Business Types 

Small Business 

All Business Types 

Small Business 

All Business Types 

Small Business 

All Business Types 

Small Business 

All Business Types 

Small Business 

All Business Types 

Small Business 

All Business Types 

Small Business 

All Business Types 

Small Business 

All Business Types 

35 

36 

31 

31 

33 

33 

19 

20 

38 

38 

44 

45 

23 

24 

34 

35 

32 

32 

17 

18 

19 

20 

40 

41 

26 

27 

26 

27 

34 

35 

53 

54 

47 

48 

65 

65 

39 

40 

56 

57 

57 

59 

50 

50 

52 

53 

63 

64 

35 

36 

40 

40 

61 

61 

54 

55 

54 

54 

52 

53 

70 

71 

77 

77 

79 

79 

83 

83 

79 

80 

79 

80 

88 

89 

69 

70 

77 

78 

71 

71 

61 

61 

81 

81 

79 

79 

79 

79 

69 

70 

70 1 

71 0 

92 92 

92 92 

79 40 

79 30 

91 91 

92 92 

90 90 

90 90 

90 90 

91 91 

88 88 

89 89 

69 1 

70 0 

77 40 

78 29 

71 26 

71 5 

81 81 

81 81 

81 81 

81 81 

90 90 

90 90 

90 90 

90 90 

86 86 

86 86 

* Compared with purchase of a baseline level equipment 

12-7
 

EERE-2006-BT-STD-0126 COMMENT 52.2 
 

Table 12.2.6 Mean Payback Period by Equipment Class and Trial Standard Level, Small 

Business Sub-Group and All Business Types (2007$)* 

TSL 1 TSL 2 TSL 3 TSL4 TSL5 

0.7 1.2 1.8 1.8 52.0 

0.8 1.3 2.0 2.0 138.1 

0.6 1.0 1.1 2.5 2.5 

0.7 1.1 1.2 2.8 2.8 

0.7 1.4 2.2 2.2 9.5 

0.8 1.6 2.4 2.4 11.2 

0.7 1.1 3.5 3.6 3.6 

0.8 1.3 3.8 3.9 3.9 

1.0 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.4 

1.1 2.4 2.5 2.6 2.6 

0.9 1.3 1.5 1.6 1.6 

1.0 1.5 1.6 1.7 1.7 

0.3 0.5 1.2 1.2 1.2 

0.4 0.6 1.3 1.3 1.3 

0.7 1.2 1.7 1.7 106.7 

0.8 1.3 1.9 1.9 196.8 

0.6 1.3 2.1 2.1 9.7 

0.6 1.4 2.3 2.3 11.5 

0.5 0.7 1.6 1.6 15.6 

0.5 0.8 1.7 1.7 19.4 

0.5 0.7 1.1 1.5 1.5 

0.5 0.8 1.2 1.6 1.6 

0.9 1.3 1.5 1.5 1.5 

1.0 1.4 1.6 1.6 1.6 

0.4 0.9 1.7 2.1 2.1 

0.4 1.0 1.8 2.3 2.3 

0.3 0.7 1.3 1.5 1.5 

0.3 0.8 1.5 1.7 1.7 

0.6 1.2 1.3 1.7 1.7 

0.6 1.4 1.5 1.9 1.9 

VOP.RC.M 

VOP.RC.L 

VOP.SC.M 

VCT.RC.M 

VCT.RC.L 

VCT.SC.I 

VCS.SC.I 

SVO.RC.M 

SVO.SC.M 

SOC.RC.M 

HZO.RC.M 

HZO.RC.L 

HZO.SC.M 

HZO.RC.L 

HCT.SC.I 

Small Business 

All Business Types 

Small Business 

All Buildings 

Small Business 

All Business Types 

Small Business 

All Business Types 

Small Business 

All Business Types 

Small Business 

All Business Types 

Small Business 

All Business Types 

Small Business 

All Business Types 

Small Business 

All Business Types 

Small Business 

All Business Types 

Small Business 

All Business Types 

Small Business 

All Business Types 

Small Business 

All Business Types 

Small Business 

All Business Types 

Small Business 

All Business Types 

*Compared to purchase of baseline equipment 

12-8
 

EERE-2006-BT-STD-0126 COMMENT 52.2 
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Table 12.2.7 Percentage of Customers Showing PBP Less Than 3 Years, by Equipment 

Class and Trial Standard Level, Small Business Sub-Group and All Business 

Types* 

TSL 1 TSL 2 TSL 3 TSL4 TSL5 

100% 100% 98% 98% NA 

100% 100% 93% 93% 0% 

100% 100% 100% 74% 74% 

100% 100% 100% 63% 63% 

100% 100% 87% 87% 0% 

100% 100% 77% 77% 0% 

100% 100% 33% 33% 33% 

100% 100% 29% 19% 19% 

100% 88% 83% 79% 79% 

100% 83% 74% 71% 71% 

100% 100% 100% 100% 100% 

100% 100% 100% 100% 100% 

100% 100% 100% 100% 100% 

100% 100% 100% 100% 100% 

100% 100% 98% 98% NA 

100% 100% 94% 94% 0% 

100% 100% 93% 93% 0% 

100% 100% 83% 83% 0% 

100% 100% 99% 99% NA 

100% 100% 99% 99% NA 

100% 100% 100% 100% 100% 

100% 100% 100% 100% 100% 

100% 100% 100% 100% 100% 

100% 100% 100% 100% 100% 

100% 100% 100% 95% 95% 

100% 100% 99% 86% 86% 

100% 100% 100% 100% 100% 

100% 100% 100% 100% 100% 

100% 100% 100% 100% 100% 

100% 100% 100% 99% 99% 

VOP.RC.M 

VOP.RC.L 

VOP.SC.M 

VCT.RC.M 

VCT.RC.L 

VCT.SC.I 

VCS.SC.I 

SVO.RC.M 

SVO.SC.M 

SOC.RC.M 

HZO.RC.M 

HZO.RC.L 

HZO.SC.M 

HZO.RC.L 

HCT.SC.I 

Small Business 

All Business Types 

Small Business 

All Buildings 

Small Business 

All Business Types 

Small Business 

All Business Types 

Small Business 

All Business Types 

Small Business 

All Business Types 

Small Business 

All Business Types 

Small Business 

All Business Types 

Small Business 

All Business Types 

Small Business 

All Business Types 

Small Business 

All Business Types 

Small Business 

All Business Types 

Small Business 

All Business Types 

Small Business 

All Business Types 

Small Business 

All Business Types 

*Compared to purchase of baseline equipment. A value of zero means less than 0.5 percent. NA means that a percentage with a 

payback period of less than 3 years could not be computed because there were no instances in which payback period was less 

than 3 years. 

12-9
 

EERE-2006-BT-STD-0126 COMMENT 52.2 
REFERENCES 

1. Title 13, Code of Federal Regulations, Chapter I–Small Business Administration, Part 121– 

Small Business Administration, Subpart A–Size Eligibility Provisions and Standards, May 

4, 2005. 

2. U.S. CENSUS. 2002. U.S. Census Bureau American Fact Finder, Sector 44: Retail Trade: 

Subject Series–Estab & Firm Size: Single Unit and Multiunit Firms for the United States: 

2002. Accessed Dec 2007. http://factfinder.census.gov/servlet/IBQTable?_bm=y&-

ds_name=EC0244SSSZ3&-_skip=600&-geo_id=&-parsed=true&-_lang=en&-

fds_name=EC0200A1 

3. SBA. 2007. The Small Business Economy for Data Year 2006, Report to the President. 

U.S. Small Business Administration. U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington, D.C. 

<http://www.sba.gov/advo/research/sb_econ2007.pdf> 

12-10
 

EERE-2006-BT-STD-0126 COMMENT 52.2