February 2017

User’s Guide to the 2012 CBECS Large Buildings Water Usage Public 

Use Microdata File

A public use microdata file of water usage information from the 2012 Commercial Buildings 

Energy Consumption Survey (CBECS) is available for users to conduct detailed analysis of 

water usage in large commercial buildings greater than 200,000 square feet. This document 

provides information on the CBECS design, as well as useful tips and examples to guide users 

through the proper statistical use of the CBECS water usage microdata.

CBECS sample design and sampling error

The CBECS uses a multi-stage, multi-frame area probability design to select a sample of 

buildings that estimate energy characteristics, consumption, and expenditures for the national 

stock of commercial buildings. For detailed information on how the sample was selected, see 

How Were Buildings Selected for the 2012 CBECS?

(http://www.eia.gov/consumption/commercial/2012-cbecs-building-sampling.cfm). 

To produce population estimates and proper measures of sampling error, the weights included 

in the file must be used. The variable FINALWT in the data file represents the final sampling 

weight, which is the number of buildings in the population that the observation represents. For 

example, if FINALWT for a building is 1,000, that building represents itself and 999 other nonsampled buildings. The final sampling weight has been calculated to account for different 

probabilities of selection and rates of participation in the survey. The jackknife replicate weights,

FINALWT1 – FINALWT197, are used to calculate standard errors associated with estimates. 

Software packages like SAS/STAT, R, Stata, SUDAAN, and WesVar can process replicate 

weights to calculate standard errors. Note that while EXCEL can be used to calculate point 

estimates, it cannot process replicate weights to calculate standard errors for CBECS or other 

complex sample designs with varying probabilities of selection. EIA recommends calculating 

standard errors or relative standard errors (RSEs) in conjunction with estimates to account for 

sampling error. These measures help assess the level of uncertainty (reliability or precision) of 

the estimates. Examples showing how to calculate estimates in Excel and estimates along with 

RSEs in SAS, as well as more technical details on sampling error, RSEs, and the jackknife 

method of standard error estimation, are included in the User’s Guide to the 2012 CBECS 

Public Use Microdata Files

(http://www.eia.gov/consumption/commercial/data/2012/pdf/user_guide_public_use_aug2016.p

df).

About the water usage microdata file

Although the CBECS samples commercial buildings of all sizes, the water usage microdata file 

only contains data for large buildings greater than 200,000 square feet. For details on the 

collection and publication of this data, see How was water usage information collected for 

commercial buildings?

(http://www.eia.gov/consumption/commercial/reports/2012/water/methodology.php).
February 2017

The file contains two water-related variables that are not included in the main CBECS microdata 

file: WTUSED (water used in the building) and WTCNS (annual water consumption in gallons), 

along with their associated imputation flags. In addition, the file contains some variables that are 

also included in the main microdata file, such as the weights variables (FINALWT and 

FINALWT1 – FINALWT97), the unique identification variable (PUBID), and select building 

characteristics (for example, PBA, SQFT, and NWKER). Full variable definitions and response 

codes can be found in the Variable and response codebook

(http://www.eia.gov/consumption/commercial/reports/2012/water/xls/large buildings water public 

use file codebook.xlsx).

Data users who want to analyze water usage with variables included in the main CBECS 

microdata file but that are not in the water usage file can merge the files together by the 

common ID variable, PUBID. Example SAS code is provided below: 

* Sort both datasets by pubid;

proc sort data=_2012_public_use_data_aug2016;

 by pubid;

run;

proc sort data=lrgbldg_water_pubuse_102416;

 by pubid;

run;

* Merge by pubid and keep only the observations in the water use 

dataset;

data lrgbldg_water_new;

 merge lrgbldg_water_pubuse_102416 (in=water) 

_2012_public_use_data_aug2016;

 by pubid;

 if water;

run;

To combine the CSV files using Excel, filter the main CBECS file for cases where SQFTC 

(square footage category) equals 08, 09, or 10. The filter yields 1,129 cases, the same number 

of cases in the water usage file. Make sure that both files are sorted by PUBID, then copy the 

columns containing the additional variables you wish to use from the filtered main CBECS Excel 

file into the water usage file. 

There are 8 vacant and warehouse buildings included in the file that do not use water, indicated 

by WTUSED=’2’. 
February 2017

Things to consider when using the microdata file

Publication standards 

EIA does not publish CBECS estimates where the RSE is higher than 50 or the count of 

buildings used for the calculation is lower than 20 (indicated by a Q in the data tables). These 

RSE and number of building thresholds are also EIA’s recommended guidelines for custom 

analysis using the public use microdata file. 

Tabulations

Results tabulated from the public use microdata file will not exactly match the detailed water 

tables published as part of the water report, which use unmasked data. For public data users 

who wish to verify their tabulations, a table is available that uses the masked, public use data on 

page 5 of this document. This table is also available in Excel format along with the CBECS 

Large Buildings Water Usage Public Use Microdata Files.

Imputation variables 

WTUSED and WTCNS were imputed for buildings that answered “Don’t know” or “Refuse” to 

the survey questions, as well as those where the reported water consumption data did not pass 

the quality checks. The Z variables, also referred to as imputation flags, are included in the 

public use microdata file. Each variable that was imputed has a corresponding Z variable; the Z 

variable name is simply the name of the variable that was imputed with the letter Z in front of it.

For example, the Z variable for the variable WTUSED is ZWTUSED. The imputation flags

provide information on the source of the data for the corresponding non-Z variable. EIA 

recommends using the imputed data to avoid biased estimation.

The imputation flag for WTUSED and its codes are:

• Reported (Z variable=’0’). Indicates that the variable’s value was reported by the 

respondent.

• Imputed (Z variable=’1’). WTUSED was imputed using hot-deck imputation.

• Estimated (Z variable=’2’). This code applies to strip shopping center buildings for which 

the value was estimated using data from establishment interviews within the building 

The imputation flag for WTCNS and its codes are: 

• Reported (Z variable=’0’). Indicates that the variable’s value was reported by the 

respondent.

• Estimated for strip shopping center (Z variable=’1’). This code applies to strip shopping 

center buildings for which the value was estimated using data from establishment 

interviews within the building.

• Imputed (Z variable=’2’). Water consumption data were imputed using a non-linear 

regression model.

• Inapplicable (Z variable=’9’). Indicates that water was not used in the building.
February 2017

Confidentiality and masking procedures 

The 2012 CBECS was collected under the authority of the Confidential Information Protection 

and Statistical Efficiency Act (CIPSEA). EIA project staff and EIA contractors are personally 

accountable for protecting the identity of individual respondents. The following steps were taken 

to avoid disclosure of information that would reveal the identity of a building on the water usage 

microdata file.

• No building identification information such as building name, address, city, state, and ZIP 

code was included.

• Square footage (SQFT): For buildings larger than one million square feet, the numeric 

square footage was replaced with the weighted average square footage of all 

responding buildings larger than one million square feet. Separate weighted means were 

calculated for each of the four Census regions. For buildings between 200,000 and one 

million square feet, the numeric square footage was rounded to within 5% of the upper 

limit of the buildings' square footage categories. If the rounded value fell below the lower 

limit of the category, the value was coded at the lower limit.

• Number of workers (NWKER): For buildings where the number of workers was between 

2,500 and 4,999, the reported number was rounded to the nearest 250. For buildings 

where the number of workers was 5,000 or more, the reported number of workers was 

replaced with the weighted average number of workers of all responding buildings with 

5,000 or more workers.

• Water consumption (WTCNS): The total consumption was randomly perturbed by a 

small percentage (less than 5%) so that the reported annual totals would not exactly 

match the actual billing records, and the building would not be identifiable by anyone 

with access to those records.
February 2017

Table W1 created with the public use data

Results tabulated from the public use microdata file will not exactly match the published water 

consumption table, which uses unmasked data. For public data users who wish to verify their 

tabulations, Table W1 is available using the masked public use data. The table of estimates 

starts on the next page and is followed by the RSE table. 
25th 

percentile Median

75th 

percentile

All buildings 45 17,609 359 7,926 20.4 18.3 7.9 12.8 21.4

Building floorspace (square feet)

200,001 to 500,000 37 10,618 203 5,424 19.1 19.6 7.8 12.7 20.7

Over 500,000 8 6,991 156 19,762 22.3 17.0 8.8 16.1 32.7

Principal building activity

Education 9 2,403 35 4,003 14.6 25.0 7.7 11.7 17.1

Health care 4 2,064 97 23,792 47.0 26.0 26.8 44.5 62.0

Inpatient 3 1,874 94 27,167 50.2 27.3 39.1 46.2 67.0

Outpatient 1 190 3 4,804 15.5 10.4 10.2 11.9 17.7

Lodging 4 1,557 69 18,151 44.5 86.5 32.4 43.0 55.7

Mercantile 6 2,052 25 4,262 12.2 16.7 10.6 12.5 14.2

Retail (other than mall) Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q

Enclosed and strip malls 4 1,563 18 4,769 11.3 16.3 10.6 12.0 12.8

Office 9 4,224 61 6,759 14.5 6.4 10.0 12.3 17.4

Public assembly 3 1,348 35 11,987 26.2 37.1 12.8 17.4 31.3

Public order and safety 1 446 19 14,061 42.6 Q 15.6 53.5 67.7

Religious worship Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q

Service Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q

Warehouse and storage 8 2,918 10 1,227 3.3 10.9 1.5 2.2 2.9

Other 1 250 4 6,955 17.0 26.5 11.0 11.6 18.0

Vacant Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q

Year constructed

Before 1920 1 566 12 10,631 20.9 24.7 2.3 16.5 21.5

1920 to 1945 2 1,254 27 10,993 21.3 13.6 8.5 13.8 24.0

1946 to 1959 4 1,211 25 6,177 20.3 20.6 7.6 12.7 19.8

1960 to 1969 5 2,036 41 7,554 20.4 18.8 5.2 12.8 22.5

1970 to 1979 5 2,354 53 10,255 22.6 15.9 8.6 12.8 20.4

1980 to 1989 11 3,860 76 7,185 19.6 18.7 7.5 12.4 24.5

1990 to 1999 8 2,973 57 7,528 19.2 20.1 8.2 12.7 19.9

2000 to 2003 3 1,323 21 6,569 15.7 15.5 6.7 10.1 16.3

2004 to 2007 3 1,329 31 8,954 23.1 24.1 8.0 14.0 35.2

2008 to 2012 2 704 17 7,102 24.1 19.5 5.8 15.3 44.5

PUBLIC USE FILE VERSION

Table W1. Water consumption in large commercial buildings, 2012

All buildings over 

200,000 square feet 

using water

Release date: February 2017

Number 

of 

buildings 

(thousand)

Distribution of building-level 

intensities (gallons per square 

foot)

Water consumption

Total

floorspace

(million 

square 

feet)

Total 

consumption

(billion 

gallons)

Consumption per 

building 

(thousand 

gallons)

Consumption per 

square 

foot

(gallons)

Consumption per 

worker 

(thousand 

gallons)
25th 

percentile Median

75th 

percentile

All buildings 45 17,609 359 7,926 20.4 18.3 7.9 12.8 21.4

PUBLIC USE FILE VERSION

Table W1. Water consumption in large commercial buildings, 2012

All buildings over 

200,000 square feet 

using water

Number 

of 

buildings 

(thousand)

Distribution of building-level 

intensities (gallons per square 

foot)

Water consumption

Total

floorspace

(million 

square 

feet)

Total 

consumption

(billion 

gallons)

Consumption per 

building 

(thousand 

gallons)

Consumption per 

square 

foot

(gallons)

Consumption per 

worker 

(thousand 

gallons)

Census region and division

Northeast 9 3,943 79 8,404 20.0 13.8 9.8 14.2 22.6

New England 2 800 13 5,592 16.3 18.7 8.3 10.1 17.4

Middle Atlantic 7 3,142 66 9,333 21.0 13.1 10.0 15.6 23.7

Midwest 11 4,086 75 6,727 18.5 17.6 6.6 10.3 15.8

East North Central 9 3,127 59 6,680 18.7 18.5 6.8 10.3 14.0

West North Central 2 959 17 6,893 17.6 15.0 3.3 11.8 19.1

South 16 6,232 126 7,994 20.3 21.2 5.6 13.6 23.8

South Atlantic 9 3,748 77 8,306 20.5 20.5 7.5 13.9 29.8

East South Central 2 812 16 7,144 20.1 24.0 3.4 14.5 20.8

West South Central 4 1,671 33 7,776 19.9 21.5 3.4 12.8 18.7

West 9 3,349 78 8,817 23.3 21.9 9.9 14.1 24.7

Mountain 3 1,238 31 9,501 25.3 25.9 11.2 16.3 20.8

Pacific 6 2,111 47 8,413 22.2 19.8 9.3 12.7 30.5

Number of workers (main shift)

Fewer than 5 Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q

5 to 9 Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q

10 to 19 Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q

20 to 49 2 664 7 3,062 10.4 91.2 2.1 8.0 15.8

50 to 99 6 1,905 35 5,693 18.2 82.7 2.3 7.7 30.9

100 to 249 16 4,922 81 5,012 16.4 33.4 8.8 12.8 17.1

250 or more 19 9,495 232 12,466 24.4 14.0 10.7 15.9 31.3

Weekly operating hours

Fewer than 40 Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q

40 to 48 4 1,309 14 3,229 10.5 12.1 2.3 8.6 14.4

49 to 60 9 3,363 42 4,448 12.4 9.0 4.7 10.5 15.5

61 to 84 9 3,599 43 4,617 12.0 10.3 8.2 11.5 14.8

85 to 167 6 2,299 23 3,660 10.1 16.2 2.6 8.3 15.2

Open continuously 15 6,825 235 15,265 34.5 29.1 14.5 28.6 48.2

Energy end uses

(more than one may apply)

Buildings with space heating 44 17,063 349 7,946 20.4 18.1 8.1 12.8 21.5

Buildings with cooling 45 17,446 358 7,996 20.5 18.3 8.0 12.8 21.7

Buildings with water heating 44 17,278 357 8,072 20.7 18.4 8.2 12.8 22.5

Buildings with cooking 30 12,175 306 10,127 25.1 19.7 10.5 15.2 30.8

Buildings with manufacturing 3 904 8 2,755 8.5 10.1 2.3 2.9 12.8

Buildings with electricity

generation 29 12,450 286 9,900 22.9 18.9 9.5 14.5 29.3
25th 

percentile Median

75th 

percentile

All buildings 45 17,609 359 7,926 20.4 18.3 7.9 12.8 21.4

PUBLIC USE FILE VERSION

Table W1. Water consumption in large commercial buildings, 2012

All buildings over 

200,000 square feet 

using water

Number 

of 

buildings 

(thousand)

Distribution of building-level 

intensities (gallons per square 

foot)

Water consumption

Total

floorspace

(million 

square 

feet)

Total 

consumption

(billion 

gallons)

Consumption per 

building 

(thousand 

gallons)

Consumption per 

square 

foot

(gallons)

Consumption per 

worker 

(thousand 

gallons)

Heating equipment 

(more than one may apply)

Heat pumps 6 2,572 66 10,304 25.6 19.0 10.5 14.9 30.9

Furnaces 2 779 14 6,839 17.8 29.6 2.2 14.9 24.0

Individual space heaters 13 5,147 93 7,107 18.0 17.3 5.2 11.9 20.8

District heat 7 3,377 81 11,858 24.1 15.5 11.0 15.6 26.6

Boilers 20 7,402 193 9,796 26.1 21.1 10.0 13.7 30.7

Packaged heating units 25 9,326 168 6,643 18.0 18.9 5.6 12.5 19.9

Other Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q

Cooling equipment 

(more than one may apply)

Residential-type central air

conditioners 3 751 16 6,216 21.3 38.4 2.2 12.0 14.9

Heat pumps 6 2,479 64 10,290 25.6 18.5 10.8 16.0 30.3

Individual air conditioners 8 3,294 80 9,852 24.3 19.3 8.2 15.1 26.6

District chilled water 5 2,240 55 11,420 24.3 17.8 9.2 15.6 26.6

Central chillers 22 9,239 241 10,830 26.0 18.7 10.1 15.9 35.4

Packaged air conditioning units 28 10,828 204 7,194 18.9 18.9 5.6 12.4 20.4

Swamp coolers 1 399 12 12,070 30.6 35.7 12.0 20.7 38.5

Other Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q

Water-heating equipment

Centralized system 21 7,906 183 8,713 23.1 21.1 8.2 13.9 30.9

Distributed system 7 2,792 37 5,491 13.4 13.2 2.3 11.5 16.3

Combination of centralized and

distributed system 16 6,581 137 8,326 20.8 17.2 9.2 12.8 20.8

Refrigeration equipment

(more than one may apply)

Any refrigeration 43 16,985 355 8,231 20.9 18.5 8.3 12.9 22.6

Walk-in units 27 11,109 287 10,616 25.8 21.1 10.5 14.9 31.4

Cases or cabinets 27 11,052 269 9,787 24.3 19.9 10.2 14.5 30.2

Large cold storage areas 5 1,895 48 10,273 25.2 28.4 11.3 14.5 30.9

Commercial ice makers 31 12,625 304 9,845 24.1 20.0 10.1 14.5 30.2

Residential-type or compact units 36 14,345 293 8,226 20.4 17.3 7.9 12.7 20.8

Vending machines 38 15,171 322 8,373 21.2 18.5 8.5 13.1 23.4

No refrigeration 2 624 4 1,765 6.0 12.0 1.2 2.0 5.6
25th 

percentile Median

75th 

percentile

All buildings 45 17,609 359 7,926 20.4 18.3 7.9 12.8 21.4

PUBLIC USE FILE VERSION

Table W1. Water consumption in large commercial buildings, 2012

All buildings over 

200,000 square feet 

using water

Number 

of 

buildings 

(thousand)

Distribution of building-level 

intensities (gallons per square 

foot)

Water consumption

Total

floorspace

(million 

square 

feet)

Total 

consumption

(billion 

gallons)

Consumption per 

building 

(thousand 

gallons)

Consumption per 

square 

foot

(gallons)

Consumption per 

worker 

(thousand 

gallons)

Food preparation or serving areas 

in non-food service buildings

(more than one may apply)

Snack bar or concession stand 11 5,217 134 12,232 25.7 20.7 10.9 15.8 30.9

Fast food or small restaurant 11 4,708 120 11,306 25.5 20.2 11.7 14.5 30.8

Cafeteria or large restaurant 17 7,545 210 12,314 27.9 20.9 10.1 16.5 36.9

Commercial kitchen/

food preparation area 16 6,550 206 12,778 31.5 29.3 11.2 18.3 44.0

Small kitchen area 8 3,822 96 11,408 25.1 18.8 11.1 15.1 28.6

Separate computer areas

Data center or server farm 16 7,079 172 11,094 24.3 15.7 10.5 15.9 30.7

Special activities or equipment 

contributing to water use

Sterilizers or autoclaves 7 2,918 121 18,427 41.5 25.9 16.8 31.4 54.5

Commercial ice makers 31 12,625 304 9,845 24.1 20.0 10.1 14.5 30.2

Activities with large amounts of

hot water required 24 9,692 270 11,195 27.9 24.1 11.5 16.3 37.8

Laundry in building 2 1,054 48 20,300 45.2 72.0 32.2 44.0 58.4

Indoor swimming pool 4 1,422 50 13,207 35.3 58.7 14.9 36.7 45.4

 Q = Data withheld either because the Relative Standard Error (RSE) was greater than 50 percent or fewer than 20 buildings were sampled.

 Notes: ● Because of rounding, data may not sum to totals. ● See Guide to the 2012 CBECS Detailed Tables or CBECS Terminology for definition of terms 

used in these tables and/or comparison of differences with prior CBECS tables. Both references can be accessed from 

http://www.eia.gov/consumption/commercial/data/2012/

 Source: U.S. Energy Information Administration, Office of Energy Consumption and Efficiency Statistics, Form EIA-871A of the 2012 Commercial Buildings 

Energy Consumption Survey.
25th 

percentile Median

75th 

percentile

All buildings 6.0 5.6 6.0 4.7 3.6 4.8 P P P

Building floorspace (square feet)

200,001 to 500,000 6.8 6.5 7.5 4.8 4.5 6.3 P P P

Over 500,000 9.2 9.3 9.8 6.5 5.4 7.1 P P P

Principal building activity

Education 14.5 14.6 18.0 10.4 8.9 10.0 P P P

Health care 14.2 9.2 7.7 9.5 4.2 3.6 P P P

Inpatient 14.7 8.7 7.8 10.2 3.2 3.3 P P P

Outpatient 39.2 37.6 33.8 17.9 13.5 22.3 P P P

Lodging 16.8 17.2 16.5 10.2 5.0 13.9 P P P

Mercantile 19.3 15.6 17.2 7.0 4.1 9.6 P P P

Retail (other than mall) 30.9 29.3 34.1 9.9 9.8 17.8 P P P

Enclosed and strip malls 23.1 17.4 18.8 10.1 3.4 10.8 P P P

Office 10.6 11.4 12.7 7.3 4.0 4.8 P P P

Public assembly 26.2 24.4 21.4 19.3 13.9 13.5 P P P

Public order and safety 34.2 29.5 32.5 23.7 23.5 115.2 P P P

Religious worship 52.8 55.3 65.8 40.9 22.7 34.1 P P P

Service 47.9 75.2 65.4 31.5 13.1 19.8 P P P

Warehouse and storage 14.7 16.1 16.4 9.8 9.6 11.9 P P P

Other 36.8 32.7 28.5 29.9 17.6 17.4 P P P

Vacant 39.2 42.1 39.9 36.2 37.4 27.6 P P P

Year constructed

Before 1920 27.3 27.4 32.7 24.1 23.1 26.0 P P P

1920 to 1945 16.9 13.8 21.1 16.2 16.1 19.6 P P P

1946 to 1959 19.4 16.8 15.0 13.8 10.3 19.4 P P P

1960 to 1969 15.2 14.5 14.9 11.5 9.1 18.7 P P P

1970 to 1979 12.3 10.5 10.0 9.9 6.7 9.4 P P P

1980 to 1989 12.5 10.3 11.6 9.7 7.3 11.3 P P P

1990 to 1999 12.7 10.8 14.1 10.6 10.1 12.3 P P P

2000 to 2003 17.8 18.9 20.5 19.0 12.3 14.5 P P P

2004 to 2007 17.2 16.8 20.8 18.8 12.1 12.1 P P P

2008 to 2012 35.2 29.3 35.0 26.1 23.3 11.2 P P P

RSEs not available for 

percentiles

Release date: February 2017

PUBLIC USE FILE VERSION

RSEs for Table W1. Water consumption in large commercial buildings, 2012

All buildings over 

200,000 square feet 

using water Water consumption

RSEs for 

number of 

buildings 

RSEs for 

total

floorspace

RSEs for 

total 

consumption 

RSEs for 

consumption per 

building 

RSEs for 

consumption per 

square 

foot

RSEs for 

consumption per 

worker
25th 

percentile Median

75th 

percentile

All buildings 6.0 5.6 6.0 4.7 3.6 4.8 P P P

RSEs not available for 

percentiles

PUBLIC USE FILE VERSION

RSEs for Table W1. Water consumption in large commercial buildings, 2012

All buildings over 

200,000 square feet 

using water Water consumption

RSEs for 

number of 

buildings 

RSEs for 

total

floorspace

RSEs for 

total 

consumption 

RSEs for 

consumption per 

building 

RSEs for 

consumption per 

square 

foot

RSEs for 

consumption per 

worker

Census region and division

Northeast 11.5 8.6 10.3 8.0 7.1 7.0 P P P

New England 27.2 25.3 23.0 19.3 20.4 17.8 P P P

Middle Atlantic 12.3 8.8 11.5 8.1 7.1 7.5 P P P

Midwest 11.1 9.3 10.7 10.1 7.4 11.1 P P P

East North Central 13.4 11.1 13.1 12.2 9.0 14.0 P P P

West North Central 14.8 15.7 13.0 15.3 11.5 15.9 P P P

South 11.1 11.5 10.3 8.5 6.7 9.7 P P P

South Atlantic 15.2 15.4 14.7 11.0 8.1 12.6 P P P

East South Central 30.5 39.0 17.8 24.6 32.9 42.6 P P P

West South Central 18.9 18.1 18.6 17.0 12.1 12.1 P P P

West 15.9 14.3 16.8 9.1 6.8 9.3 P P P

Mountain 16.4 23.3 24.4 16.6 7.6 13.7 P P P

Pacific 23.5 18.2 23.1 10.1 10.4 13.1 P P P

Number of workers (main shift)

Fewer than 5 40.8 40.4 90.6 83.2 84.3 87.6 P P P

5 to 9 41.3 40.2 50.4 42.9 43.1 45.1 P P P

10 to 19 27.9 28.8 54.8 43.7 44.6 40.1 P P P

20 to 49 22.5 23.1 27.4 18.7 18.1 21.8 P P P

50 to 99 14.5 14.4 22.2 17.4 16.2 17.9 P P P

100 to 249 11.0 10.0 12.6 8.9 8.5 9.4 P P P

250 or more 7.1 7.3 7.6 5.1 3.6 4.8 P P P

Weekly operating hours

Fewer than 40 44.1 43.0 51.0 34.2 25.6 17.0 P P P

40 to 48 17.1 15.5 19.0 15.2 12.9 16.3 P P P

49 to 60 12.4 11.4 16.4 12.0 10.7 15.0 P P P

61 to 84 11.2 8.9 9.9 7.4 4.2 6.9 P P P

85 to 167 13.5 15.4 19.1 15.7 14.3 11.5 P P P

Open continuously 8.4 7.2 7.0 6.2 4.3 5.7 P P P

Energy end uses

(more than one may apply)

Buildings with space heating 6.1 5.7 5.9 4.6 3.5 4.8 P P P

Buildings with cooling 6.1 5.7 6.0 4.7 3.6 4.8 P P P

Buildings with water heating 6.1 5.7 6.0 4.6 3.5 4.9 P P P

Buildings with cooking 7.1 6.0 6.3 5.6 3.4 5.2 P P P

Buildings with manufacturing 21.4 18.2 25.9 27.2 22.0 10.2 P P P

Buildings with electricity

generation 6.9 6.7 6.9 4.9 3.7 5.8 P P P
25th 

percentile Median

75th 

percentile

All buildings 6.0 5.6 6.0 4.7 3.6 4.8 P P P

RSEs not available for 

percentiles

PUBLIC USE FILE VERSION

RSEs for Table W1. Water consumption in large commercial buildings, 2012

All buildings over 

200,000 square feet 

using water Water consumption

RSEs for 

number of 

buildings 

RSEs for 

total

floorspace

RSEs for 

total 

consumption 

RSEs for 

consumption per 

building 

RSEs for 

consumption per 

square 

foot

RSEs for 

consumption per 

worker

Heating equipment 

(more than one may apply)

Heat pumps 15.1 12.9 12.4 10.4 8.2 11.1 P P P

Furnaces 21.7 18.0 17.7 16.9 13.0 16.5 P P P

Individual space heaters 9.9 9.0 9.2 9.4 7.7 7.9 P P P

District heat 15.0 13.7 12.9 11.0 7.7 7.9 P P P

Boilers 9.1 7.6 7.9 6.9 4.9 7.1 P P P

Packaged heating units 7.4 6.5 7.7 5.8 5.1 6.1 P P P

Other 34.3 31.8 33.3 20.3 16.2 7.1 P P P

Cooling equipment 

(more than one may apply)

Residential-type central air

conditioners 29.4 25.1 35.1 28.4 25.7 30.5 P P P

Heat pumps 14.9 12.4 12.0 10.8 8.0 12.9 P P P

Individual air conditioners 10.9 10.3 12.0 9.6 8.4 12.1 P P P

District chilled water 19.8 19.3 15.9 15.1 8.9 11.2 P P P

Central chillers 7.8 6.3 6.8 6.0 4.0 6.0 P P P

Packaged air conditioning units 7.3 6.0 7.2 5.9 5.2 6.0 P P P

Swamp coolers 28.2 23.5 24.0 26.2 16.4 22.7 P P P

Other 46.6 37.3 34.9 17.7 10.8 22.0 P P P

Water-heating equipment

Centralized system 9.3 8.8 9.3 6.9 4.8 7.4 P P P

Distributed system 11.7 10.9 16.4 13.9 13.6 15.2 P P P

Combination of centralized and

distributed system 8.1 6.7 7.6 6.7 4.8 6.5 P P P

Refrigeration equipment

(more than one may apply)

Any refrigeration 6.1 5.6 6.0 4.7 3.5 4.8 P P P

Walk-in units 7.4 6.2 6.5 5.8 3.5 5.8 P P P

Cases or cabinets 7.9 6.9 6.9 5.8 4.1 6.3 P P P

Large cold storage areas 17.3 16.2 14.5 15.3 10.2 16.6 P P P

Commercial ice makers 7.3 6.1 6.4 5.5 3.8 5.4 P P P

Residential-type or compact units 6.4 6.1 5.9 5.1 3.7 4.9 P P P

Vending machines 6.5 6.0 6.2 4.9 3.8 5.3 P P P

No refrigeration 22.3 21.5 25.7 24.1 22.4 16.9 P P P
25th 

percentile Median

75th 

percentile

All buildings 6.0 5.6 6.0 4.7 3.6 4.8 P P P

RSEs not available for 

percentiles

PUBLIC USE FILE VERSION

RSEs for Table W1. Water consumption in large commercial buildings, 2012

All buildings over 

200,000 square feet 

using water Water consumption

RSEs for 

number of 

buildings 

RSEs for 

total

floorspace

RSEs for 

total 

consumption 

RSEs for 

consumption per 

building 

RSEs for 

consumption per 

square 

foot

RSEs for 

consumption per 

worker

Food preparation or serving areas 

in non-food service buildings

(more than one may apply)

Snack bar or concession stand 9.5 9.3 10.1 8.1 4.8 8.1 P P P

Fast food or small restaurant 11.5 8.4 9.0 10.5 5.9 8.9 P P P

Cafeteria or large restaurant 7.8 6.9 6.8 6.6 4.2 6.6 P P P

Commercial kitchen/

food preparation area 8.9 7.8 7.6 7.3 4.7 7.2 P P P

Small kitchen area 9.9 10.4 11.0 9.2 6.2 11.2 P P P

Separate computer areas

Data center or server farm 8.9 7.9 8.3 6.8 4.8 6.5 P P P

Special activities or equipment 

contributing to water use

Sterilizers or autoclaves 12.0 8.6 8.3 8.0 5.0 6.6 P P P

Commercial ice makers 7.3 6.1 6.4 5.5 3.8 5.4 P P P

Activities with large amounts of

hot water required 8.4 7.3 7.1 6.1 4.0 6.9 P P P

Laundry in building 20.2 21.3 19.1 14.0 6.5 13.5 P P P

Indoor swimming pool 15.8 16.9 17.9 12.8 9.5 12.4 P P P