- PERFORMANCE ENGINEERING & DESIGN CONSULTING
Building performance consulting, from first principles to policy.
A2 Efficiency is a mechanical engineering and building performance consultancy specializing in MEP Basis of Design, energy analysis, and all-electric building strategy. Same firm. Same engineering depth. Different entry point depending on where you're standing.
16+
Net-Zero Buildings
20+
LEED Projects
31+
Publiciations
01 SERVICES
Three offerings -
one engineering lens.
01
FOR ARCHITECTS & OWNERS
FOR ARCHITECTS + OWNERS
We define what your building's systems need to do - before the MEP contractor is hired. Used across design-build, design-assist,
and traditional delivery.
MEP Basis of Design
Building Loads Modeling
Electrification Strategy
Peer Review + Bid Support
Daylighting and Envelope Analysis
Architects and owners come to us before the MEP engineer is hired. California design teams come to us for Title 24. Agencies and utilities come to us when they need to figure out what to incentivize next.
02
CALIFORNIA PERMIT COMPLIANCE
Code strategy through permit submission. We navigate California's energy code with a design-first lens - not just documentation.
Code Strategy Review
Preliminary Evaluation
Full Permit Package
AHJ Support
03
03
FOR AGENCIES + UTILITIES
We help define how building performance is measured, incentivized, and scaled - from technology assessment to compliance pathway design.
Technology Research
Workforce Education Development
Code Change Development
Program Ideation
Energy Efficiency Analysis
02 WHY BOTH
Most firms do one or the other. We do both deliberately - and each side makes the other sharper.
RESEARCH → PROJECTS
Our code-development work means we know which technologies California's next cycle is moving toward. When we write a Basis of Design, we're sizing for where the market is headed - not where it's been.
PROJECTS → RESEARCH
Field-tested systems and constructability constraints keep our policy work grounded. We don't recommend technologies utilities can't actually scale, because we've installed them.
THE RESULTS
Every Basis of Design draws on knowledge of which utility programs are about to incentivize what, and which system types are proving out across our state.
03 PRINCIPALS
How we approach the work.
01
02
Size for reality, not worst case.
Right-sized systems are simpler to build, cheaper to operate, and easier for staff to maintain. We model actual loads - occupancy, schedule, climate - not compounding safety margins that produce oversized, underperforming equipment.
03
04
Design for the operator, not just the occupant.
Electrify by design, not by compliance.
A building performs as well as the team running it. Before we recommend any system, we ask who will operate it and whether they'll have the tools and knowledge to do so. Complexity that looks elegant on paper often fails in the field.
All-electric buildings aren't a regulatory exercise - they're an opportunity to simplify systems, eliminate combustion risk, and future-proof against utility volatility. We treat electrification as a design strategy, starting at concept.
05
Start before the engineer does.
One page of clarity beats ten pages of analysis.
These aren't values posters, they're positions. Not every engineer in our field would agree, and that's the point. They're what makes our recommendations consistent across projects.
These aren't values posters, they're positions. Not every engineer in our field would agree, and that's the point. They're what makes our recommendations consistent across projects.
Our name comes from the A2 paper constraint: any team proposing a design change had to fit their case on a single sheet. We carry that discipline into every deliverable - Basis of Design, peer review, or code strategy memo.
04 WHERE OUR RESEARCH LIVES
The agencies that shape building codes and programs - and where we sit in that work.
California IOUs
Code-change technology potential research - DOAS, thermal energy storage, VRF, and building envelope.
California Energy Commission
Title 24 measure research and criteria development.
Code Development
New Buildings Institute
Northwest Energy Efficiency Alliance
Washington State & Seattle City Light
Southern California Edison
This isn't background. It's why we know what the market is moving toward before it gets there.
Grid-integrated building metrics and complex-building performance assessment. Carbon and cost in museum facilities.
HVAC technology feasibility assessment for commercial, small and medium buildings, advanced RTUs, DOAS, HRV.
Energy code evaluation and impact
Education and awareness of energy codes, energy modeling, professional development and resources
Technology research
Performance Metrics
Technology research
Code Pathway
Workforce Dev