GeoPraxis, an architectural, engineering and construction software company, announced that HVAC manufacturers are using Green Building XML (gbXML), which allows architects, building design teams, HVAC systems designers and sales teams to easily share data. XML, extensible markup language, is a type of computer language that allows software programs to communicate information with little human interaction.

HVAC manufacturers standardizing their products to work with gbXML include Trane®, Carrier Corp. and YORK International. Architectural design software and engineering companies include Autodesk®, Graphisoft, Bentley Systems, Elite Software, ECOTECT and GeoPraxis.

Trane has already been using the program to input building design information from an architect's computer-aided design (CAD) model into the program its HVAC engineering team uses to develop models sized correctly for a building. It also allows the building energy analysis team to assess design alternatives using whole building energy analysis like GeoPraxis' Green Building Studio. It supports the immediate development of detailed input files for DOE-2, EnergyPlus, and eQUEST, leading building energy modeling tools.