It has been shown that the HVAC consumption by food-service establishments account for approximately 30% of that sector’s energy use. The Department of Energy estimates that food service establishments in the United States used approximately 427 trillion Btu’s of energy in 2003. By quantifying the true performance of island hoods, determining how to best optimize their energy efficiency, and providing the tools needed to apply these findings, an enormous energy and cost savings can be realized, with a direct positive impact on the global environment. If we assume an average market impact of 1% of the hood market over the next decade and that 10% of the hoods sold in the United States are of the island variety, the result of this project would be an energy reduction of 1.3 trillion Btu’s in the United States over the next decade. One of the most significant tools available today is the current set of ASHRAE Handbooks. The results from this research project will be used to improve and expand the information currently available to the engineers and consultants.