Blog - Square BeatTM
Thoughts, comments, news and musings on real estate operations, in 500 words or less.
It’s Easy Being Green
Posted by David S. Osborn. in Green Buildings on January 25, 2008
What does it mean to be Green? Experts say that a Building is “Green” when it significantly reduces its overall carbon footprint. In the United States, buildings account for nearly 50% of the country’s overall energy use; 25% of its water consumption, and approximately 40% of its carbon emissions. Buildings, then, are not very green.
To become green, a building must significantly reduce its energy consumption through better and smarter energy usage. It must optimize the performance and efficiency of all of its major pieces of equipment, increasing the equipment’s overall output and lengthening its usable life. To be considered green, the property team must lower the building’s water usage with more efficient equipment and better maintenance practices; improve its indoor air quality by changing HVAC filters in a timely manner; decrease its storm water runoff with bio-friendly sumps; reduce its electrical demand with modern low-e light bulbs; reduce its “heat island” impact on the surrounding community with proper shading; take advantage of solar and passive solar opportunities and generally reduce its impact on mother earth.
Well that’s all fine and good, but I say a building is “Green” when it generates more money.
Green isn’t simply some Gore-generated, tree-hugging movement to present a more environmentally sensitive corporate image – it’s just plain better building management practice. Green building practices result in high overall hard-dollar returns such as lower energy bills resulting from low-e glass usage, better maintained equipment, and smarter cooling and heating schedules. They result in increased occupancy rates through improved space attractiveness to prospective occupants and higher tenant retention. Green buildings have greater workforce attraction, lower employee turnover and engender higher productivity. Green management practices result in higher soft-dollar returns such as enhanced corporate image, improved reputation, increased brand value, and better press. Green building practices create a better, more sustainable building environment and better, more sustainable real estate companies - ultimately creating a real advantage over any of your less verdant competitors.
Putting these practices in place requires an initial investment of time and thought, and a little money. Your company should adopt company-wide green practice polices and procedures and enforce them. Begin with a serious effort to establish a baseline against which you can measure results. Take a snapshot of your tenant base, your monthly energy and your monthly water usage. Before making the improvements, survey your tenants and ask them how they feel about the space and building environment. Dig up those equipment repair bills from the last few years and put them in an envelope. Once you’ve prepared the ground, invest in simple Internet-based operations management technology to give you increased visibility into your green management practices. Use the system to impose a more comprehensive preventive maintenance regime; to increase your staff’s efficiency and boost their responsiveness. Consult with local resources for tips, including your local BOMA chapter. Before you know it, your efforts will begin to germinate and something green may spring from your wallet.
Kermit was wrong – it is easy being Green.
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I'd like to help our friends and service partners at Building Engines give this Square Beat thing some legs. So, I'll offer an equivocating argument.
Getting an entire organization to look differently at every aspect of their job functions is not easy. Fostering a corporate mentality of continuous improvement is not hard.
So, is it easy or is it hard for an organization to create a more sustainable operation? Yes, but it depends on your approach.
Posted by Bob Hartt., January 29, 2008 - 04:51 pm
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