LEED EBOM as an Agent for Great Change

This month, we are pleased to have Sheri Lucas share her perspective and experience with LEED EBOM.  

Sheri has been charged with introducing sustainable design, construction, operations and maintenance practices into Wells Fargo’s retail banking stores since 2005. With over 12 years experience in retail real estate strategy, this LEED AP loves the win-win game of increasing efficiency while reducing environmental impact. Sheri has a BS in Interdisciplinary Studies from Boston University and is currently studying for the GMAT while juggling her love of hiking, baking, and photography. She can also be found on Twitter and the Wells Fargo Environmental Forum.

EBOM, EBOM, EBOM. I utter this acronym with every other sentence. It seems LEED for Existing Buildings: Operations & Maintenance has become the love of my life. 

Yes, I really do love EBOM. Not because I’m a masochist. No, because EBOM is so much more than prereq’s and points and templates and calculations and performance periods. EBOM is a much-needed agent for greatly changing the way we do business, from floor to ceiling, from input to output. Nearly everything that happens in and around the four walls of every business is covered by EBOM.  

I’m stating the obvious when I point out that EBOM is designed for our existing building stock. And that stock is beyond enormous. According to the EPA, in 2002 there were nearly 4.9 million office buildings in the US alone. Anyone familiar with LEED knows the built environment has significant impact on the natural environment, its occupants, and the communities that surround every building.  

This is what makes EBOM so vital. We can wax poetic about the brand new NC Platinum high rise all we want, but most of our buildings already exist. Most are not optimally performing. They ingest precious resources like it’s going out of style.  

Oh, that’s right, it is going out of style!  

I’m also sorry to say that most of those pre-existing buildings aren’t very pleasant to be in, whether it’s due to bad lighting or lousy air quality.  

So there you have it. EBOM is the most important of all the rating systems. My hope is that more building owners jump on this bandwagon and stat. We have a lot of work to do. 

But there’s more – something I didn’t realize when I first elected to roll EBOM out across a couple thousand buildings. EBOM not only focuses on the physical system and structure, it focuses on our on-going, day-to-day habits, procedures, and events. And even while we’re still compiling our prerequisite submittals, we’re already triggering great changes across our footprint.  

We’re working with our contract management team to secure a recycling component to our waste management contracts. We’re working with our purchasing teams to ensure our supplies are environmentally friendly in a meaningful way. We’re designing an integrative green cleaning policy. We’re measuring our greenhouse gas emissions and aiming for our benchmarks. I could go on and on. 

But what do I mean by “meaningful” environmental-friendliness? Well, the ever-important certification path associated with all the rating systems necessitates a rigorous approach. That third-party nod confirms we’re walking the talk. This is immensely important, especially in consideration of all the hard work that goes into eliciting great change. We want everyone to know we understand the difference between green and greenwash. Meanwhile, there is currently lack of strong national green business certification in the marketplace. There is no widespread independent system for verifying sustainable practices within the four walls. 

Stephanie Rico, from our Environmental Affairs group, recently commented to me, “We have great localized green business programs like San Francisco Green Business, but recognition from one local body isn’t going to resonate in another town across the country. Having a nationally recognized system for verification would be my dream come true.” Well, Stephanie, I have some good news. To my (pleasant) surprise, much of EBOM covers actual business practices. I often find myself telling people it not only addresses the building itself, but everything that goes on inside, as well. And certification of those efforts is indeed on a national scale. 

In seeking to reduce our impact, we looked to EBOM as a way to reduce our buildings’ energy use. What we hadn’t recognized was how effective it would be at greening our daily practices. We’re already seeing great changes. And I’m excited to witness the ongoing expansion of those changes as we continue on this path.

Linking Historic Preservation With Green Building

When I think of sustainability, part of what I think of are quality structures that will be used for generations.  Historic buildings to me are a good example of that kind of durability, though in the past there was debate here at Build2Sustain over whether the Coliseum should be considered sustainable. So, isn't there a natural alignment between historic preservation and sustainable renovation?  Sure, the historic aspects and the regulations around renovating a historic building can present challenges, but surely there must be a way to preserve the features of a building that makes them special historically while updating the technology and materials to make it a high performing building.  John M. Tess of the Heritage Consulting Group writes an interesting piece about this very topic, highlighting successful projects that were able to attain both historic preservation and green building credits (and reap the rewards of tax benefits in the process).  One of the projects highlighted is the Oregon National Guard Armory Annex pictured left.  In the end, by using the resources and abilities we have now to help these buildings perform better, we ensure their survival for many generations to come--and isn't that the very point of historic preservation? 

Week in Review

Missed some of our content this week?  Here's a quick snapshot:

The number one issue that resonated most with you was that Your Office Sucks. We love seeing how many people identify with the issues we raised.  We'd love to hear a bit more about your experience in workspaces and what exactly you hate about the space you work in now (or have worked in the past).  The comment section awaits!

We also challenged you to think beyond Mediocre when it comes to the building stock of this country.  Because no one wants to be mediocre.

Holding fast in third place is my post from last Friday about The Trouble In Going At It Alone: a commentary on my experiences and observations at an Education Facilities Forum.

And if you're new to us, be sure to check out our Podcast and let us know what you think!

Your Office Sucks

If you’ve been following our blog for any amount of time, you know that we believe in sustainability. We even put it right in the company name to avoid confusion. While sustainability is at the core of everything we do, there are plenty of other reasons your company should undertake a renovation of it’s office space. I could write out a big long list with bullets, but let me sum up.

Your office sucks.

If you work for a company with leased office space, there is a very good chance your office genuinely, no two ways about it, unabashedly sucks. It’s probably beige, which isn’t even really a color, but a blah name for a blah non-color. It’s probably lit with ancient fluorescent technology in the most boring-directly-over-your-head-in-big-bright-squares kind of way. There are likely windows, and they’re likely far from your desk. You work on a boxy screen in a boxy cubicle in a boxy block of cubicles, on a boxy floor in a big box of a building. You get paid to think outside of one…but you’re in so many boxes everyday…it’s hard to know which one they mean. The air is stale, the carpet is old, it’s freezing in the summer from too much AC and stifling in the winter from too much heat. The conference rooms are just brighter versions of the box you work in all day. It makes you tired, makes you disinterested, makes you long to be outside. In short, your office, truly, and deeply sucks.

What if we could renovate that office? What if you could add some color and visual interest? What if we could re-light the space to add natural variations in color temperature and contrast? What if you ditched the boxes? What if your space was designed for the kind of work everyone does every day instead of the work the “average” office worker does everyday? What if you had access to privacy when you needed it and the ability to work somewhere comfortable when you wanted it? What if that new office also used less energy, made you more productive and actually improved your health?

There are dozens of reasons a renovation makes sense…reducing your company’s utility costs is just one of them.



The Trouble in Going at it Alone

This past Monday, I attended an Education Facilities Forum to get to know some product vendors and build relationships.  Overall, it was a good experience.

But, I observed as the day went on how things get done in the education world.  Here were these representatives from schools (colleges, private schools, and public school districts) talking to various product reps about things they anticipated needing.  Someone is looking to retrofit their library and ask about lighting sources or a new control system.  They like what a product rep says, and they will likely order and install it without a second thought.  I understand that schools often have very sensitive budgets and this makes them feel as though they're spending less money.  But I have some concerns.

One is that they won't know what questions to ask.  Take the person who's looking to do a library retrofit.  What if they love the idea of LED fixtures that a rep introduced to them.  They're low energy, not as expensive as other LED products shown to them in the past, and will last for 15 years without the hassle or expense of swapping light bulbs.  Sounds perfect.  But they never thought to ask, what happens 15 years from now?  And years later, when the first fixture fades or fails, they may be surprised to find that the only way to "relamp" is by tearing all the fixtures out and replacing them with new ones. Schools stay in business a lot longer than 15 years.

Secondly, aside from helping them get the best products for their situations, having a professional advocate can help any facility make sure they're getting the most bang for their buck.  By taking a little extra time (and yes, money) with a professional to plan your retrofit/renovation, you can ensure that you are focusing on the systems in your building that will give you the most savings.

And that's where Build2Sustain comes in.  We're out to convince all of these property owners, tenants, and facilities managers that hiring a strong team who will take the time to think about your space as a whole and make smart choices for you will save you money both in savings and avoidance in costly mistakes in the short- and long-term.  It takes the courage to think and do things differently, but we want to help.  We want to find your team and make sure you attain your goals.  Join us.

Commercial Real Estate Investment Company to "Green" its Entire Portfolio

The NY Times yesterday highlighted Jamestown Properties, a German commercial real estate company that is planning on undertaking sustainable renovations for all of its US properties.  You can read the full article here.  In the article, Matt Bronfman, the managing director and COO, mentions a "European perspective" as a reason why.  I am fairly certain that this perspective is just as conscious of company profits.  Here at Build2Sustain, we dedicated an entire white paper to the business benefits of sustainable renovation.  How long will it take for American companies to see the advantages in making similar investments in their holdings a high priority?

What is the 12 week Process?

We explain the 12 week plan for the Paper Project with some more detail.

New York State Builds The Case for Build2Sustain

Ok, so not literally or purposefully. But, the New York State government released a draft of their 2009 State Energy Plan today that outlines their objectives and strategies for the future. As I was reading, I found that they have written an argument for why B2S needs to exist. Here are some of the sections that I found particularly interesting (emphasis ours):

"The 2008 Optimal Report concluded that opportunities for electricity end-use efficiency in New York are extensive and inexpensive compared with available supply options. Results of the study estimate the State’s achievable potential through 2015 to be about 26,000 GWh, representing a reduction of approximately 14 percent from the forecast of electricity demand in 2015. In addition, improved building codes and appliance standards, likely to be implemented prior to 2015, could provide a reduction of an additional 11,000 GWh (5.7 percent) from the forecasted electricity use....The benefit-cost ratio of the electric efficiency measures is estimated to be 2.60, which means that the New York economy would capture approximately $2.60 in benefits for every dollar invested in efficiency."

"The 2008 Optimal Study attributes 38 percent (9,824 GWh) of the statewide achievable potential to New York City, 14 percent (3,603 GWh) to Long Island, and the remaining 48 percent (12,573 GWh) to the rest of the State. Approximately 70 percent of the total achievable potential savings in 2015 would be in the commercial sector, 17 percent would be in the residential sector, including low-income programs, and 13 percent would be in the industrial sector."

"Similarly, the end-uses with the greatest efficiency potential for the commercial sector are indoor lighting, cooling, ventilation, and refrigeration. Within the commercial sector, the study concludes that the building type with the greatest energy savings potential is office space, which accounts for 33 percent of the efficiency savings opportunities."

So with all these stats and the state looking to improve efficiency through new and existing programs and improved building codes, why do we still need Build2Sustain to develop best practices and convince developers, owners, and tenants that they will benefit from doing a whole scale renovation? Won't they be forced to with these new codes?

"New York's Energy Code applies to a building renovation only if the renovation is “substantial,” i.e., it involves replacement of more than 50 percent of any building subsystem. This “50 percent rule” currently provides owners of existing buildings opportunities to avoid application of the Energy Code by breaking building renovations into separate projects with no single project involving the replacement of more than 50 percent of any building subsystem. In turn, this reduces the State's opportunity to use the Energy Code to achieve improved energy efficiency in existing buildings. While the Energy Code applies to all new construction, the number of new buildings constructed annually is typically dwarfed by the number of existing buildings being renovated, particularly in urban areas, such as New York City. Therefore, the 50 percent rule significantly limits the State‟s ability to use the Energy Code to achieve an overall improvement the energy efficiency of buildings."

Now, who wants to join us?