A recent GreenBiz Group report indicated as we enter into 2011 things are better than one might have thought regarding the advancement of green.  Being “Green” is not easy even in a good economy and given this economy you would think impossible.  But the opposite seems to be happening.  Companies are thinking bigger and longer term about sustainability. 

Today managing a company’s environmental footprint is less and less limited to the environmental department.  Increasingly, it is the domain of procurement, finance, facilities, fleets, legal, operations, real estate, supply chain, marketing, investor relations, even human resources.  A growing number view environmental thinking as a key to competitiveness, as well as a means of clawing our way back to economic prosperity.

Currently there are more than 80 billion square feet of existing building floor space in need of energy and water – efficiency improvements.  Construction-related investments grew 75.5 percent in 2010 over the previous year.   This likely reflects the growing interest in “smart” building products and services that optimize resources and improve occupant comfort and other criteria that LEED factors into its rating system.   

As far as green standards go, few have been as successful or as influential as the LEED standard developed by the U.S. Green Building Council.    LEED has become the blueprint for green certifications.

Despite a near meltdown in the building market, almost every element of the LEED ecosystem for commercial buildings – LEED for New Construction (NC), LEED for Existing Buildings: Operations & Maintenance (EOM) and LEED for Commercial Interiors (CI) – continues to grow.  Last year two new LEED standards were launched:  LEED for Retail and LEED Volume, the latter aimed at large companies that plan to build 25 or more similar buildings to achieve a batch certification.

Recently California became the first state to require green building practices for all new buildings or those that are undergoing major renovations.   California’s building code will likely set the pace for the growth of green buildings nationwide.    Retro-commissioning (the process that seeks to improve how building equipment and systems function together) is already a growing trend for existing buildings as well. 

On a more local basis, a number of property owners that Brookstone Builders has worked with have experienced a reduction in building operating costs due to implementing more efficient methods of heating, cooling and lighting – not to mention improved team spirit due to a more comfortable environment. Many have also experienced a decrease in  occupant complaints and have expressed satisfaction with the increased ability to manage systems due to enhanced and more automated "green" electronic controls that manage usage levels.

Green Construction is only 1 of 20 indicators that GreenBiz covered.   Green office space is doing well despite the recession but two areas that are “sinking” are Carbon Emissions and Waste.  The entire report can be found at GreenBiz.com.

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Have You Heard...?

Four "golden principles" for smart building systems:

1. Non-Intrusion: If a system requires the inhabitants of the building to be uncomfortable, it will fail
2. Automation: If someone is required to turn a switch and then, at some later point, to turn it back, the system will probably not work
3. Persistence: Studies have shown that the effect of an energy audit is usually degraded by as much as 75 percent after 12 months
4. High ROI: Building owners and managers are often reluctant to invest in new technologies without a very compelling and short payback period
   

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