Green Building Blog

How to Qualify for PACE Financing and Finally Implement the Energy Conservation Measures You’ve Been Dreaming About!

Do your tenants and customers complain about air quality and the physical work environment? It often sounds like this: “I’m too hot,” “I’m too cold.” Or worse, “There’s a funny smell and I think it’s making me sick.”

You fix and you fix and you fix - the vents, the windows, the HVAC. But the improvements are slight and they don’t last long.

And you’ve noticed that your energy bills have nearly doubled over the last few years. 

Maybe you’ve heard that LED lighting is the wave (pun intended) of the future. You may have also heard that LED lighting is expensive.  While upfront costs may be higher than what you’re using now, in the long run, LEDs come out ahead in several areas.

Here we’ll provide five solid reasons your facility should invest in LED lighting. Hopefully they will help you determine if making the switch is truly the best thing for your facility as well as gain management approval when approaching them about funding the upgrade.

How engineers can work better with the architect so they can design and build a more energy efficient building and better serve the client.

Energy efficiency has been the buzzword among building engineers, and many architects, for some time now. But if a new building is being constructed, added on to or renovated, energy efficiency may not be top-of-mind to the developer. Here’s why it should be, and some tips on how to incorporate energy efficiency measures that make everyone – especially the client – happy.

One of the best things you can do is start thinking about energy early on. The earlier the better! Why? Creating an energy efficient building that is also functional and aesthetically pleasing takes time. Whether or not you’re building for LEED® certification (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design), you can build to USGBC’s guidelines for energy efficiency. Help your client understand that there are no “cookie-cutter” answers here. Each project is unique and will require its own unique solutions. It may cost a little more up front, but it will save the client money throughout the life of the building.

Traditional vs Integrated Design

Or, “Beat the summer heat without losing your shirt!”

Here in the Midwest we are entering the summer season with hot and humid weather expected for the next few months. During this time, the cost of cooling buildings goes up considerably. High temperatures and high humidity combine to increase the energy used by cooling equipment.

Beyond typical and low or no-cost energy saving measures you should already be doing (see “HVAC Gains with No Budget Pains”), here are three ways to reduce the potential for wasting energy in commercial and industrial buildings. Most people don’t usually consider these, but they can make a huge difference.

... and More You Shouldn’t Have Missed at High Performance Buildings + Workplaces

I recently returned from the NFMT High-Performance Building and Workplaces (HBP+W) conference in Austin, Texas. If you know me, you know that over the years I have attended hundreds of these types of industry conferences, as an attendee, a business owner, an exhibitor, and more recently as a presenter, workshop leader and keynote speaker.

There is no better opportunity to network with your peers, find out what’s new, and learn industry best practices. The NFMT/HPB+W events always have speakers with timely messages and practical information. Many of the exhibitors offer hands-on opportunities to see how you can improve your operations, save money and get better results with the latest in products and technology.

Here are five reasons attending HPB+W was absolutely worth my time and my company’s money!