MARCH 2017 • Volume 13 • Issue 3 TOP 10 REASONS WHY YOUR BUSINESS SHOULD OPERATE IN A SMART BUILDING flow from energy-saving projects. This means that, barring extraordinary circumstances, your returns from retrofit investments can be “locked-in.” 3. Minimal work required Engineers, contractors, and financiers will gladly do almost all of the heavy lifting as you seek to become a smart building. At no cost to you, various entities can provide ways to reduce your energy expense by as much as 60%. 2. Inevitability It is inevitable that your business will operate in a smart building; the only question is when. Municipalities, universities, large corporations, and hospitals have taken advantage of these innovations for decades. The accessibility of no-cost smart building retrofits has finally reached the small business community, and it is here to stay. 1. Trustworthy assistance Even if you do not know everything that there is to know about cutting edge building science, green contracting, and energy finance, you can trust people alongside you who do know about these things. A great place to start is the Queens Chamber’s Energy Committee, co-chaired by Marshall Haimson (E-Capital Development) and Jim Sheuchenko (Property Management Advisors). For these reasons and many others, it’s fair to say that the smartest aspect of a smart building is not its technology, but the decision to become a smart building from the onset. James Hendon is the CEO of the Energy Economic Development Corporation, a Queens Chamber member that helps small businesses and nonprofits perform smart building retrofits. Operating throughout the Greater New York City area, the Energy EDC has offices in Flushing, Manhattan, and Brooklyn. 3 By James Hendon, CEO Energy Economic Development Corporation Running a business is exciting. As an entrepreneur, I relish the opportunity to turn my dreams into realities and creating value for my company and others to the greatest extent possible. My success is directly correlated with how hard I work, my ability to trust the right people, and smart execution. To that point: none of us can truly work smart today without housing our businesses in “smart” buildings. This is defined by the Advanced Energy Economy Association as “a facility that leverages information technology to improve system performance for energy savings and operational improvements.” Per the U.S. Department of Energy, there are over 5,000,000 commercial buildings in the U.S., and over 98% of them are sized <100,000 sq. ft. These buildings house the vast majority our small businesses, yet only 10% of them are “smart.” The rest are lit, heated and cooled with unitary heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) systems controlled by standalone antiquated switches and thermostats. The “Top 10” reasons why your business should operate in a smart building are: 10. Transparency Building monitoring software continuously tracks your energy usage at the meter, as well as on your monthly utility bills. You can see in real time the impacts of your energy decisions. 9. Constant optimization Cloud-based analytics remotely optimize your energy efficiency 24/7. State-of-the-art software (e.g., Northwrite’s AgileVoltTM) provides the benefits of having a round-the-clock energy manager without the costs. 8. Significant savings HVAC system upgrades can result in savings of 40% to 60% of your HVAC’s contribution to your energy bill. Likewise, lighting system upgrades can result in savings of 20% to 70% of your lights’ contribution to your energy bill. These improvements— coupled with cloud-based analytics and a building management system—may reduce your overall energy bill by as much as 60%. 7. Attractive new incentives Beyond savings, you can earn incentives for exhibiting positive control over your energy data. Large incentives are available at the utility, state, and regional grid management (aka Independent System Operator) levels--an example is New York State’s Real Time Energy Management Program, introduced in 2016. You can also earn incentives for regulating your energy usage during peak hours to help the electrical grid avoid blackouts--an example is the Independent System Operator’s Emergency Demand Response Program. By becoming a smart building, you can earn money from these and other incentive programs on a recurring basis for years to come. 6. Environmental impact Optimizing your use energy drastically reduces your carbon footprint. This is critical given that, according to NYSERDA, small commercial buildings provide only a small fraction of the needed reduction in greenhouse gas emissions as compared to the residential, industrial, and large commercial sectors. 5. Mitigated costs Pioneering energy finance firms (e.g. Joule Assets) will pay for your retrofit under an Energy Services Agreement (ESA), and be repaid from the energy savings. There is no down payment, origination fee, or any upfront cost, as this transaction is not a loan. You pay a level billing amount based on what you paid for energy during the prior year. Once the ESA ends, you go back to paying your regular utility company and realize the full extent of your savings for years to come. 4. Insured results Smart buildings generally qualify for Energy Efficiency Insurance policies (e.g., those provided by Hartford Steam Boiler) that secure the cash
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