One Bldg. = Six-Figure ROI on Sustainability

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GLENDALE, CA-Going green isn't just about doing the right thing for the environment or even being politically correct—there are real savings to be had from investing in sustainability measures in commercial buildings. Take, for example, 330 N. Brand Blvd., a 12-story office building here owned by Cornerstone Real Estate Advisors that has recouped costs well in the $100,000s annually since the owners took significant energy-saving measures.

The building was originally LEED-Silver certified in 2009. In 2012, Transwestern's sustainability group went in and helped make more changes, leading to a recertification of LEED-Gold, Samantha Longshore, sustainability advisor for Transwestern Sustainability Services in Milwaukee, tells GlobeSt.com. Longshore's team worked with the building's management company and engineers to perform the changes that led to a Gold certification. “They needed to illustrate that they had kept everything in place—all of the things they did previously: using the same products, maintaining or lowering their energy usage, etc.—and on top of that they pursued additional credits to move from Silver to Gold.”

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The property not only received a Gold certification, but received a score of 68, where only 60 was needed for Gold. “We've talked with the team about how the next time they recertify, we want to go for Platinum,” says Longshore. “If their energy score keeps going up and a few additional upgrades are done, they should be able to do this. They're very close to going Platinum the next time around.”

Some of the measures taken for the Gold recertification included:

• Taking the water flow in urinals down to ½ gallon
• Replacing old chillers with two 350-ton chillers that provided an Energy Star score in the 90s out of 100
• Having an in-house commission team perform a night audit to check for unnecessarily running equipment and lighting
• Reducing equipment run time to actual usage time vs. lease hours
• Installing an energy-management system to help systems shut down when not needed
• Replacing incandescent light bulbs with LEDs, retrofitting fixtures and installing motion sensors
• Installing window film to prevent the building from overheating in the summer and overcooling in the winter

According to Longshore, the following are the investments made in the property, followed by their cost savings:

1. Two 350-ton chillers; cost: $567,000. “This type of replacement is often not done because financial payback analysis will show payback could be 10 to 20 years out, but 330 N. Brand is an example of how efficient these replacements can be,” says Longshore.
2. Installation of emergency-management system; cost: $115,000.
3. Motion sensors in tenant spaces, lighting control in common areas and lighting (lamp) upgrades to more efficient bulbs with lower wattage, lower mercury and longer life; cost: $35,000.
4. Window films installation; cost: $50,000.
5. Total known savings for four items above: $205,000 annually, illustrating a payback of 3.5 years for all of these installs.

While not every owner or management company can afford to invest that much in sustainability measures, it's clear that even tackling some of them can lead to significant operating-expense savings.