Dear Service and Product Provider (SPP):
From new benchmarking resources to exciting ENERGY STAR events, 2011 is already on target to be an exciting year for SPPs. In this quarterly issue of ENERGY STAR News: Service and Product Provider Edition, we are focusing on several business opportunities for SPPs to leverage ENERGY STAR and help customers meet legislative and regulatory requirements, and excel in voluntary initiatives for energy efficiency across the country. You can help your customers gain recognition while highlighting your own successful business relationships through awards and success stories.
If there are any topics that you would like to see addressed in our next newsletter, please contact us. Thank you.
The ENERGY STAR Service and Product Provider Team
ENERGY STAR Events
ENERGY STAR at the Air-Conditioning, Heating and Refrigeration (AHR) Expo – January 31-February 2, 2011 in Las Vegas, NV
The SPP team partners with a number of industry associations to educate SPPs on the latest trends in legislation and voluntary benchmarking initiatives, and to provide training on using Portfolio Manager to meet those requirements. Our next in-person workshop will be held at the AHR Expo in Las Vegas on February 1, 2011 at 12:30 PM in Room N101.
Come to this free workshop to gain hands-on experience on how to benchmark several types of buildings, and to learn how Portfolio Manager can help in measuring energy performance, and documenting and recognizing achievements. Also, visit us at the ENERGY STAR booth (#N3011) in the exhibit hall!
Visit Us at Building Operating Management’s NFMT – March 15-17, 2011 in Baltimore, MD
NFMT is an annual conference geared towards facility managers, composed of four co-located events: The National Facilities Management & Technology Conference & Expo, Maintenance Solutions Expo, GreenTech, and Safe Buildings Expo.
ENERGY STAR will sponsor a panel, Work off Your Energy Waste: The ENERGY STAR National Building Competition on March 16, 2011 at 9:00 AM. We’ll also be in the exhibit hall and look forward to seeing you there. Learn more and register for this event today.
2011 ENERGY STAR Awards Ceremony – April 12, 2011 in Washington, DC
Each year, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) honors organizations that have made outstanding contributions to protecting the environment through energy efficiency. This year's Partner of the Year ceremony will be held Tuesday, April 12, 2011 in Washington, DC. Registration for the event will open in the next few weeks. All are invited.
Partner of the Year awardees will be announced in April. If you submitted an application, you will hear back no later than February 4, 2011. For questions on the awards process, please contact EPA at awards@energystar.gov.
Business Opportunities in Commercial Buildings
Federal Agencies Now Required to Lease Space in ENERGY STAR Buildings
Whether you work with customers that have federal agency tenants or plan to attract them in the future, help your customers enhance their leasing strategy by leveraging two recent Federal mandates:
ENERGY STAR requirement for Federal Leases. As of December 2010, federal agencies can only lease space in buildings that have earned the ENERGY STAR, according to the Energy Independence and Security Act, 2007. The new requirement affects all federal agencies renewing or entering into a new lease for more than 10,000 square feet.
Federal High Performance and Sustainable Buildings. EPA has partnered with DOE and the General Services Administration to incorporate the Federal High Performance Sustainable Buildings Checklist (i.e., “Guiding Principles Checklist” under Executive Order 13423) into Portfolio Manager. View an overview of using the checklist feature, and live and recorded training sessions.
Measuring and Reporting Requirements for ARRA-Funded Programs
The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA), also known as “the stimulus bill”, included billions of dollars for energy efficiency and clean energy investments. Two programs – the State Energy Program and the Energy Efficiency and Conservation Block Grant program, each are channeling about $3 billion to state and local government grantees. The largest single use of these funds is to improve existing state and local government buildings, presenting opportunities for SPPs working with public buildings.
All ARRA-funded programs require measurement and reporting of performance, with many programs – from Maine to Utah – requiring or recommending Portfolio Manager as the preferred tool.Learn more.
Don’t miss this opportunity to help your clients gain a competitive advantage when seeking Federal tenants! Visit www.energystar.gov/EISA for more information and to register for a free webinar on the new leasing requirements and ensure that your clients’ buildings are “Federal ready.”
Explosive Growth in Multifamily Program Presents Expanded Business Opportunities
In just the two years since the ENERGY STAR for Multifamily Housing program was launched, more than 1,500 multifamily buildings comprising 219 million square feet have been benchmarked in Portfolio Manager. With benchmarking disclosure requirements for private commercial buildings in several major cities including New York City, Seattle, and Washington DC, SPPs are well positioned to assist multifamily building owners and managers in meeting these mandates.
Voluntary Initiatives Through-out the Country
From coast to coast, cities, regions, and organizations around the country are sponsoring voluntary campaigns challenging building owners and managers to evaluate and reduce building energy consumption. Help your customers participate and be recognized for reducing their energy use and greenhouse gas emissions. A few examples follow:
• International Facility Management Association (IFMA) has launched the IFMA Energy Challenge for facilities to reduce their facility energy use by 15 percent or more.
• BOMA International’s 7-Point Challenge urges the industry to reduce energy consumption in commercial buildings 30 percent by 2012.
• BOMA Portland and BetterBricks launched Carbon4Square to challenge teams in the Northwest to improve building performance in four categories: energy, water, transportation, and waste.
• Arlington County, Virginia’s “Arlington Green Games” is a competition for commercial properties to reduce costs and greenhouse gas emissions. Participants commit to a year-long program in which they receive ongoing training and support.
SPPs already deliver energy savings to customers, and can provide additional value through increasing customer visibility as participants in voluntary campaigns. Look to voluntary initiatives hosted by localities or industry associations in your area as market opportunities to expand your business!
ENERGY STAR Web Resources
NEW! Listing of Energy Efficiency Financing Services Compa nies Available
Today there are many opportunities to finance energy efficiency projects – whether through energy performance contracting, loans, commercial leases, tax-exempt financing, or financial advisory services. In recognition of this opportunity for building owners and managers, ENERGY STAR has compiled a new listing of companies that arrange financing of energy efficiency projects. View listing.
If your company offers such services please contact us to learn more about being listed.
Visibility for Licensed Professionals Verifying Labeled Building Applications
EPA requires a Licensed Professional (LP) – either a Professional Engineer (PE) or Registered Architect (RA) – to qualify buildings to earn the ENERGY STAR label. Many LPs have volunteered to provide label verification services “free of charge” on a limited basis to K-12 schools. Schools are unique public buildings that offer the opportunity to educate communities on energy management and environmental stewardship, but often do not have the budgets to pay for verifications. If you are an LP interested in volunteering your services to assist K-12 schools in earning the ENERGY STAR, please contact spp@energystar.gov. Remember, PEs and RAs can verify buildings in any state regardless of state of licensure. To highlight your expertise, a Directory of LPs who have performed verifications is publicized to building owners and managers seeking verification. A listing of LP volunteers for K-12 schools is also featured.
Get Your Latest Success Stories Featured on the ENERGY STAR Website!
Success stories can highlight how your company helps improve energy performance of customer buildings. EPA recognizes Emerging Technologies Associates, Inc. (ETA) as the latest Featured SPP of the Quarter. Read about how ETA leveraged ENERGY STAR tools to assist a customer, Sharp Grossmont Hospital, in achieving a 9 percent reduction in energy intensity in two years. See more stories.
We want to hear from you! Contact your ENERGY STAR account manager to let us know how you’ve been using ENERGY STAR in your business, and for ideas on enhancing your visibility. If you do not have your account manager’s contact information, email spp@energystar.gov.
Portfolio Manager and Automated Benchmarking News
New 1-100 Rating for Senior Care Properties – Coming Soon!
In spring 2011, ENERGY STAR will launch a new space type that can earn a 1-100 rating – senior care properties. The rating for senior care properties (assisted living, skilled nursing, nursing homes, supportive care, and dementia care) is based on the results of the 2009 Senior Care Energy Survey issued by several industry associations. EPA is developing guidance and training on the new space type. Please monitor
www.energystar.gov/healthcare for more information.
In the meantime, view a recorded webinar that announces the release, describes the methodology used to develop the rating, and discusses drivers of energy use and costs in senior care buildings. If you have questions or wish to receive the new materials as they are made available, please contact
energystarhealthcare@icfi.com.
New Meter Feature in Portfolio Manager
While Portfolio Manager is designed to measure whole-building energy consumption, units in multi-tenant buildings are often directly metered by the utility, and the building owner or operator only has access to common area energy bills. To address this issue, you can now select whether the energy data you are entering in Portfolio Manager is for the entire property or a portion of it, and then track and compare buildings with similar metering configurations until you are able to gain access to data for the whole building. For details on how to take advantage of this new feature, see the new multifamily-specific Quick Reference Guide, which can be easily adapted for other multi-tenant buildings.
2011 Select Events with ENERGY STAR Participation
AHR Expo (January 31 - February 2, 2011 in Las Vegas, NV)
NFM&T Conference (March 15-17, 2011 in Baltimore, MD)
NAESCO Federal Market Workshop (March 16, 2011 in Washington, DC)
Globalcon (March 30-31, 2011 in Philadelphia, PA)
ACEEE Symposium on Market Transformation (April 10-12, 2011 in Washington, DC)
ENERGY STAR Partner of the Year Awards (April 12, 2011 in Washington, DC)
West Coast Energy Management Congress (June 15-16, 2011 in Long Beach, CA)
BOMA International Conference & Show (June 26-28, 2011 in Washington, DC)
