The Roadmap to Sustainability

The Roadmap

to Sustainability BLJC ... leading the way to a sustainable future, one building at a time!

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From the President

Sustainability Makes More Than Just Economic Sense

By Gordon Hicks

OR SUSTAINABILITY

on countries COST REDUCTIONS commit to ag- Installing efficient electrical and mein GHG emis- chanical equipment results in energy I recently attended a real estate conference, and after do in a finite cost savings. Significant equipment rea few days of hallway, trade-floor and cocktail conversations, er decrease the pair and maintenance cost savings can I was left with the sense that with oil and gas prices on the leased into our also be achieved when old infrastructure decline, professionals from across the industry were less ably destroy our is replaced with new equipment. Grants concerned with energy conservation than they had been six or s of the world, and other incentives are offered by all 12 months ago when energy prices were reaching record highs. rading systems levels of government, and by utilities, to However, the question we should still be asking ourselves is mplemented. It’s help make projects economically viable. this, “what’s the true cost of inaction when we allow our real ee either a carestate portfolio to operate inefficiently?” I believe the business ystem or a car- THE COST OF A BREAKDOWN case for continued investment in energy efficiency initiatives nto Canada and In addition to being less efficient, older remains overwhelmingly persuasive. within the next infrastructure renders the operations of a building more susceptible to business Sustainability as a Cornerstone of , if you plan to interruption.When making a decision Corporate Social Responsibility investments in on the upgrading of mechanical or Many companies have realized that in order to be the product uld make sense electrical equipment, consider the cost or service provider of choice, and to retain existing customers isions that will of a breakdown – its potential impact and attract new ones, they need to demonstrate commitment mmediately, and on business operations and/or tenant to reducing their environmental footprint. In many instances, ed return in the satisfaction and retention, as well as the a company’s real estate portfolio represents its single largest Green Building premium cost paid to perform a major opportunity to demonstrate and quantify results of energy ing criteria pro- unplanned repair. reduction and green initiatives. In fact, buildings are responsible r making green for approximately 35 per cent of greenhouse gas emissions, s for new con- LEADING HAS ITS ADVANTAGES which have been confirmed by scientists around the world to be t projects. Al- In the near future, it’s highly likely the cause of global warming and climate change. Measurement an investment that public policy changes will drive of GHG’s is a key metric and reporting requirement for any program, attain- organizations to reduce their energy company’s sustainability report card. g increases the consumption. So why not take acding and makes tion early and earn credit for being Future-Proofing your Portfolio progressive? tenants.

Due to the unprecedented carbon level of over 350 PPM that Ultimately, companies whose concurrently exists in our atmosphere, there is mounting pressure on tribution to society is more positive TENTION countries around the world to commit to aggressive reductions in work for an or- should, and likely will, be more sucGHG emissions. Living as we do in a finite world, we will either bout how it op- cessful. I encourage you to look for decrease the carbon emissions released into our atmosphere or mpacts that its ways to make your business more inevitably destroy our earth. In some parts of the world, carbon he environment sustainable through reducing your taxes and trading systems have already been implemented. It’s y demonstrating carbon footprint, implementing likely that we will see either a carbon cap and trade system or a e to your values water conservation practices, or encarbon tax introduced into Canada and the United States within ability objectives hancing your recycling and other the next five years. and challenging conservation programs. Start today With this in mind, if you plan to make capital investments in n greater loyalty and set a continuous improvement your portfolio, it would make sense to make green decisions course for the future. | CFM&D that will begin saving costs immediately, and have an improved return in the future. The Canada Green Building Council’s LEED®

ntario, Gordon Hicks is president of BLJC, a leading

workplace services real estate portfolios.

2 management BLJC – The Roadmap tofor Sustainability

me one of 275 certified Canadian presenters of Al Gore's

rating criteria provides a framework for making green investment decisions for new construction or retrofit projects. Although there is an investment associated with the program, attaining a LEED® rating increases the value of a green building and makes it more attractive to tenants.

Employee Attraction and Retention Employees want to work for an organization that cares about how it operates, and the impacts that its operations have on the environment and society at large. By demonstrating that you remain true to your values and corporate sustainability objectives through good times and challenging times, you will gain greater loyalty from your employees.

Cost Reductions It goes without saying that installing efficient electrical and mechanical equipment results in energy cost savings. Significant equipment repair and maintenance cost savings can also be achieved when old infrastructure is replaced with new equipment.

Grants and other incentives are offered by all levels of government and by utilities to help make projects economically viable.

The Cost of a Breakdown In addition to being less efficient, older infrastructure renders the operations of a building more susceptible to business interruption.

When making a decision on the upgrading of mechanical or electrical equipment, consider the cost of a breakdown – its potential impact on business operations and/or tenant satisfaction and retention, as well as the premium cost paid to perform a major unplanned repair.

Being the Leader has Advantages In the near future, it’s highly likely that public policy changes will drive organizations to reduce their energy consumption. So why not take action early and earn credit for being progressive?

Ultimately, companies whose contribution to society is more positive should, and likely will, be more successful. I encourage you to look for ways to make your business more sustainable through reducing your carbon footprint, implementing water conservation practices, or enhancing your recycling and other conservation programs. Start today and set a continuous improvement course for the future!

Sustainability

A Clear Approach to

Sustainability in Building Portfolios

Even in today’s economic turmoil, sustainability continues to be the hottest topic in the Buildings Industry. Where the challenge of the past was defining the role of an organization’s sustainability strategy, we are now seeing that challenge shift to proving able and measurable benefits for buildings’ sustainability initiatives.

BLJC – The Roadmap to Sustainability 3

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Morrison Hershfield is a North American leader in sustainability for the built environment and is committed to innovative ideas and solutions that will help our clients achieve their sustainability goals.

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SW IT

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ENGINEERING FRESH SUSTAINABLE SOLUTIONS

Most organizations do not fully recognize the significant role their real estate operations play in their total environmental impact. Through stewardship of our clients’ facilities, BLJC has a direct and indirect impact on over half of the Environmental Key Performance Indicators listed in the Global Reporting Initiative.

In our role of improving the sustainability and reducing the environmental impact of our clients’ properties, we developed an approach to: • Measuring the actual environmental impact of our clients’ real estate portfolio.

• Reducing environmental impact through low-cost operational and capital improvements.

• Switching to greener options by using tools such as LEED™ to evaluate alternatives.

• Offsetting the Greenhouse Gas (GHG) impact through the effective use Renewable Energy Credits and other GHG offset tools.

• Sustaining initiatives with a programmatic continuous improvement approach.

By applying these methods, we have achieved a critical mass of energy and sustainability expertise – diverse skill sets that define, measure, improve, activate, control and maintain sustainability initiatives for our clients.

Society is moving in a direction where concerns about environmental degradation compete with financial criteria to become the driving force behind energy management. All indications convey that this tendency will continue well into the future.

Edwin Lim, P.Eng, MBA, LEED™AP leads the BLJC Energy & Sustainability team as Vice President with 20 years experience in the Buildings Industry, primarily in the Energy Efficiency and Intelligent Building Fields. Edwin is active with the Canadian Green Building Council where he participates in the LEED™ Development Committee as the Chair of their LEED™ EBOM Adaptation Task Force and the Chair of their Green Building Performance Initiative (GBPI) Development Committee.

BLJC is an active participant with Sustainability stakeholders advocating the role of facilities in their clients’ CSR programs.

In being intimate with their clients’ business strategies, BLJC

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Most organizations do not fully recognize the significant role their real estate operations play in their total environmental impact.

supports their clients in leveraging their real estate assets as net contributors to their Sustainability strategies.

the Canadian Green Building Council’s GPBI system as well as our clients ISO14064 reporting requirements.

Measure: Moving beyond Utility and Energy Management The most significant emerging trend in Sustainability reporting is the increasing adoption of the ISO 14064 standard for Greenhouse Gas measurement. This international standard has become the basis for companies in developing their GHG inventories or footprints, and provides a framework to have the methodology, calculations and reporting processes verified by an independent third party. GHG reporting has increasingly become an integral part of Corporate Sustainability Reporting and the use of this standard has raised the integrity of the GHG information.

Corporate Sustainability Reports are subject to increasing scrutiny from the public, stakeholders, and environmental groups. Companies that adopt the reporting structure and conduct independent reviews of their GHG inventory become leaders in environmental reporting.

We are uniquely poised to assist in the development of GHG inventories. With our integrated utility bill payment software, RealEnergy, we capture the information that drives your GHG footprint. From our experience in developing GHG calculation methods and procedures, reviewing GHG inventories and projects, and training companies in this area, BLJC is well ahead of other companies in providing accurate and defensible GHG reporting.

Reduce: Innovative Integrated Initiatives that Lessen Environmental Impact For many years it has been obvious - the best option in reducing environmental impact of an existing building stock is to reduce the use of resources. This has been ever-present in my experience with environmental consulting and dealing with energy service companies.

Evan Jones, P.Eng, is Manager of Energy & Sustainability Information Management with 20 years experience in implementing energy savings and GHG calculations in a wide variety of industries. This work has lead to the development of unique software solutions, information handling and training tools. Evan is a designated trainer for the Canadian Standard Association, delivering the spectrum of ISO 14064 GHG measurement courses in North America.

BLJC currently provides reporting for over 800,000 tonnes of Greenhouse Gases for our clients. Our robust analysis and processes integrate additional reporting requirements such as

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The BLJC Energy & Sustainablity Team

By utilizing our unique position as an integrated real estate services provider, we have been able to amalgamate commissioning tasks into our operations, thus leveraging our facility management teams. We also increased our role in Capital and Lease Planning to better arrange incremental environmental reduction investments for our clients. Through these actions, we effectively implement our reduction programs with other business processes.

As web based technologies continue to improve, monitoring several smaller facilities in real-time is more feasible. This is especially exciting and will benefit our clients with numerous and

geographically dispersed facilities. In addition to monitoring, other new technologies are available to improve efficiency and reduce waste. For example, LED lighting technology not only improves efficiency, but also reduces waste through longer operating life.

BLJC is positioned to maximize environmental impact reduction in our clients facilities through our integrated approach of finding the balance between economic, social and environmental benefits.

David Hewitt, P.Eng, LEED™ AP is Manager of BLJC’s team of Building Performance Specialists. He has nearly 20 years experience working with the North American Buildings Industry specializing in Energy Efficiency in Existing Buildings, Re-commissioning, and Real Estate Physical Due Diligence Assignments.

BLJC is currently involved with over 100,000 tonnes of Greenhouse Gas reductions through projects reducing energy consumption by over 50 Million ekWh. Projects implemented coast to coast ranging from conventional lighting replacement to piloting new leading edge technologies securing over $4M in incentives for our clients.

Switch: The Continuous Search for more Effective Options The inherent challenge to switching to greener options is the determination of what is truly more environmentally friendly.

Established programs such as the Key Performance Indicators in the Global Reporting Initiative, or consensus developed rating systems such as The Canadian Green Building Council’s LEED™ have paved the way by providing a new standard for green operations, design and construction.

The exponential growth of the LEED™ rating systems has been truly exciting. BLJC is a proud member of the Canadian Green Building Council and actively supports LEED™ as a bellwether for Sustainable Building Development and Operations and Construction. LEED™ for Existing Building Operations and Maintenance (EBOM), New Construction (NC) and Commercial Interiors (CI) set new standards in each area.

By using such tools, BLJC is poised to confidently help clients make the switch to greener options – from onsite renewable energy generation, to recycling waste energy, to reducing emissions from consuming fuel directly onsite, or indirectly through electricity generation.

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BLJC can assist in developing and implementing strategies to achieve LEED™ credits and certify new projects and existing buildings. We can also facilitate achieving absolute GHG emission targets, or reduce emission intensities to meet performance targets. We have experts in wind, solar, biomass, and geothermal technologies that minimize the net environmental impact of our clients’ facilities.

Michael Wymant, BA, M.RLM, LEED™AP is Director of Sustainability with extensive experience as a practitioner and trainer for LEED™ EBOM, CI, and NC in both the US and Canada and has participated in the certification process of over 40 LEED projects. Michael has over 10 years experience in sustainable building projects and is active with the Canadian Green Building Council’s LEED Action Plans and the launch of LEED EBOM in Canada.

BLJC implemented projects that switch to greener sources such as utilizing wasted heat from a data centre to heat office space. BLJC actively participates in its clients LEED™ projects facilitating certification both through consulting and LEED™ ready processes.

we can map out a competitive strategy that is in keeping with our client’s image and goals.

Joe Bilé, P.Eng, MBA, LEED™AP is Director of Energy Services for BLJC with 23 years of experience in the Buildings Industry primarily in the Design, Energy Efficiency, and Energy Management sector. Joe has been with BLJC for over 7 years and an expert in integrating Energy Management tasks into the tasks of Facility Operations.

BLJC manages energy for over 9,000 facilities representing over 130,000 utility bills per year and a consolidated annual utility spend of over $160M.

BLJC’s Hybrid-Electric Service Vehicle

Offset: Options for Neutralizing your Portfolio’s Residual Impact Even after all steps are taken to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, ultimately an organization will still have a net environmental impact by simply existing.

The procurement of Carbon Offsets and Renewable Energy Credits (RECs) are viable options for neutralizing an organization’s residual carbon footprint. However, unlike the purchase of other energy products, the marketplace for Carbon Offsets and RECs is transparent and less mature.

The acquisition of Carbon Offset and RECs is an area of special interest within our energy procurement skill set. Through collaborative approaches to energy acquisition and green initiatives, BLJC clients are able to positively demonstrate their commitment to energy efficiency.

Christian St. Arnaud is BLJC’s resident specialist in energy supply procurement, green energy, emissions reductions strategies, renewable energy certificates and carbon offsets based in Calgary.

BLJC has procured natural gas, electricity and fuel oil supplies on behalf of its clients across Canada delivering utility cost certainty and mitigating the risk associated with volatile energy markets.

Sustain: Maintaining and the Continuous Reduction of Environmental Impact In order to sustain environmental impact reductions, a program must be continuously monitored and maintained.

As utility managers, our advanced approach allows us to seamlessly monitor the impact of our sustainability initiatives through utility billing. As facility managers, we not only implement maintenance measures, but access the on-going maintenance and monitor activities required to effectively sustain improvement.

As technologies advance, the options available to building owners to improve their ecological imprint multiply. BLJC supports the development and improvement of new technologies – we become familiar with the total benefit, total cost and limitations of cutting-edge tools and software. With this strong knowledge, BLJC – The Roadmap to Sustainability 7

Case Study

Re-Look

Re-Evaluate

Re-C

As buildings mature, changes in occupancy, operations and systems loading may diverge from the original engineering intent, leading to sub-optimal performance and opportunities for improvement.

Re-commissioning is defined as the process through which buildings are commissioned at some point after their initial occupancy. It ensures that systems in a previously commissioned building are functioning properly, and identifies where operating procedure changes or drifts in control calibrations may have affected the mechanical performance.

8 BLJC – The Roadmap to Sustainability

ommission Normally, major re-commissioning projects can provide substantial savings but with simple paybacks of up to 4 years.

BLJC has found that a smaller more focused subset of activities concentrating on an optimization of existing control sequences can yield very fast returns. Specifically, re-evaluating sequences of operation, temperature control strategies, ventilation requirements, set points, and operating conditions with no capital improvements can be accomplished promptly with a modest investment in specialists’ time.

The Len Werry building is a prime example of this methodology.

Situated in downtown Calgary, it holds administration, telephone and internet switching offices, as well as a 403,000 sq. ft. data centre. Consequently, the facility is a high consumer – in 2006 it used 23.5 million kWh of electricity and 150,000 GJ of natural gas, for a total cost of $8.30/sq. ft..

BLJC commissioned an operational review of the building’s mechanical and lighting systems, and performed an analysis of low-cost energy saving opportunities. Focus was given to: • Optimizing the electric chiller switchover and refreshing the sequence of operations for the absorption chiller plant.

• Raising the free cooling temperature threshold for mechanical cooling switchover • Cleaning the absorption chiller tube to improve heat transfer efficiency • Upgrading the combustion controller to improve boilerefficiency.

Along with updating the building’s operational procedure documents and operator training, under BLJC management, the Len Werry building now saves $191,000 annually with a simple payback of 4 months.

under BLJC’s managed scope. Naturally, our efforts were focused on reducing this number.

Since SCLPP had already undergone lighting retrofits, and upgraded its building automation system, our team had to delve into new areas for improvement. Since boilers deliver heat in one form or another through natural gas that is combusted, we concentrated on enhancing boiler efficiency.

Canada Post goes Linkage-less When dealing with a real estate portfolio as large as Canada Post’s, the key is to concentrate on sites with the maximum opportunity, sites like the South Central Letter Processing Plant (SCLPP).

The 600,000 sq. ft. facility is a major mechanized mail processing plant. It alone consumes 12% of the energy paid by Canada Post BLJC – The Roadmap to Sustainability 9 Peerless_BLJC_09.indd 1

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BLJC has always prided itself in piloting the latest technologies in its own corporate facilities.

Conventional boiler controls adjust the firing rate and fuelto-air mixture by means of a single actuator connected by rods ( or cams) to the gas valve and combustion air filter.

Because of wear and slippage of mechanical components over time, we found that this system was imprecise and showed an inconsistency between air and fuel ratios. As an alternative to replacing older mechanical linkages, BLJC recommended a linkage-less combustion system WASTEMT80170 Habitat Template Adscontrol 5" x 4" 4/c to

Landfill Diversions Beyond the obvious reasons of recycling and reuse, diverting waste from landfills has a further impact of reducing GHG emissions. Over a third of Canada’s annual methane emissions come from landfill sites. Methane has about 20 times more impact than CO2 emissions.

BLJC partnered with an industry expert to conduct facility waste stream audits. Following the completion of 23 audits in Victoria, it was determined that recycling hand towels, fiber and plastic food packaging, and polyethylene foam, would increase the diversion rate by 20-30% and thus, reduce the overall methane emissions from landfills. The audit also recommended a renewed focus on training and education, along with program enhancements to increase awareness and landfill diversion rates.

In partnership with the BC Government’s Climate Action Secretariat, ARES, and the government’s Carbon Neutral Working Group, BLJC identified and initiated an enhanced solid waste management plan to leverage existing and rare recycling infrastructure within Victoria. This strategy involved implementing a seven step strategy to reduce the government’s overall landfill diversions as well as increase tenants’ knowledge of efficient waste management.

BLJC continues to generate new waste diversion ideas.

Not content with the achievement of 75% waste diversion for 2 LEED™ points, our Markham head office facility is looking to embark on a 100% diversion or zero waste initiative in the coming months.

Our landfills provide over 17,000 acres of wildlife habitat.

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provide precise, micro-processed controlled mixing of fuel and air.

Over a four week period, two 200 horsepower hot water boilers were retrofitted with linkage-less combustion controls just in time for the winter season. The fast implementation avoided waiting a full year for heating savings that has amounted to $22,841 annually, with a simple payback of 1.4 years. The retrofit decreased the accumulation of un-burned boiler fuel and reduced GHG emissions by 103 tonnes.

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Leading by Example BLJC has always prided itself in piloting the latest technologies in its own corporate facilities. Projects such as LED lighting technology, chemical free water treatment, organic waste diversion, and renewable electricity have all resulted in a reduced environmental impact, but more importantly have been lesson learned and applied to our clients’ facilities.

Surprisingly, our own GHG inventory revealed that over 75% of our carbon emissions were the result of direct fuel usage in our service vehicle fleet. We had revealed an additional opportunity to reduce our environmental impact by greening our fleet.

First, we examined the types of vehicles, their actual usage and how much weight they carried and selected smaller, more fuel efficient vehicles. The minivan service vehicles are expected to release 34% less carbon than the full-sized vehicles they replace.

Next, we took a look at how our service technicians were dispatched and implemented a different operating approach that would ultimately reduce the distances travelled by our technicians.

Our third strategy was to look towards new fleet technologies.

Our new hybrid electric service vehicles are expected to emit a further 40% less carbon than our current minivans, and 61% less than our full-size service vehicles. In the past year, BLJC has invested in 10 hybrid service vehicles. On their own, these cars reduce our company’s emissions impact by over 80 tonnes per year.

ENVIRONMENTAL STRATEGIES. BUSINESS SOLUTIONS.

We’ve worked with hundreds of organizations, including 14 of Canada’s Fortune 100 companies, helping them identify, understand and assess their options, as well as providing practical, strategic solutions and creative ways to implement them. We tailor our consulting services to meet individual needs, with specific expertise in the following: s Corporate Sustainability s Greenhouse Gases/Clean Air Strategies and Management s Market Intelligence, Analysis and Risk Management s Policy Research, Design and Implementation s Events and Partnerships

Ottawa 613-562-2005 Toronto 647-727-4736 info@delphi.ca www.delphi.ca

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