However, while new greener technologies are being architected into the design of new buildings in South Africa, there remains a major disconnect in older commercial facilities between landlords and tenants on the topic - to the detriment of both. To quantify the opportunity, consider that potential energy cost savings - which mostly depend on the implementation of proven new technologies - are 30% to 80%.
A United Nations (UN) Environment Programme study looking at the 40 year life-cycle costs of a building spells out the challenge: only 11% of the cost is incurred in the construction of the facility, while 50% of the life-cycle costs are incurred through the running of the building. Looking at a breakdown of running costs, lighting consumes 25% and office equipment about 20%, while heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) account for a massive 45%.
The landlord or property owner who does not pay for the electricity used by the tenant is not under any pressure to move towards greener, more energy efficient technologies. In fact, older less efficient technologies can be cheaper to install and therefore, more awareness is needed.
Here are three good bottom line pleasing reasons to press for change or hold out for a facility with green credentials:
In commercial buildings there are two key areas where green technologies can make an immediate impact:
Any good strategy starts with an energy audit (taking stock of what equipment is in place, and of current performance and energy consumption), and how that stacks up against the current and long term needs of the business. This will help identify immediate or quick wins, and help determine the business case for investments.
Fast wins can come in the form of simple policy shifts and standard energy saving approaches. For example, outdated HVAC approaches rely on 'set and forget' strategies where chillers and other equipment were manually set to cater for worst case scenarios, for example, a hot summer's day. In reality, that high level of performance is only required a small part of the time.
By installing sensors to measure actual internal and external temperatures and carbon dioxide levels, equipment can respond to actual demand. Optimal stop/start times can be set for HVAC equipment using adaptive control algorithms so that air conditioning is at the right comfort level at set occupancy times or, depending on temperatures, the plant can be stopped early and still maintain comfort levels.
To manage energy consumption and cost, thresholds can be set. This allows strategies like demand limiting, which sheds load during peak demand to reduce consumption, and load rolling, which sheds non-critical loads to maintain specified consumption, to be applied. What holds it all together is a BMS.
Find a BMS that is built on open systems and is able to tie together disparate building systems, including lighting, HVAC, access control, security and energy billing. Ease of use complemented by mobile accessibility, ease of integration, configuration and automation, and the quality of reporting should be primary considerations.
Reporting will facilitate better control and cost savings. A good report should provide:
How effective can an investment be? For SABC Auckland Park, an investment of R2.5m achieved R23m in savings over 18 months. The investment was primarily allocated to the upgrading and reprogramming of controllers, and installation of damper actuators and evaporative coolers across its radio and TV offices and studios.
Going green, improving the businesses eco-footprint and working towards becoming a more sustainable business are admirable sentiments but in business little gets done until you add real bottom line benefits. Clearly, the benefits are there to be had.
