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City of Boston's improved energy management process
With nearly 4,000 utility accounts across more than a dozen different municipal departments as well as a need to leverage more granular data, the City of Boston needed a plan to improve their energy management processes. This column from Better Buildings reviews Boston's programmatic overhaul to how energy data was collected, analyzed, and reported, leading to the creation of real-time energy meter dashboards and recovering over $1.2 million in identified utility billing errors.
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REI's net zero distribution center
This week, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) recognized Better Buildings Alliance partner REI for the energy productivity advances made in its Arizona distribution center located in Goodyear, Arizona. The center has achieved an annual energy savings of 18% and annual cost savings of $170,000 from the baseline in the first two years of operation. The goal is to have the facility be net-zero energy. How was this accomplished?
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Hannaford Supermarkets' Brandon, Vermont Showcase Project
Hannaford Supermarkets, operators of more than 180 stores throughout Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New York, and Vermont, participated in Efficiency Vermont's Deep Retrofit pilot program with the goal of cutting their energy consumption in half. This column from Better Buildings shows how it was done.
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IHG'S Green Engage Program
InterContinental Hotels Group, a member of the US Department of Energy’s Better Buildings Challenge, created the IHG Green Engage system, a comprehensive online sustainability management system that allows hotels to track, measure, and report on their carbon footprint and utility consumption.
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Resilience Isn't a Project - It's a Mindset for Better Plants Partners
2020 has been the year of “the pivot” – of looking critically at every part of operations and thinking creatively about new approaches to doing business. In this column from the Better Plants program, learn what General Motors and L'Oreal USA did to adapt to the events of 2020.
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The Multiple Benefits of Energy Efficiency
Energy efficiency can save energy and money, but energy-saving projects often yield additional, quantifiable benefits that are frequently omitted from energy efficiency assessments. This blog from the Better Buildings Beat Team uncovers five key areas of additional benefits from energy efficiency.
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Catholic University of America Preps Students for a Changing Climate
Better Buildings Challenge partner The Catholic University of America (CUA) isn’t just increasing energy efficiency: they’re also working to foster next generation of the buildings and decarbonization workforce. In this column, the Better Buildings Beat Team describes bringingtogether speakers from government, industry, universities, and nonprofits to cultivate connections among students, professionals, and university members.
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Whole Foods Market Reaches, Exceeds Better Buildings Challenge Goal
In 2013, Whole Foods Market became the first grocery partner to join the Better Buildings Challenge, committing to a 20% improvement in energy use intensity by 2023 across its building portfolio of more than 12 million square feet. In this column, learn how Whole Foods Market surpassed that goal two years ahead of schedule, achieving a 21% energy reduction.
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Multifamily Better Climate Challenge Partners Drive the EV Conversation
Despite differences in portfolio size, location, and target market, multifamily housing providers Foundation Communities and Veris Residential have chosen similar paths in pursuit of their sustainability goals. In this column from the Better Climate Challenge (BCC), learn how both companies have committed to cutting their carbon emissions in half and their shared belief in the growing importance of electric vehicles (EVs) to reducing emissions – from residents as well as their own operations.
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Better Buildings Showcase: Life Time Chanhassen Athletic Club
The Life Time Chanhassen, MN Athletic Club reduced energy use intensity by 35% and water use intensity by nearly 60%. This column highlights how this Better Buildings Showcase project implemented a range of electric, natural gas, and water efficiency improvements from 2011 to 2021 to achieve these and other goals.
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Solar Power Purchase Agreement Advances RE at Colorado State University
As part of its GHG reduction efforts, Colorado State University has been adding solar photovoltaic systems to its campuses, including the use of Power Purchase Agreements (PPAs), which have proven to be a powerful tool for bringing large quantities of solar to campus. In this column from Better Buildings, learn about the University's five-step solar PPA contracting and installation process.
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Incorporating the Better Plants Steam System In-Plant Training Into Corporate Training and Energy Management Best Practices
To uncover new energy efficiency opportunities, OxyChem hosted a Better Plants In-Plant Training focused on the plant's steam systems. In this column from Better Buildings, discover how the training identified steam efficiency improvement opportunities across the chlor-alkali production process.
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Better Climate Challenge Road Show
The U.S. Department of Energy’s Better Climate Challenge is here! Hop in the EV and hit the open road with the DOE team. For Season One, energy experts visited Nashville, TN to see how partners Nissan, Chemours, and Whirlpool are working to reduce their emissions by 50% within 10 years. Watch the full series and be sure to scroll through the photo gallery for a peek behind the scenes!
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Bullitt County Public Schools' Energy Management Program and District Energy Plan
Bullitt County Public Schools developed a district-wide energy plan to implement cost-saving measures in response to rising energy costs and buildings in need of HVAC and lighting upgrades. In this column from Better Buildings, learn about how the district has achieved almost $7.6 million in energy and operational cost savings over the past 12 years and an energy use intensity reduction of 21%.
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Allina Health: Leadership in Climate Risk Vulnerability Assessments
Allina Health conducted a climate resilience assessment to ensure their buildings are prepared for the impacts of climate change. In this column from Better Buildings, learn how Allina Health used a climate risk vulnerability tool to understand climate change-related building and community infrastructure vulnerabilities and evaluate what percentage of its building portfolio is at risk for weather-related and public health disasters.
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