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By Russ Simons
MOST OF TODAY’S PUBLIC ASSEMBLY FACILITY
managers have heard of LEED® for Existing Buildings: Operations &
Maintenance™; more have wondered if it is the right avenue for their
sustainable operations. The biggest questions surrounding the process are
how much time does it take, what is it going to cost, and, more importantly,
how can a facility pay for this? Sponsors? A local utility?
The short answer is yes; sponsors would benefit from
being associated with a building that is committed to a year-round
sustainable operation. Reduced water and electricity usage, a comprehensive
recycling program, sustainable purchasing of food and durable goods, reduced
mercury lighting, use of green cleaning products, use of materials low in
volatile organic compounds, renewable energy use and improved occupant
comfort are all benefits to the user and manager of a LEED for Existing
Buildings: O&M certified facility. If a generous sponsor isn’t an option,
retro-commissioning itself can be a way to help finance the process.
To be LEED for Existing Buildings: O&M-eligible, a
building must be open for more than one year. A building that is
LEED-EB-certified is one that has improved its operations and maintenance
with an eye toward environmentalism. It is a benefit for older buildings as
well because it helps them operate more efficiently, thereby saving on
utility costs.
Cost often plays a factor into whether potential
clients want to commit to having their building become LEED for Existing
Buildings: O&M certified. According to Mike Wooley, a LEED Accredited
Professional and Populous senior facility operations consultant, most
companies will consider the LEED for Existing Buildings: O&M process if they
can be assured that they will get their money back in a short period of
time. Wooley urges his clients to consider retro-commissioning as part of
the LEED for Existing Buildings: O&M process in order to realize a cost
savings.
By implementing building retro-commissioning into the
LEED for Existing Buildings: O&M, venue owners and operators can realize ROI
in a short period of time.
“But recently we have seen an evolution in the green
process that gets at the heart of building owners’ and operators’ wallets -
we can actually demonstrate green operations’ return on investment.”
Retro-commissioning is the process of assessing the
facility’s major systems through observation, review of documents, examining
operating practices and developing a plan to optimize the systems so they
operate as intended. It tests whether systems are operating efficiently and
whether the operators are using the systems correctly.
“Retro-commissioning is essential to the LEED for
Existing Buildings: O&M process in that it provides the largest opportunity
for operational cost savings,” said Jamie Qualk, Vice President of Smith
Seckman Reid’s Sustainable Solutions Group.
Qualk is working with Wooley and Populous to focus on
stadiums, arenas and convention centers. “Studies and our own experience
tell us that most buildings never fully operate the way they were intended
to if retro-commissioning is not performed,” said Qualk. Qualk’s firm has
been implementing the retro-commissioning process as a standard operating
procedure for com mercial
and healthcare facilities since the inception of the LEED for Existing
Buildings: O&M in 2002. These facility types have demonstrated the benefits
of retro-commissioning, which include:
• decrease in energy
consumption;
• extended useful life of
equipment;
• greater occupant comfort and
productivity;
• cost savings from reduced
energy consumption pays for
the retro-commissioning
process in a relatively short
period of time. To maximize
his clients’ benefits, Wooley
breaks this process into two
steps.
Step One: Feasibility Study
The feasibility study sets the stage for the retro-commissioning process.
The feasibility study includes preliminary pre-screening and LEED for
Existing Buildings: O&M review, review of options for Energy Star-equivalent
performance rating, existing and available design documents, narratives and
feasibility research and/or discovery generated by or on the owner’s behalf.
The goal of the feasibility study is to determine the likelihood of
achieving certain LEED credits and sustainability goals. The feasibility
study also gives a thorough report regarding the viability of achieving a
certain LEED certification level, initial cost considerations to become LEED
certified and a detailed recommendation for next steps in the certification
process.
“The first phase really sets the stage for our clients
so they can get a benchmark of where their building is now, as compared to
where it will be once retro-commissioning has occurred,” said Wooley.
Step Two: Facilitation and Retro-Commissioning
Phase two is where, as Wooley explains it, the rubber hits the road by
outlining and implementing a plan for realizing green savings. The goal is
to integrate the LEED for Existing Buildings: O&M process into the
buildings’ normal course of building operations and maintenance. As such,
Wooley works with building operations personnel to write policies and
procedures to meet the requirements of LEED. His team also performs the
calculations needed to demonstrate compliance with LEED requirements.
Wooley’s team handles all necessary documentation for the LEED submission
process by maintaining communication with the Green Building Certification
Institute during the review.
Ongoing retro-commissioning directly addresses
diminished performance of major systems by identifying deficiencies in
equipment and systems while implementing operating procedures that reduce
utility consumption and contribute to the reduction of future maintenance
and capital costs. Because LEED for Existing Buildings: O&M now recognizes
ongoing retro-commissioning as a way to achieve points toward certification,
more building owners are able to address diminished performance in their
facilities while pursuing certification.
The cost of retro-commissioning depends on the size and
age of the building, age of equipment, how the systems have been maintained
and how well the systems operate.
“Based on our research, once retro-commissioning is
employed, it is common to see savings nearly immediately. It is typical to
see 10 to 15 percent in energy savings,” said Wooley.
Qualk said the USGBC promoted the payback for pursuing
LEED-EB certification could be realized in 24 to 30 months. However,
statistics from Smith Seckman Reid’s research showed the average payback
time of commissioned buildings was less than 16 months. According to the
findings:
Education
buildings have an average payback of
2.57 years.
Office
buildings have an average payback of
1.9 years.
Health care
buildings have an average payback of
1.45 years.
Lodging
buildings have an average payback of
1.22 years.
Stadiums, arenas, and convention centers
have an average payback of
.98 years.
Laboratory
buildings have an average payback of
.40 years. To illustrate the point,
Wooley recently completed a feasibility study and energy calculations on a
professional sports arena and found the building could recoup its energy
cost in little more than one year. While these findings are not typical,
Wooley says it is typical for a company’s return on investment for the
retro-commissioning process to be less than two years.
“If a typical arena spends $2 million per year on
energy costs, they could save as much as $200,000 a year by commissioning.
It is obvious how quickly the payback on the commissioning process can
occur,” said Wooley.
Retro-commissioning and LEED for Existing Buildings:
O&M Certification has benefits for all parties involved.
“In our projects that are seeking or have achieved LEED
for Existing Buildings: O&M certification we see that in some cases this
process can drive behavioral changes in occupants toward living a green
lifestyle even if they had not considered it previously,” said Qualk. “Many
of the opportunities to achieve points expose occupants to easy ways to live
green in their personal lives.”
fm
Russ Simons is a senior principal with Populous and
leads the facility operations consulting part of the Populous practice.
Contact him at russ.simons@populous.com.
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