What makes a building high performance? |
- daylighting
- daylight control to reduce HVAC loads
- light shelves for shading
- glass type varied by orientation and location
- light sensors to control electric lighting
- occupancy sensors
- narrow floor plans to optimize natural daylight
- high benefit lighting upgrades
- under floor air distribution
- occupant control of heat, light and air
- displacement ventilation
- exposed thermal mass of building structure
- night flushing of buildings
- operable windows and mixed mode HVAC
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Case Studies |
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individual work station control at West Bend Mutual Insurance Headquarters |
West Bend, Wisconsin, Zimmerman Design Group |
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West Bend, Wisconsin: Zimmerman Design Group |
A new 150,000 square foot building for 500 employees, completed in 1991 was constructed for $90/s.f. where market averages were $125/s.f. The building has energy efficient lighting, better windows and shell insulation, and efficient HVAC system. 92% of workstations are on the perimeter. |
370 workstations are equipped with ERW's (Environmentally Responsive Workstations) which provide individual control over temperature, air flow, lighting and white nose. Air supply is provided through a raised floor system, allowing displacement ventilation to reduce HVAC requirements. |
Compared to their old building, West Bend found these results: - 40% reduction in energy costs with an annual savings of $126,000
- early estimate of 16% productivity increase with 4-6% increase attributed to ERWs for an annual savings of approximately $500,000
- thermal condition complaints dropped from 40 per day (at a documented cost of $25 per call plus $300 in maintenance) to two per week
A key ingredient in successful design of this project was involvement of office personnel in decisions made and in "field testing" the ERWs. |
GREENING THE BUILDING AND THE BOTTOM LINE: Increasing Productivity Through Energy-Efficient Design By: Joseph J. Romm and William D. Browning |
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Absenteeism drops, productivity increases at Verifone |
Costa Mesa, California, Croxton Collaborative -- Architects |
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In 1992, employees formed a Performance Improvement Team that convinced management to pay added up-front costs for a healthier building by demonstrating an energy savings payback of 4.5 years. |
The project was an upgrade of a 76,000 square foot building that included a series of roof skylights, energy efficient air handlers, natural gas fired cooling system, high performance windows, 60% more insulation than code and
occupancy sensors. On sunny days, workers use only natural daylight and small task lights. |
Cost was $39 per square foot. These are the results Verifone found: - absenteeism dropped 40% due to improved comfort
- productivity increased 5%,
reducing payback time to under one year -- a 100% ROI - 50% energy savings
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That isn't news to VeriFone, which has made healthy workplaces a top priority since the early 1990s. And while this program is the rare instance in which our tools have been largely low-tech, I believe it has done more to boost productivity than all the bandwidth in the world. |
William R. Pape, cofounder of VeriFone, Inc |
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Open dialogue between staff, management and architect to develop a a clear statement of project goals was key to success of this project. |
Building Design & Construction, April, 1997, pg.51; J. J. Romm, Cool Companies -- How the Best Businesses Boost Profits and Productivity by Cutting Greenhouse Gas Emissions, 1999, Island Press, Washington, D.C. & Covelo, CA, referenced by The Multiple Benefits of Energy Efficiency, August 1999, J. Wise, Eco·Integrations, from Pape, Willian (1998) Healthy, Wealthy, and Wise, Technology, #2, pg 25 |
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More productive postal workers at Reno Post Office |
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High Performance techniques used:
- installed more efficient lamps with better light quality
- lowered the ceiling to improve heating and cooling,
- sloped ceiling to enhance indirect lighting,
- improved acoustics
Benefits achieved for the $300,000 remodel were:
- Productivity increased 8% in first 20 weeks; leveled off to 6% after a year
- approximately $50,000/year in total energy and maintenance savings -- a six-year payback
- Productivity gains of $400,000 to $500,000 / year (less than one year payback on this alone)
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GREENING THE BUILDING AND THE BOTTOM LINE: Increasing Productivity Through Energy-Efficient Design By: Joseph J. Romm and William D. Browning |
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Major contract comes from increased productivity at
Lockheed Building 157 |
Sunnyvale, California -- Leo J. Daly, Architect |
New 600,000 square foot office building was constructed with energy-conscious daylighting; workstations tailored for employee needs, including acoustical panels and chambers to block out ambient noise. Floor was raised 10 inches for wiring. In older buildings, reconfiguring work area cost up to $600 per change. At building 157, equipment is unplugged and moved on two dollies, taking half an hour and costing $60/station. |
Fifteen foot high window walls with sloped ceilings bring daylight deeply into the space. A central atrium has a glazed roof. Light shelves are
installed on the south side. Fluorescent fixtures are dimmed with photocells. Total additional cost for energy efficiency was $2 million. Benefits include:
- Absenteeism declined 15%; therefore, productivity is up (paid for extra costs in one year)
- Productivity rose 15% on first major contract done in that building
- Lockheed won a $1.5 billion defense contract based on increased productivity -- profits paid for entire building
- 75% decrease in lighting bills (plus daylighting generates less heat; air conditioning load also reduced)
- Energy use approximately half of other buildings built at the same time, annual savings $500,000
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GREENING THE BUILDING AND THE BOTTOM LINE: Increasing Productivity Through Energy-Efficient Design By: Joseph J. Romm and William D. Browning; J. J. Romm, Cool Companies -- How the Best Businesses Boost Profits and Productivity by Cutting Greenhouse Gas Emissions, 1999, Island Press, Washington, D.C. & Covelo, CA |
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$1.3 million "high benefit lighting" retrofit at San Diego Federal Building and Courthouse |
Achieved these results:
- productivity improved 3% in office areas and 15% in courthouse, prison and Post Office spaces -- 3% productivity improvement saves $1,296,000 alone
- lighting energy savings -- $229,020 in first year
- cooling savings -- $50,624/year
- accident rates in parking lot dropped by one half, security violations decreased by 20% -- reduction of five thefts saved $7,500 per year -- reduction in security department investigations valued at $7,740 per year
- Total savings of $1.6 million for 147% SROI
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Fewer assembly errors at Boeing |
Lighting retrofits of more than 1 million of 8 million s.f. of assembly space near Seattle
- With new lighting ability to detect assembly defects improved 20%
- For one building savings from ability to catch errors during assembly exceeds energy savings
- Annual electrical energy savings up to 90%
- R.O.I. of 53% -- two year payback
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GREENING THE BUILDING AND THE BOTTOM LINE: Increasing Productivity Through Energy-Efficient Design By: Joseph J. Romm and William D. Browning |
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A natural working environment at Miller SQA Building |
Holland, Michigan: William McDonough + Partners, Architect |
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Three key design concepts were:
- Occupant comfort, health, and communication;
- The integration of the exterior landscape; and
- Maximum use of daylighting
Features of the building include:
- crescent-shaped structure follows contours of the site
- planted areas inside and out along daylit interior "street"
- wetland processes and purifies the building stormwater
- passively heated and cooled -- state-of-the-art ventilation
- 18 month construction -- $49 per square foot.
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Benefits achieved are:
- worker effectiveness rose from 98.54% to 99.53%
- work quality rose from 98.97% to 99.23
- annual energy savings in excess of $35,000
- the natural gas costs decreased by 7%
- water and sewer costs down 65%
- electrical costs down by 18%
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But in the end, question is not, 'How do we use nature to serve our interests' It's 'How can we use humans to serve nature's interest?' Now, as a designer, I find that question really interesting. |
William McDonough |
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| www.usgbc.org/programs/index.htm |
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Better lighting pays off at Pennsylvania Power and Light |
Lighting in drafting engineers' offices was upgraded with high efficiency lamps and ballasts and reconfigured to eliminate glare. Controls were installed to be able to selectively light specific work areas. Total cost was $8,362. Benefits observed were:
- Productivity increased 13.2% -- $42,240/year, a 69 day payback
- 25% decrease in sick leave
- Reduction in errors estimated at a value of $50,000/year
- Lighting energy use dropped by 69%; annual operating costs fell 73%, from $2800 to $765 annually); total annual savings of $2,035 (a four-year payback)
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GREENING THE BUILDING AND THE BOTTOM LINE: Increasing Productivity Through Energy-Efficient Design By: Joseph J. Romm and William D. Browning |
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Here is why High Performance Building makes
financial sense |
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Buildings consume 40 percent of the world's total energy, 25 percent of wood harvest, and 16 percent of water consumption, according to the U.S. Department of Energy's Center of Excellence for Sustainable Development. |
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But only 2 percent of the 30-year costs of a building are in its initial construction -- another 6 percent is expended on operations and maintenance and the remaining 92 percent is spent on the people who work there. A one percent savings in personnel costs could justify increased construction cost for an improved working environment. |
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Or, looking at annual operating expenses of commercial space on a dollars per square foot basis, by far, the largest item is salaries, followed by rent. Operations and maintenance and energy costs are relatively insignificant. A one percent savings in salaries -- or a one percent productivity improvement -- of $2.00/s.f./year, exceeds either O&M or energy costs. |
