Staying on top of your building’s equipment’s maintenance and operational inspections is one of the great ways to save money and energy and keep occupants feeling safe and reduce property damage in a worst-case scenario.

So, for your convenience, we have made a Checklist for NYC Building Owners to help ensure that you’re properly equipped for 2023 because you must ensure that your building’s mechanical and operational equipment is up to code, inspected, and in proper working order.

ENERGY AUDIT

An energy audit helps to reduce the carbon footprint by highlighting troubled areas in your home or commercial building that may be wasting energy. Not only it evaluates your building’s impact on the environment but also, it helps reduce your energy consumption to save money on your energy bill.

An energy audit is completed at a residential or commercial building to determine its energy efficiency. So, in a nutshell, energy efficiency basically means using less energy to do the same job and the audit offers you with an energy efficiency assessment and complete electricity consumption.

You can also easily obtain essential information regarding your energy usage and ENERGY STAR rating from the audit report and using that information, you can check and rectify any energy usage issues to cut electricity costs.

RETRO-COMMISSIONING

It is a systematic process of fine-tuning the existing building’s mechanical systems performance through operational and maintenance improvement measures to ensure that the building is running at its optimal performance.

With retro-commissioning, you will be able to address problems that have developed throughout a building’s life as a result of issues like aging equipment or changes in how spaces are used by occupants. Retro-commissioning should take place on a regular basis and be part of the maintenance strategy and long-term operations for your building.

During retro-commissioning, an energy specialist identifies and analyzes equipment that is not operating efficiently, systems that need to be replaced, repaired, or adjusted, and other opportunities for operational improvements to meet the Owner’s requirements.

WHAT IS ENERGY MODELING?

New designs and construction practices are moving rapidly in the direction of performance-based standards and if you’re planning to build a new home or a new commercial building, investing in energy modeling will be a great way to get on board.

Energy modeling is a process that is used to estimate or calculate the energy consumption of a building, typically on an annual basis. Information such as orientation, climate, building materials, design geometry, and electrical and mechanical systems is collected and then the collected information is entered into a software program to determine the overall energy usage of the building’s design.

In energy modeling, the virtual/computerized simulation of a building or complex focuses on utility bills, energy consumption, and life cycle costs of various energy-related items such as lights, air conditioning, and hot water.

BENCHMARKING

Benchmarking is basically known to measure the performance of a company’s products, services, or processes against those of another business that is considered to be the ‘best in class’ in the industry. The point is to check for internal opportunities for improvement.

In buildings, benchmarking consistently measures buildings’ energy use in relation to their size and other core characteristics. It offers cities with information on building energy performance for segments of their building stock, changes in same-type buildings, and the scope for improvement.

Benchmarking also improves government efficiency in a way, that promotes economic and environmental health and also drives job creation.

When we talk about energy benchmarking, it is used to determine if a building is consuming more or less energy than its peer facilities with the same occupancies, sizes, and climates. With energy benchmarking, it will be more effective to pursue building auditing when determining which buildings are inefficiently consuming energy.

GET LEED CERTIFIED

LEED, which is also known as (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) is a green building rating system developed by the United States Green Building Council (USGBC). LEED is the most globally recognized sustainable building certification that provides a framework for healthy, efficient, carbon and cost-saving green buildings.

LEED certification ensures your business adheres to its requirements which ultimately means that your buildings are clean, dynamic, and cost-effective. LEED is backed by an entire industry of committed individuals and organizations paving the way for market transformation to improve efficiency, save money, lower carbon emissions, and create healthier places for people.

To accomplish LEED certification, a project earns points by adhering to prerequisites and credits that address energy, carbon, water, health, transportation, waste, materials, and indoor environmental quality. The projects then go through a verification review process by GBCI (Green Business Certification Inc).

GET ENERGY STAR CERTIFIED

The buildings which are ENERGY STAR certified save money (lower utility bills), save energy and help protect the environment by generating fewer greenhouse gas emissions than typical buildings (non-certified). To be certified as ENERGY STAR, a building has to meet strict energy performance standards set by EPA (Environmental Protection Agency).

Also, it must be noted that the certification is given on an annual basis, so a building must maintain its high-performance year to year to be certified. And to be eligible for approval, ensure that the information submitted in the certification application is verified by a licensed Professional Engineer (PE) or Registered Architect (RA).

ENERGY STAR-certified buildings generate 35% fewer greenhouse gas emissions (35 percent less energy than similar buildings nationwide). They (buildings) consume less energy and contribute, on average, 35 percent fewer greenhouse gas emissions to our atmosphere. So, by earning the ENERGY STAR, you’re joining the front lines in the fight against climate change.

GREEN ROOFING

You may have noticed in an aerial view of most urban areas that show black tar, swathes of asphalt, and gravel-ballasted rooftops. Yet, there is a new trend that breaks up the monotony of common roofs and that is green roofing or green rooftops. Such rooftops have been long popular in Europe, and have begun to appeal to homeowners, businesses, and even multiple cities as an attractive way to promote environmentalism while solving the issues of conventional roofs.

There are many benefits of having a green roof at various levels such as economic, ecological, and societal. A green roof offers to purify the air, rainwater buffer, saves time and money, reduces the ambient temperature, saves energy and encourages biodiversity in the city, and regulates the indoor temperature. Not only it adds value to the building but also increases biodiversity and the feeling of well-being.