Back row, left to right: Tom Lazzaro, Director of Facilities Management at Greenwich Hospital; Gerrit Blauvelt, Managing Director of Property Operations at Malkin Properties; and Brian Heelan, Senior Vice President & Director of Operations at Albert B. Ashforth, Inc.
Front row, left to right: Dianne Selditch, Center Director at SoundWaters; Kristine D’Elisa, Director of the Corporate Sustainability Challenge for Sustainable Stamford and principal at R. S. Granoff Architects; and Stephen Grasso, Chairman, Sustainable Stamford and Principal at Partners For Architecture.
Stamford, CT - Malkin Properties, Albert B. Ashforth, Inc. and Greenwich Hospital, the pilot participants of the Corporate Sustainability Challenge, revealed last week the results of a year-long effort to make their Stamford facilities more energy-efficient and sustainable. The participants talked about their experiences at the most recent SoundWaters’ Business & Environmental Series luncheon hosted at UCONN’s Stamford campus.
The City of Stamford is the first municipality to take part in the Corporate Sustainability Challenge, launched by Sustainable Stamford, the City of Stamford’s volunteer environmental task force, and the Southern Connecticut chapter of the Building Owners and Managers Association (BOMA). For the past year, the three commercial properties analyzed energy and water use in their facilities, developed strategies for improvements and implemented policies to meet their individual needs and budgets.
Gerrit Blauvelt, head of property operations, spoke on behalf of Malkin Properties, which owns and manages First Stamford Place, a three-building, 810,000-square-foot Trophy multi-tenanted office complex located at I-95’s exit 7 adjacent to the Stamford Inter-Modal Transportation Center.
“The work we are doing within our suburban portfolio replicates the groundbreaking energy efficiency retrofit program underway at the Empire State Building, a property supervised by Malkin Properties’ affiliate Malkin Holdings. Our goal was to create a package of energy efficiency measures that not only save energy and reduces water usage, but create healthier work environments and reduced operating costs, without compromise,” said Mr. Blauvelt.
As part of the Sustainability Challenge, the projects completed at First Stamford Place include the replacement of low-efficiency electric motors; the installation of premium-efficiency drive belts for HVAC motors and fans; the installation of variable frequency drives (VFDs) on the property’s chiller plants; the installation of occupancy sensors in all new tenant spaces; the replacement of lighting within the complex’s common areas, mechanical rooms, and garages; the installation of low-flow fixtures within all restrooms; and a retrofit of drip irrigation throughout the property, through the use of drought tolerant perennials in place of annuals and the reduction of areas of turf requiring irrigation. By implementing these energy efficiency measures, Malkin Properties anticipates saving up to 15% on energy costs and up to 45% on water usage.
Brian Heelan, Senior Vice President & Director, Operations, highlighted the results that Albert B. Ashforth, Inc. achieved at its 74,000-sq.-ft. office facility at 707 Summer Street. To reduce energy use in the building, Ashforth installed a new high-efficiency cooling tower and an automated temperature control system. The construction of the building’s new tenant space included energy-efficient lighting operated by motion sensors and LED lights in all of the stairwells.
To reduce water consumption, automatic flush valves were installed in restrooms and rain sensors were added to the irrigation system. Planting drought resistant perennials also allowed the building managers to remove the sprinkler zone.
Green cleaning policies were instituted, and the building increased recycling to an estimated 42 tons a year. Additionally, a shuttle service will be provided to the tenants traveling to and from the Stamford Transportation Center.
“In collaboration with our cleaning, landscaping, carting and exterminating vendors we were able to successfully implement green sustainable policies at little or no additional costs,” said Heelan.
Tom Lazzaro, Director, Facilities Management, spoke on behalf of Greenwich Hospital, which has a 30,000-sq.-ft. location in Stamford at 2015 West Main Street. The building houses an imaging center, outpatient rehabilitation facility and physician offices.
“In keeping with patient wellness, Greenwich Hospital has fully embraced the opportunity to make the building as sustainable as possible, likening sustainability to the overall long-term health of the planet,” said Lazzaro.
A committee-driven approach helped the Greenwich Hospital team implement a number of changes at the facility, including creating a clean air/no smoking policy, a mercury reduction policy, waste reduction and recycling policies, and green cleaning policies, as well as several energy reduction and conservation strategies. The building is currently undergoing a lighting retrofit and HVAC system upgrade, which is expected to reduce energy consumption by about 110,000 kilowatt hours per year. These initiatives are subsidized by funding from the local utility company and will reduce electricity cost by over $15,000 a year and significantly reduce the building’s carbon footprint.
Throughout the process, Sustainable Stamford has worked closely with each property manager. Templates were distributed to assist in writing customized building policies. The city hosted regular meetings amongst the participants to provide a forum for any questions. Sustainable Stamford also provided semi-annual assessment forms to help participants document their accomplishments and goals.
“The Corporate Challenge pilot has been a great success,” says Kristine D’Elisa, Director of the Corporate Sustainability Challenge for Sustainable Stamford. “We are thrilled to extend the Challenge to all building owners and managers throughout Stamford this fall. From building owners, to tenants, to the local community, everyone benefits from the changes inspired by the Challenge.”
All three pilot participants will receive a year’s worth of free Single Stream Recycling from the City of Stamford. They will also be recognized in the fall at BOMA’s annual TOBY awards for achievements in the land development and building management industries.
For more information about the Stamford Corporate Sustainability Challenge, please contact Kristine D’Elisa at (203) 625-9460, ext. 20 or e-mail: kd@granoffarchitects.com. To learn more about Sustainable Stamford, its members and its mission, visit: www.sustainablestamford.org or e-mail: sustainablestamford@gmail.com.
About Sustainable Stamford:
Sustainable Stamford (www.sustainablestamford.org) is the City’s volunteer environmental task force that includes members of Stamford's business, educational, environmental, and religious communities; City staff; and concerned citizens. The mission of Sustainable Stamford is to promote energy efficiency, environmental education, waste reduction and recycling, greenhouse gas emissions reductions, green buildings and all efforts affecting sustainability in Stamford.
About the Corporate Sustainability Challenge:
The Corporate Sustainability Challenge was launched in 2010 by Sustainable Stamford in collaboration with the Southern Connecticut chapter of the Building Owners and Managers Association (BOMA). The goal of the challenge is to help owners and managers of commercial properties of all sizes make their buildings more energy-efficient, sustainable and environmentally healthy for its occupants.
The Challenge asks for a commitment from property owners to benchmark their energy and water consumption for one year and to adopt a series of sustainability policies that range from implementing a Waste Reduction Policy, to the adoption of a Sustainable Purchasing Policy, a Low Mercury-Containing Light Bulb Policy, a Light Pollution Policy, an Integrated Pest Management Policy, a Stormwater Quality Management Policy, a Non-Smoking Policy, a Green Cleaning Program, and promotion of carpooling and telecommuting.
