Economic Development Through Sustainability

It doesn’t have to cost a lot to make a quick impact. Simple changes in behavior and operating practices can lower costs:

• Measure and track your energy performance. The old business adage of “what gets measured gets done” is true; simply knowing your costs and consumption levels will help drive positive change.
• Turn off lights when not in use, and even when natural daylight can be used. You will be surprised how quickly your bills will lower when you take this simple step.
• Set back the thermostat in the evenings and other times when a building is unoccupied. You might think you’re already doing this but an operational audit will likely show places you can make changes.
• Educate tenants and employees about how their behaviors affect energy use. Your tenants will want to participate so they can reduce their environmental footprint and also reduce their operating expenses. Check out our Champion Program pages to learn more.
• Improve operations and maintenance practices by regularly checking and maintaining equipment to ensure it is functioning efficiently. Optimize start-up time, power-down time, and equipment sequencing.
• Revise janitorial practices to reduce the hours that lights are turned on each day. This change is especially important at night, as many janitorial companies leave whole floors lit long before and after they are cleaned.

How Envision Charlotte Calculated Billed Electric – Energy Savings and Corresponding Emissions Reductions