Air Maze Services- Mechanical & Plumbing

This post first appeared as an editorial in the March 2009 edition of Building Operating Management magazine. It was written by Edward Sullivan.

Cars and trucks are required to have them. Washer, dryers, and refrigerators have to have them too. So why shouldn’t buildings need labels disclosing how much energy they use?

That question is drawing the attention of government bodies from coast to coast. The District of Columbia is phasing in requirements for buildings to benchmark energy performance and then make results public. Starting next year, California will require owners to report energy consumption information to prospective buyers, tenants, and lenders. New York City, another trend setter in the regulation of buildings, has held hearings on a measure to mandate energy-use labeling.

The idea of energy-use disclosure is nothing new. The voluntary ENERGY STAR label for buildings has been around for more than a decade. A growing number of facility executives see that label - part of the widely recognized ENERGY STAR label brand - as a valuable tool for communicating with audiences inside and outside of the organization.

But a mandate for energy-use disclosure? To some facility executives, that sort of regulation is anathema. They know they’ll be on the hot seat if a building gets a low energy score.

That’s not an easy position to be in. But climate change is putting energy efficiency on the top management agenda. It is growing more likely that the senior executives will want to know how buildings are performing. Why not get a jump on things by finding out what your ENERGY STAR score is? As Brandon Lorenz’s article in this issue shows, a low score can be a powerful tool to motivate organizations to support energy improvements. And even if it doesn’t free up resources, it may give you, and the rest of your organization, a glimpse of what lies ahead.