WHY SHOULD CONTRACTORS & BUSINESSES BE CONCERNED?

With all the talk in the media these days about global climate change and environmental degradation, many businesses and building contractors in particular, are left wondering why they should be concerned and what difference they can really make anyway. The answers are simple: You can significantly increase your bottom line while substantially decreasing your environmental impact. Here's why...

According to the US Department of Energy, building owners can save 50 percent or more on energy costs when they either build new or upgrade their existing facilities to be energy-smart. They also state that a typical office building spends 30 percent of their operating costs on energy, which could mean a 15 percent reduction in operating costs in an energy smart building. For a company that spends million in annual operating expenses, that would equal 0,000 a year added to their bottom line.

Regarding environmental impact, commercial buildings account for 18 percent or nearly one-fifth of US energy consumption, according to the Department of Energy 2007 Buildings Energy Data Book. If energy consumption for every commercial building in the US was reduced by 50 percent, that would equal an overall reduction of 9 percent in US energy consumption and its associated environmental pollution, and would meet the Architecture 2030 Challenge to reduce fossil fuel generated energy consumption by 50 percent in all new and renovated buildings for that building type.

Contractors are in a unique position to be able to both help their customers save money on operating costs and tap into a new and growing market while making a positive impact on the environment at the same time. And what business owner wouldn't want to reduce their energy related GHG emissions by 50 percent when it means saving 50 percent on energy costs year after year? It's clearly a win-win situation!