Building sustainability into facilities management
According to Our World in Data buildings (both residential and commercial) are responsible for 17.5 % of total carbon emissions*. So facilities managers and their teams must have a major contribution to any company's strategy in reducing emissions.
Facilities managers control the operating costs of your buildings and facilities, the energy savings, productivity increases, reduction in waste streams and water conservation, these and other sustainable facility benefits will have a hugely positive impact on your business.
The state of your facilities also have a huge effect on employee productivity, influencing their comfort, health, and safety in the workplace. Workforce costs are by far the greatest expense a company has and small improvements can easily overcome the cost of any facility improvements.
Seem like a daunting task - OK here’s a checklist of actions for your facilities management team.
Audit your buildings.
Understanding all of your different facilities’ performance is the first step - once you know how you’re doing then you can develop plans for improvement at each location. An audit will help you see: where you are wasting energy, what machinery is old or inefficient? What are your energy usage patterns? Where you can cut back?
With up to date data you will also know what and how to repair, maintain and replace, making your facilities much greener! By regularly reviewing the data / performing robust analytics you’ll have confidence that you are meeting sustainability and safety regulations.
Energy-efficient assets
In older buildings, many assets were not designed and installed with carbon footprints in mind. So older assets may need to be replaced for a number of reasons, for example because of the materials they’re made of or because of how much energy they use.
But remember updating your facilities’ assets boosts efficiency and lowers costs. Here are some initiative to consider:
Consider renewable energy sources like solar or geothermal. Or even create your own renewable energy on-site.
Turn off and unplug all appliances when not in use - Over 25% of energy is lost on standby mode. Smart power strips turn off all plugged-in devices at once, fully eliminating their vampire loads.
Replace your legacy boilers, HVAC units and windows for dramatic energy savings.
Upgrade lights with sunlight and motion sensors and use LED lighting.
Install new roofing for optimal heat retention. Also consider a cool roof or green roof.
Install smart meters for electricity, gas, water and other utilities.
Update to energy-efficient models for example, freezers in kitchens or medical technology in healthcare clinics.
Eco-friendly cleaning supplies
Keeping facilities clean and in good condition is one of your key responsibilities. Using eco-friendly cleaning products reduces the amount of toxic chemicals your facilities release into the environment and lessens exposure for everyone in and around your buildings.
Regular Maintenance
Regular maintenance on older pieces of equipment keeps their energy-usage down over time and extends lifespan, reducing the materials required in replacement items.
Recycling Practices
Recycling is a key way to improve the sustainability of your facilities; it conserves finite resources, saves fossil fuel energy, prevents waste from going into oceans and reduces emissions. Making recycling a priority requires planning, and there are regulations around recycling different types of materials, such as:
Fluorescent Lights: Since fluorescent tubes contain mercury, they need to be recycled separately than other types of lights. Typically, you will need to return fluorescent tubes to the manufacturers for safe recycling, or find a specialised contractor.
Batteries: batteries also contain toxic materials and cannot be put into a landfill.
Large Equipment: Large equipment must be removed and recycled properly. Give haulers exact specifications of the equipment you need recycled so they have the necessary tools and bring it to the best place for recycling.
Refrigerant: Refrigerant, used in appliances like refrigerators, freezers and air conditioners, contain chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) and, due to the Clean Air Act, cannot be released into the atmosphere. It's best to engage a certified specialist to monitor your refrigerant levels and dispose of it safely.
Demolition debris: Another way to increase recycling practices in your facilities is to save and reuse demolition debris if you are planning any construction projects. Not only does this minimise waste sent to landfills, but it is a great way to reduce materials spend
Employ Green
When your facilities need repairs or maintenance, hire contractors who have experience is using green products and fixing low/ energy-efficient assets.
Put together a contractor directory with detailed descriptions of service providers’ expertise, certifications, values and differentiators, your procurement team could help you here.
Paperless office
Introduce a paperless or even a paper light office. This will save you money and time! Digital documents can be easily saved, searched and shared, improving team collaboration and security.
Collaborate
Work closely with your sustainability manager, your HR team, green champions and department managers throughout your company. A company’s effort to reduce emission and reach net zero must be strategic and coordinated, it involves decision making at every level therefore every employee in the organisation has a role to play.
Embrace flexible working
A flexible approach to home working is the norm today, but employees must have a good set-up so they can work productively wherever they are. This could mean providing anything from computer screens to laptop stands or ergonomic chairs for home. Or training everyone to work effectively on your chosen online meeting software.
Climate literacy training
The final item on our checklist. Climate literacy training - a must for your facilities team, and for everybody in the business. Everyone needs to understand the problem, so that the whole company can work together to find and implement the right solutions.
The solutions do exist for every business to reach net zero but there is no one size fits all pathway - So it's imperative to engage your entire workforce to direct your company on the right path.
Rewrite is an online climate education training programme focused on solutions and actions, it’s based on hope, not fear. We believe that if we change how people feel about the issue of climate change, we can build responsibility and responsiveness at every level.
Email info@rewrite.ie today and we’ll send you the course prospectus.
*Our World in Data - https://ourworldindata.org/emissions-by-sector