Have you heard of GRESB, BREEAM, ISSB, USGBC or the CDSB? These are just a few of the organizations that have developed energy standards for buildings. If you aren’t familiar with each acronym and organization, you’re hardly alone. And if you don’t know which ones you should pay attention to, you’re in the majority. So many standards exist that, effectively, there are no standards. We’ve reached a version of the Wild West where no one knows which rules to follow and where existing laws aren’t enforced.
But ignorance isn’t bliss, because at some point real estate owners and managers will have to comply with whatever standards local governments adopt or enforce. Deadlines, which in some cases have been postponed again and again, may finally be set in stone, with fines levied for non-compliance. Furthermore, owners who wait could miss out on substantial financial savings. That’s why they should act now. Below are two steps latecomers should consider:
Follow OSCRE Guidelines
The Open Standards Consortium of Real Estate (OSCRE) is a global non-profit consortium focused on the development of real estate data standards and support of their implementation, enabling organizations to become more data-driven.
No matter which energy standards are adopted, data will be paramount; real estate entities will have to compile data on energy performance and report it to governmental entities. OSCRE, through its environmental data standards initiative, has created a set of recommended energy standards and guidelines on gathering the data from disparate sources, such as investors, owners and occupiers, and across multiple systems.
During a session at MRI Software’s recent users conference, developer Hines described its use of OSCRE energy standards to compile energy data for compliance with GRESB. In accordance with OSCRE’s guidelines, Hines integrated its own property-level data that was processed by MRI Software, enriched by real estate data platform Cherre and validated by third parties before submission to reporting agents. The takeaway: OSCRE’s model is a helpful blueprint for other real estate entities with multiple stakeholders and sources of data. See oscre.org for details.
Encourage Participation and Buy-In
It’s much easier to gather energy data from multiple sources when stakeholders understand the benefits of supplying the data and pay attention to progress. Real estate organizations should make a concerted effort to inform stakeholders about initiatives underway and invite them to play a part. In MRI’s London office, every employee, client, partner and visitor who enters the lobby sees a screen that showcases the office’s levels of energy consumption. It’s an engaging way to instill pride among existing and potential employees, many of whom are concerned about the environment. Furthermore, when teams are requested to supply the relevant data, they know the reason for the request.
Some reporting takes the form of gamification. Auburn University offers a publicly accessible dashboard that indicates which campus buildings are attaining the highest levels of energy efficiency. The dashboard is easy to navigate, and the rankings of energy use and savings motivate students, faculty and staff to join in the decarbonization efforts.
Texas Tech is another institution that makes its energy use publicly available on its website. By doing so, Texas Tech, like Auburn, is demonstrating its commitment to ESG. And such information is easily converted into infographics to share on social media, heightening awareness among a wide variety of audiences. The more that these audiences learn about the actions organizations are taking and the resulting energy and financial savings, the more they’ll participate in and support the initiatives.
Benefits of Starting Now
Public reporting isn’t just beneficial for reputation purposes; it engages stakeholders. And the cooperation of stakeholders helps organizations get all their data sets in one centralized place. When deadlines for compliance with standards loom, these organizations will be ready to go.
Moreover, the potential savings from energy monitoring are significant. Texas Tech has saved more than $2.5 million since it installed MRI’s energy management software in 2015. MRI’s London office saves approximately $26,000 per year by using its own data-capture and analytics tools.
In summary, starting now allows real estate entities to take advantage of the carrots and avoid the sticks. The carrots include savings, enhanced reputations, employee engagement, environmental conservation and data sets ready to go. The sticks include heavy fines for non-compliance, along with the time and hassle involved in compiling data sets when deadlines loom. Dawdling is unwise. Latecomers can follow OSCRE’s guidelines as they navigate today’s Wild West environment for energy standards. And when the data compilation is done, they can go relax at the saloon.
Andy Birch
Vice President, Portfolio Marketing
MRI Software
28925 Fountain Pkwy
Solon, OH 44139
andy.birch@mrisoftware.com