Energy Efficiency Course For Owners/Operators of New York City Multifamily Buildings

It’s a little short notice, but starting this Thursday, April 26, a 10-part course on how to lower your building’s energy costs and water bills will be offered by GreenHomeNYC and the Urban Assembly for Green Careers in Manhattan.

Graphic courtesy of Solar1.org.

The classes will be held every Thursday night and can be taken individually or as a complete package, and it’s not too late to register.

Promoted at the Green Festival this past weekend, the course is ideal for building owners, managers, coop/condo member, supers, bookkeepers, comptrollers, or just anyone who wants to learn more about how multifamily buildings function, and steps they can take to reduce costs.

“Multifamily buildings in NYC use 3-6 times more energy and water per square foot than our single family counterparts, and very simple steps can help you reduce those costs.  This class is not designed to sell you products, but rather, to walk you through a sensible series of steps and make a plan to reduce your costs,” said GreenHomeNYC.

The classes are designed for attendees with introductory to mid-level knowledge of building operations. The classes will be instructed by building specialists who will teach the classes to high school students from 5-6 p.m., and then teach the classes again from 6-8 p.m. in a more advanced form.  

It’s advised that if you have no starting knowledge or need a refresher, then you should come to the early classes. If you already have some knowledge, then come to the 6 p.m. classes. 

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Volkswagen’s New Chattanooga Plant Gets LEED Platinum Certification and Now Increasing Hiring

Volkswagen’s new Chattanooga, Tenn. manufacturing plant – which opened about 11 months ago – has received LEED Platinum certification from the U.S. Green Building Council.

Volkswagen LEED Platinum Certified Chattanooga, Tenn. manufacturing plant. Photo courtesy of dubworld.com.

The plant is doing very well. With recent sales growth, the company is creating an additional 800 jobs at the plant. This is in addition to the 200 job openings at the plant announced by the company earlier this year. This brings the total to 1,000 new jobs needed for the plant this year so far.

The plant currently employs about 2,700 people – about 2,200 by Volkswagen and 500 by Aerotek, the company’s staffing partner.

“The plant has been working daily overtime to meet the market demand. The additions to the workforce will allow the plant to extend its weekly production capacity, while at the same time reducing the amount of overtime for current workers,” said Hans-Herbert Jagla, executive vice president of human resources at Volkswagen.

“These 800 new positions are a combination of production and support functions. We will be hiring additional supervisors, quality engineers, and professionals in a number of areas. We will also use this opportunity to hire many of our current Aerotek contract employees. So, Aerotek will be recruiting to fill full-time contract production positions that will open up,” added Jagla.

Applicants for production positions need to be at least 18 years old; have a high school diploma or GED; and be authorized to work in the U.S. Interested applicants can apply online with Aerotek.

Applicants for management and advanced positions like production supervisors, engineers, and IT specialists should apply online with Volkswagen.

The LEED Platinum certified plant opened in May 2011 and builds the 2012 Passat. The car received honors including being named Motor Trend Car of the Year and being ranked as one of the 10 Best Redesigned Cars of 2012 by Kelley Blue Book.

The manufacturing plant was built on a brownfield property with “no destruction” of untouched natural habitat, according to the company, which also said it established protections of 100 foot-wide creeks and wetlands to “minimize impact on natural habitats.”

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New Orleans Launches Home Energy Efficiency Retrofit Program For Parish Homeowners

New Orleans Mayor Mitch Landrieu has launched a new partially-federally funded program called NOLA Wise to help local homeowners make energy efficient retrofits to their homes.

Diagram courtesy of energyauditinstitute.com.

The program will be available to all local homeowners and will be a one-stop-shop for the process from evaluation to the completion of the renovations.

NOLA Wise is one of the Department of Energy’s Better Buildings Neighborhood projects and it will be managed by the environmental nonprofit Global Green USA.

The nonprofit expects the program to give “homeowners the opportunity to reduce their utility use by 15 percent or more.”

Special financing will be provided to homeowners depending their needs, and free assistance to those eligible.

NOLA Wise says that “there are no income requirements for the program” and final upgrade costs, after incentives are applied, will either be paid out of pocket by homeowners or through special low income loans provide through the program. Loan application approvals will depend on credit scores.

The program will take a holistic “a house-as-a-system approach,” explaining that “if one system has a problem, it impacts the other systems’ ability to function properly.”

High energy bills can result from issues such as uneven temperatures from room-to-room, drafts, pest infestations, and premature deterioration of building materials, according to experts at NOLA Wise.

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WTC Complex to be Largest Gold Certified Green Urban Project in United States When Completed

As construction on the World Trade Center complex continues, developer Larry Silverstein spoke at a recent B’nai B’rith real estate luncheon about the progress being made. 7 WTC is now the first part of the complex to be fully leased and occupied, after 9/11.

The financial firm MSCI just signed a 20-year lease for 125,000 square feet in the tower’s top floors. The building’s other tenants include: the Brain Trauma Foundation, the New York City Academy of Sciences, Moody’s Corp., and the German bank WestLB

7 WTC is the first building in New York City to receive the U.S. Green Building Council’s LEED Gold certification.

Some of 7 WTC’s green design features include:

1 WTC (Freedom Tower) under current construction. Stock photo.

• Direct daylight for more than 90 percent of its regularly occupied space, and daylight dimming controls.
• High-efficiency plumbing systems that reduce water consumption throughout the building by at least 30 percent.
• The use of paints that are low in volatile organic compounds (VOCs).
• No use of ozone-depleting HCFC refrigerants.
• A requirement that at least 50 percent of the building’s wood is certified as sustainably harvested.

Silverstein told those at the luncheon that “all of the buildings on the finished site will be LEED Gold-certified, and the complex will include a performing arts center by Frank Gehry, a new transportation hub, and public space covering 50 percent of the site.

“When completed, the WTC complex will be the largest sustainable and secure urban project developed in the United States.”

Right now, 80 of the 104 floors of 1 WTC (the Freedom Tower) are completed, and Silverstein said that “the project is single-handedly keeping the local construction industry afloat.”

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Buenos Aires Expanding Energy Efficiency Retrofit of Public Buildings

Buenos Aires is the political, financial, and cultural hub of Argentina, but also the country’s largest energy consumer, using far more energy than it produces.

Buenos Aires, Argentina. Photo courtesy of solarthermalmagazine.com.

“Generation and distribution facilities are operating at their capacity due to lack of investments. For this reason, the national government usually imports energy in order to satisfy growing demand,” according to a joint report by the Environmental Protection Agency of Buenos Aires and the ICLEI, an international association of local governments implementing sustainable development.

Besides making sure the whole city has power to operate, the Buenos Aires government is also responsible for the maintenance of about 1,500 public buildings, including schools, hospitals, public service centers, and cultural centers. The city government spends about €20 million per year on electricity for these buildings.

To lower its energy costs and bring down its greenhouse gas emissions, the city is in the process of expanding its “Program of Energy Efficiency in Public Buildings” that was initiated in 2008.

Under the program, the city’s EPA will expand its current retrofit study project to include 15 more buildings. Their current energy usage will be evaluated, and then modifications will be made to lower their energy costs.

The city’s agency is “expected to invest €150,000 in professional contracts to implement the energy saving diagnosis and €100,000 for equipment for the 15 buildings. The cost of human resources needed for each energy diagnosis is approximately €10,000,” according to the report.

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