Service in the Big: Franklin Park!

By Grey Lee

Our awesome Emerging Professionals got together last weekend to provide some community service to the great park system of Boston.

We went out to Franklin Park, the “crown jewel” of the Emerald Necklace system in Roxbury. We even brought a special friend: Titus!

 


It was a gorgeous day to be out and about: really a delightful spot.


Big Bill kept telling us about how great a golf course it was at Franklin Park.


But he got to work, deep in the rough, to help clean out trash:


There was quite a good crew assembled:


Kimberly even got a little too enthusiastic…and wet!


We found “Scholar's Corner” where this plaque was placed:


Let's see that crew again!


A Building Tech Forum is Born

By Grey Lee

What a great gathering! We had a full house last night for our innaugural Building Tech Forum.


Over 100 people gathered in the event space at MassChallenge in Boston to connect building professionals with building tech innovators. Here we have building scientists Ale Menchaca and Andrea Love with Jim Newman, Sec. Beaton, and Grey Lee.


We heard from the Secretary of Energy & Environmental Affairs, Matt Beaton, about green builidng and energy policy in Massachusetts. It was his fifth speech on a very busy Earth Day – so we thank him sincerely for taking the time to come out to the Innovation District with us. We will certainly take him up on his offer that his office work with us to advance our mission of green buildings for everyone within a generation. The USGBC MA looks forward to supporting the Secretary's work to protect and improve the environment of Massachusetts for all citizens of the Commonwealth.



Kimberly Cullinane of Eversource highlighted the support that the energy utilities in the state are willing to provide to help support innovation in the design and the energy systems of new buidings. Kim noted that Eversource is committed to supporting the energy of the future – that they will be “the battery” for all of our distributed renewable generation that we're putting on buildings.

 


Thank you to the many folks from Eversource who attended, and their Champion-level sponsorship of the event. Thank you also to the companion Champion Sponsor, National Grid. Take a look at their awesome video about all the money they offer to design teams to incorporate energy savings in the early stages of their projects.

 


On hand to impart so wisdom earned from the field was Dan Teague from WegoWise – an energy management software company that started in Boston and is now international in scope. It was great to hear how a wonderful idea can catch on, expand into a growing business, and help people improve their buildings' energy performace – way to go Wegowise!

Jim Newman, of Linnean Solutions, and Chair of our Board, made the connection of how green building has always been part of the innovation economy, and how “we're gonna keep doing that!”


The dozens of guests enjoyed a seriously good spread of food & drink, and were able to interact with a dozen displaying firms selected to represent a cross-section of product and service types, all innovations that connect to the building sector. It was a serious building technology geek-schmooze-fest!

Our Building Tech Forum concluded with a lively panel answering the questions of: What innovation here has helped you to think newly about a problem you confront on one of your projects? And what can we do to help this building tech sector continue to innovate to help improve buildings? Thank you representatives from each of our Leadership Sponsors to Steven Burke of SMMA, Dan Teague of WegoWise, Abby Charest of Wentworth Institute of Technology, Chris Crowell of SemaConnect, Kim Cullinane of Eversource and Chris Schaffner of The Green Engineer.


Some of the answers were quite intriguing, such as “Become a B-Corporation” “Net Zero is not enough” and “Collaborate with your competition” – and we thank all who attended and were able to share their know-how.





Thank you to those who could attend, and especially our displaying sponsors:

Embue
EnerScore
TOTO
SolaBlock
Ecovent
MassSave
SGH
Sustainable Minds
Advanced Energy Intelligence
Schock

We look forward to continuing this conversation about innovation in building technology, and certainly to producing another Building Tech Forum in the coming years. Thank you to MassChallenge for providing the space! If you have any questions or comments, please feel free to write us and we can try to re-connect you with that conversation from the event. 

Happy Earth Day, everyone, everyday!


PS: Thank you to the organizing team: Tiffany King (Commodore Builders), Ethan Lay-Sleeper (MIT), and Alana Spencer (Vanderweil). I'm not sure what we were making faces about but it was toward the end of the evening!


LEED Gold Certification in Northamption

By Grey Lee

LEED® Gold Certification Awarded To PeoplesBank Northampton Office

NORTHAMPTON, Mass. (May 5, 2015) – Earth Day week was an appropriate time for PeoplesBank to announce its third LEED certified office. The U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) recently certified the PeoplesBank Northampton office as LEED Gold.

This green building joins the PeoplesBank LEED Silver certified office at 1051 St. James Ave. in Springfield, which also was recognized with the City’s first GreenSeal Award, and their LEED Gold certified West Springfield office. Pictured, Left to Right: Mayor David J. Narkewicz; Stacy A. Sutton, First Vice President PeoplesBank; Douglas A. Bowen, President & CEO PeoplesBank; Ludmilla D. Pavlova-Gillham, Founder & Past Chair USGBC Massachusetts Chapter – West Branch; Susan B. Wilson, First Vice President PeoplesBank; and Grey Lee, Executive Director USGBC Massachusetts.


 

About: PeoplesBank is a leader in innovation, corporate responsibility, environmental sustainability, and employee engagement. Our three LEED® certified offices are environmentally friendly, and we have financed more than $70 million in wind, hydroelectric, and solar energy projects.

 

As the largest community bank in the market, we have a unique ability to help the communities we serve through volunteer efforts and millions of dollars in donations to charitable and civic causes. Our associates devote an average of 6,000 hours to volunteer work each year, and 48 of the bank’s officers serve on the board of directors and committees of 115 area nonprofit organizations.

PeoplesBank – “a passion for what is possible”

 

SemaConnect & the 2015 Building Tech Forum

By Ryan Duffy, Communications Fellow


SemaConnect is a Leadership Sponsor at the first-ever Building Tech Forum. SemaConnect is an EV car amenities distributor and their commitment to clean-powered cars and renewable energy makes them an awesome partner to support this exciting event!

SemaConnect is the leading provider of electric vehicle amenities to the North American commercial and residential property market. Electric vehicle charging stations are the newest and most visible green building amenity, capable of continuously enhancing your property and communicating participation in a global building movement.  Choosing SemaConnect is a visible commitment to quality, allowing you to make the most of their highly visible and interactive nature by extending a truly modern property experience beyond your lobby and into your parking lot.


Check out these videos showing more about SemaConnect and visit their website!

 

Building Tech Focus: TOTO

By USGBC MA Chapter


TOTO has formulated a global environmental vision that guides its operating principles and decisions, which makes them a perfect partner for us at the Building Tech Forum. Since its founding, the TOTO Group has recognized the tremendous value of water.  Today, with ever-increasing water shortages and the rise of global warming, they are redefining their relationship with this essential resource and are even more dedicated to sustaining the environment through the development of high-quality, water-efficient products. 


A visual guide to TOTO's Global Environmental Vision

We look forward to seeing the TOTO team at the Building Tech Forum on the 22nd.

Read more about TOTO on their website or in our blog

Special Building Tech Forum Sponsor: Wentworth Institute of Technology

By Grey Lee


The Wentworth Institute of Technology will be a special sponsor present at our Building Tech Forum.  Unlike most groups, who provide useful sustainable services or consulting or who develop and roll-out sustainable goods, Wentworth is a university committed to sustainability and a greener future.  As an incubator of future STEM, business, and political leaders, a college campus must embody these forward-thinking concepts and it is refreshing to see Wentworth so willing and able to promote sustainability. 

From Wentworth's Website:


Sustainability can mean many different things. At Wentworth, our approach to sustainability aspires to improve environmental, social, and economic performance, drawing from the Brundtland Commission’s definition of sustainable development:  development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.” 

The Wentworth Creed, which dates back to 1904, echoes this in its principle of Economy, stating, “We seek to use our resources wisely at all times. We accept our obligation to safeguard the earth, its resources, its life, and its energy for the benefit of future generations.”

The mission of the Wentworth Sustainability Committee is to provide leadership for reducing the Institute’s impact on the local, regional, and global environment. We recommend approaches for increasing the Institute's commitment to sustainability in all areas of the campus including materials and energy use, waste management, construction, purchasing, and the campus curriculum while staying within the boundaries of the Institute’s financial resources and good business practices.

The American College and University Presidents’ Climate Commitment is an essential tool for Wentworth to promote communication and education about sustainability issues and achievements, and to encourage sustainable practices within Wentworth and the neighboring community.

We look forward to seeing Wentworth at the Building Tech Forum!

Building Tech Spotlight: Advanced Energy Intelligence

By Grey Lee


Advanced Energy Intelligence LLC. partnered with USGBCMA to put on our first annual Building Tech Forum, which gave us the opportunity to discuss all aspects of green building and the broader concept of sustainability.  AEI is an energy management group that collects data on energy consumption and helps clients optimize energy consumption and efficiency. 

AEI's services involve monitoring of weather correlation, base load and plug load, year over year, period over period, seasonal comparisons, peak demand, and Energy Usage Intensity of clients' various buildings. In recent years AEI has presented a poster at the Defense Energy Summit in Austin, Texas, and exhibited at the MA Sustainable Communities & Campuses Conference 2015.  

Check out AEI's website to learn more!

PACE & Resiliency

By Grey Lee

PACE Recap:
Property Assessed Clean Energy Financing & Resiliency

As the senate prepares to review the newly minted bill on PACE financing this spring, we would like to encourage our fellow green building advocates to review some objectives of the bill, and to help share this information in your communities.

Massachusetts Senate Docket 1271 (Previously S.2255), An Act fueling job creation through energy efficiency, was filed by Senator Brian Joyce, and is designed to allow property owners to finance energy efficiency and resiliency improvements.

PACE financing provides property owners access to low-cost, off-balance sheet capital, by way of a betterment lien placed on the property and payable like a property tax bill. Across the nation, successful PACE programs have provided a new and innovative way for property owners to finance energy efficiency upgrades, renewable energy projects, and water conservation measures. The Massachusetts legislation also will allow property owners to consider upgrades that include resiliency improvements to be PACE-funded. The availability of this new tool for project finance will result in new projects which will mean more work for people in the renewable energy & allied industries of Massachusetts.

SD 1271 will make necessary improvements to the Commonwealth’s current PACE program, creating a streamlined, centrally administered PACE program that is capable of achieving economies of scale and will be easily adopted by municipalities. The new program will require lender consent and will focus on the pent up demand for energy efficiency and disaster-resilience financing in the commercial and industrial sector. Commercial PACE programs in 25 other states have accounted for $100 million in project activity. When passed, the Massachusetts commercial and industrial PACE program will help:
 

  • Create Jobs
  • Increase Property Values
  • Encourage Private Investment in Energy Efficiency, Renewables & Resiliency
  • Reinforce the Role of Massachusetts as a Leader in Green Building

To learn more about how PACE programs work in other states see the PACEnow annual report. To learn more about existing resiliency efforts in Boston please see the Boston Redevelopment Authority’s guidelines for climate change preparedness and resiliency. Also available online is a 2013 publication titled Building Resilience in Boston, which helps outline best practices for climate change adaptation and resilience for existing buildings.
 

Building Tech Focus: Sustainable Minds

By Grey Lee


Sustainable Minds is part of our first-ever Building Tech Forum, which is a great opportunity to discuss sustainability, green design, and more!  

They provide a revolutionary product that helps clients realize the environmental impact of their operations. Sustainable Minds is fundamentally a cloud software and services company, whose mission is to operationalize environmental performance into mainstream product development and manufacturing in an accessible, empowering, and credible way.

To do this, they have integrated our knowledge of product design, life cycle assessment and environmental systems design with expertise in web-based business, software design and customer experience. The result is powerful greener design functionality delivered when and where you need it. The product was recently ranked #1 Cloud LCA software for greener product innovation, and has been used by industry and education in 870 locations and 80 countries since 2010. 

Come out and meet these fine folks at the 2015 Building Tech Forum on 4/22 at MassChallenge in Boston. You will be glad you did!

Read more about Sustainable Minds and their wonderful product on their site

Sponsor: Wegowise at Building Tech Forum

By Grey Lee


WegoWise is an energy management software company that started in Boston and is now international in scope. This video provides a brief explanation of how the company saves homeowners and property owners money all while saving energy.  The concept is simple; WegoWise automatically manages and collects your utility data, saving you time, money, and toil.

WegoWise provides energy and water data in an easy-to-digest report for customer and independent analysis, and normalizes your data to calendar months and rolls up meter data to the building and property level. WegoWise then provides three benchmarks for customers to see the relative efficiency, costs, and savings potential of each of their properties' utilities. The company's success is shown in the data below:


At our Building Tech Forum to impart some wisdom earned from the field will be Dan Teague of WegoWise. It will be great to hear how a wonderful idea can catch on, expand into a growing business, and help people improve their buildings' energy performace – thank you for sharing your story, WegoWise!

Read more about WegoWise on its website.