Green Collar Blog

In this interview with Dr. Neno Duplan, the CEO and founder of Locus Technologies , we discuss the current thinking and approach to water in today's business landscape.  Locus, is a leading company in the environmental software space and they have been helping organizations track their water usage and quality and ensure regulatory compliance related to water for over a decade.

This led to a discussion about the current shockingly low cost of water (less than 1 cent per gallon, even in water scarce regions) and how it leads us to disregard this vital resource and consider it free.  Dr. Duplan does not see any price increases on the horizon, but obviously a price on carbon would cause businesses to start looking hard at water and curtail overuse and contamination.

The real business opportunity exists the further companies move down this process.  When it comes to water, organizations that are finding ROI are moving from simply collecting and reporting data needed for compliance, to using that vast amount of data to identify business processes that can be improved.  This leads to lower costs, improved efficiencies and increased profits. 

Listen to the whole interview

This interview with Jim Nolan, the SVP of Finance, Administration and Operations for the Kraft Entertainment Group (they own the New England Patriots, Gillette Stadium, the New England Revolution soccer team and Patriot's Place) is  a must listen if you are interested in how a leading company made sustainability a strategic asset for their organization.  The Kraft Group is a very forward thinking company and has enviromental sensitivity baked into their DNA.  When they were starting to build Gillette Stadium in 2002, they made green decisions every step of the way, and as you'll hear in the interview, their efforts did not stop with the completion of the stadium.  They have continued to execute on efficiency projects and when they built Patriot's Place in 2007, they leveraged all their learning to make the new 1.3 million square foot retail, dining and entertainment complex as green as possible.

Here are some of the initiatives they have in place.

Water

• An on-site wastewater reuse system treats 60 percent of non-potable water from handwashing, laudering and bathing and reuses it for toilet flushing and in the stadium's cooling plant.  They save over 11 Million gallons of water a year and growing as they add more events.

Energy Efficiency

• Initiatives: Building automation, electric and heat zoning, lighting, energy efficient hand dryers, white roofs in Patriot's Place, best practice development for visitor comfort.
• Results:  Between 2004 and 2oo7, electric use was reduced by 27% and natural gas use by 33%.
• Results:  Reduced electric consumption by 7.7 Million kw/hr annually as compared to stadium opening.
• Results: Between 2006 and current day (slight overlap), the average energy reduction has been 30%.

 Renewable Energy

• Showing their commitment to the environment, the Kraft Group purchases wind energy credits from Constellation Energy for all events at Gillette Stadium.  It costs slightly more, but they are committed to minimizing their impact, and it has allowed them to deepen relationships with additional customers like the NCAA that want to do business with companies committed to carbon reduction.
• They have installed a 525 kilowatt solar array on top of Patriots Place.  This generates 625,000 kilowatt hours of electricity annually or about 30 % of the power required for Patriot's Place.  It is break even cost-wise, but as energy prices continue to rise, this installation will provide fixed, low-cost energy for 20 years.

Recycling and Waste Management

• In-stadium recycling efforts encouraged for all plastic and glass have succeeded well beyond initial estimates
• They hand out recycling bags to all tailgaters and encourage them to leave behind all recyclable materials for collection and recycling.
• Post-event, all recyclables are collected from the stadium bowl and centralized prior to any additional cleaning taking place
• All clean cardboard packaging from the products arriving on-site is centrally recycled and goes through the Kraft Group's cardboard recycling company.
• Big Belly solar trash compactors are available throughout Patriots' Place, lowering the waste removal costs.
• The recycling efforts have generated several financial benefits, including reduction in hauling costs, income from sale of recyclables and tremendous feedback from customers.

Environment

• A 3000 foot stretch of the Naponset River, which had been running underground for 50 years, was daylighted during site renovation and is now an important part of the site experience.
• In partnership with Bass Pro Shops and  Ocean Spray, they created the Nature Trail and Ocean Spray Bog, a 32-acre wetland and wooded area that features the only functioning cranberry bog in Foxborough as well as a nature walking trail for visitors to experience rural New England.

 Green Building

• All debris from the demolition of the old Foxborough Stadium was crushed and re-used on site during the construction of Gillette Stadium.

The effectiveness of these types of projects highlight the benefits to an organization of considering green in the early planning stages of every upcoming project.  As Jim mentions in the interview, there may or may not be an immediate financial return on every project, but it is the right thing to do, lowers operation costs and acts like an annuity for the organization as they continue to operate a centerpiece of New England culture for years to come. 

Green Collar Research welcomes Tulsi Tanti, the CEO of Suzlon Energy, as he describes his companies new 10 acre LEED Platinum corporate campus.  He eloquently describes the business, financial and environmental benefits of committing his organization to long-term sustainability.

A Greener World Must Start with Greener Workplaces

By Tulsi Tanti

I believe fervently that today's business leaders must shape a greener world to halt climate change. I view my own company, Suzlon Energy Limited, both as a business and the champion of that cause. So whenever possible, we strive to employ life-changing solutions that make a difference to our planet and also deliver an ROI.  

A greener world must start with greener workplaces. This explains why One Earth, our newly opened 10.4-acre global headquarters in Pune, India, is a campus powered 100 percent by renewable energy. And why it employs the latest "green building" concepts in materials and resources that help create a great place to work for 2,300 employees. In the process, One Earth has achieved Platinum-level LEED certification, the highest level of green-building certification.

Perhaps most noteworthy, though, is that we constructed this project at a lower cost compared to other facilities of comparable size. It's been commonly held that green buildings cost more. That's simply not the case.  This explains why progressive developers, those that recognize value, are embracing green construction because it's the most cost-effective strategy.  

Green Buildings Transforming Building Market

We hope One Earth will serve to exemplify the type of LEED-certified projects that are transforming today's building market - not only in the U.S., where there are 4,800 certified green buildings, and other developed countries but also in India, China and other rapidly growing economies.  These green buildings are providing healthier work and living environments and, consequently, contributing to higher productivity and improved employee health and comfort. 

Nearly every day, the sun shines on another LEED building.  And, like ours, many are corporate headquarters. Their leaders are making a statement about the importance of a greener planet. Among the LEED-certified U.S. headquarters are those for Darden Restaurants, Orlando, Fla.; Genzyme Corp., Cambridge, Mass.; Manpower Inc., Milwaukee; Manulife Financial, Boston; Radio Shack Corp., Fort Worth; and Sony Electronics Inc., San Diego. 

Abroad, headquarters for BorgWarner Turbo Systems Poland in Rzeszow; Herman Miller's European base, Chippenham, England; Metito, Dubai; Nokia China, Beijing; Office Depot United Kingdom; and Pacific Controls, Dubai, are LEED or BREEAM certified, among others.

Suzlon's LEED-Certified Headquarters

Our own corporate headquarters, home to the world's third-largest wind turbine manufacturer, sets new benchmarks in energy efficiency in all aspects of engineering and construction.  One Earth is located in a dry and tropical climate, about 100 miles from Mumbai. Its built-up area covers more than 800,000 square feet. The buildings are all Ground+2 levels except for Corporate House, which is Ground+3.

All of the campus' energy comes from two primary areas: (1) an on-site wind-and-solar hybrid system that employs 18 windmills and solar panels installed on campus buildings and (2) off-site wind turbines at Suzlon-built wind farms in the state.

Suzlon is also very efficient with the power we do use.  Light-emitting diodes (LED) lighting, which requires minimal power, is used for outdoor lighting. Ninety percent of regularly occupied spaces have daylight exposure, which saves on artificial lighting.  And daylight sensors in workstations allow maximum use of natural lighting, while sensors also control task lighting in unoccupied workstations. In total, this ensures savings of about 20 percent of energy costs.

As for ventilation, jet fans in the basements intermittently push out stale air and bring in fresh air, saving 50 percent energy as compared to a ducted basement-ventilation system.  And a storm- and rainwater-management system channels all rain into a controlled flow, preventing soil erosion and helping the removal of silt.

One Earth Already Generates Energy Savings

Already, our building systems are generating a 36 percent energy saving and a 30 percent water saving over any similar facility of comparable size. As you might expect, a zero waste practice has been adopted as all waste is recycled or reused in some way.

We believe our headquarters underscores our commitment to sustainability. As a provider of renewable-energy products, we recognize we have an obligation to help in the expanding efforts to curb climate change that harms our planet. But our fervent belief would be that we "go green" regardless of what we made or serviced.

One Earth was named as a tribute to Earth's unique existence as a self-replenishing ecosystem.  We hope it will serve as inspiration and proof to others that it is possible, if we are really determined, to create the sustainable world we seek for our children and grandchildren.

This is important because the change necessary to deliver that greener future won't be easy.  We need to invest now. It's time for today's business and private-sector leaders worldwide to lead the way and deliver our planet's green future.

Tulsi Tanti is founder, chairman and managing director of Suzlon Energy Ltd.       

I ran across this article on IBM's Smart Planet blog, and absolutely love this idea.  This company - CalStar Products - has come up with a way to use the fly ash that is the waste product of burning coal for energy to create bricks that don't use clay and don't need to be kiln-fired (a hugely energy intensive process).   Since we have 75 Million Tons of this disgusting mess that we generate and have to deal with every year, it is terrific to see a business thinking holistically and turning a waste product into a useful product.

 Check out this video with CalStar Products' CEO explaining how the process works.  I know what I'm using for my patio.

Check out this interview with James Peret, the founder and CEO of Owl Power Company and the maker of the Vegawatt.   This breakthrough product creates electricity and hot water on-site for restaurants by converting their used cooking oil into energy.

Generally, restaurants have to pay a disposal company to take the waste oil away, but now they can pour it into the system and cut down their utility bills by 50%+.  The ROI's are dependant upon the state incentives, but can be as little as one year! 

Listen to the interview!