Utilities should do a better job of giving multi-tenant building owners better information about energy use, writes Philip Henderson of the National Resources Defense Council.
Most utilities do not provide basic information about thousands of buildings occupied by multiple tenants with separate utility accounts. This applies to apartments, shopping malls, and offices.
The owner needs to know total kilowatt hours of electricity used in the building to assess energy improvement projects. “Giving the owner a ‘whole-building’ total means the owner does not have to read meters manually or collect paper bills from tenants -- time-consuming, error-prone, and unnecessary,” Henderson writes. Even when a building has smart meters, the owner cannot get total kilowatt hour use from the utility.
Several leading utilities, such as Commonwealth Edison in Chicago, PEPCO in Washington, D.C., Eversource in Boston, National Grid in New York, and Consolidated Edison in New York, have recently made this information available. Some have created online portals for building owners to obtain summary information.
Related Stories
Giants 400 | Oct 23, 2023
Top 75 Multifamily Engineering Firms for 2023
Kimley-Horn, WSP, Tetra Tech, Olsson, and Langan head the ranking of the nation's largest multifamily housing sector engineering and engineering/architecture (EA) firms for 2023, as reported in Building Design+Construction's 2023 Giants 400 Report. Note: This ranking factors revenue for all multifamily buildings work, including apartments, condominiums, student housing facilities, and senior living facilities.
Giants 400 | Oct 23, 2023
Top 190 Multifamily Architecture Firms for 2023
Humphreys and Partners, Gensler, Solomon Cordwell Buenz, Niles Bolton Associates, and AO top the ranking of the nation's largest multifamily housing sector architecture and architecture/engineering (AE) firms for 2023, as reported in Building Design+Construction's 2023 Giants 400 Report. Note: This ranking factors revenue for all multifamily buildings work, including apartments, condominiums, student housing facilities, and senior living facilities.
Senior Living Design | Oct 19, 2023
Senior living construction poised for steady recovery
Senior housing demand, as measured by the change in occupied units, continued to outpace new supply in the third quarter, according to NIC MAP Vision. It was the ninth consecutive quarter of growth with a net absorption gain. On the supply side, construction starts continued to be limited compared with pre-pandemic levels.
MFPRO+ News | Oct 6, 2023
Announcing MultifamilyPro+
BD+C has served the multifamily design and construction sector for more than 60 years, and now we're introducing a central hub within BDCnetwork.com for all things multifamily.
Sponsored | Multifamily Housing | Sep 29, 2023
Win-Win Scenarios for Residents and Property Managers
Discover how proptech is opening open new paths to revenue for owners and property managers, while bringing desirable amenities and conveniences for renters. Check out my thoughts on profitable, resident-centric proptech.
Products and Materials | Sep 29, 2023
Top building products for September 2023
BD+C Editors break down 15 of the top building products this month, from smart light switches to glass wall systems.
Multifamily Housing | Sep 26, 2023
Midwest metros see greatest rent increase in September 2023
While the median monthly price of rent has increased by 0.71% in August, the year-over-year estimates show a national change of -0.06 percent.
Affordable Housing | Sep 25, 2023
3 affordable housing projects that serve as social catalysts
Trish Donnally, Associate Principal, Perkins Eastman, shares insights from three transformative affordable housing projects.
Sponsored | Multifamily Housing | Sep 25, 2023
Six3Tile helps The Sherbert Group bring an abandoned Power House back to life
Cladding and Facade Systems | Sep 22, 2023
5 building façade products for your next multifamily project
A building's façade acts as a first impression of the contents within. For the multifamily sector, they have the potential to draw in tenants on aesthetics alone.