Business owners have a number of expenses to manage and often, how they manage these expenses can make a significant impact on their profits. One of their largest expenses is often the cost of operating their office buildings. Depending on how large the office is, when it was built and the way it was constructed, your office may be sucking much more out of your budget than it needs to. With just a few adjustments, you can easily reduce costs of operating your building and with some more major remodeling, you can make a dramatic impact on your utility bills each month. Here are a few tips on accomplishing this important project:
Electrical Remodels
Julie Kaup with Boss Electric says, “The first thing we would suggest for business owners that would be the quickest and easiest would be to install occupancy sensors in offices and conference rooms, restrooms and break areas. This would save energy by shutting off lights in an area when it is not occupied. Second would be to retrofit light fixtures, especially if the lights are T-12 type lamps which are over an inch in diameter. OPPD offers a rebate program which will show you up-front costs to retrofit and tell you how much you are consuming currently and how much you will use after retrofitting. It will also show you how much you will save on your energy bills and what your rate of return will be for upgrading your fixtures. Most light fixture manufacturers will provide an extended warranty when you use their approved lamps and ballasts. This will provide added savings by lowering maintenance costs. In some cases, ballasts and lamp combinations can lower energy consumption while increasing light levels in the given area.”
Go Geothermal
Working with a company that will help incorporate geothermal technology into your office building is a great step in the efficiency direction. “By going geothermal, whether in new construction or an existing commercial building, there are many great benefits,” explains Lars of Nebcon Inc. “Geothermal can dramatically reduce energy costs per square foot, thus increasing property rental margins. Little maintenance and no outside equipment allows for yearly savings on repairs and costly downtime. Geothermal also creates an amazing indoor air quality. This makes customers, employees and renters happy, health, comfortable and more productive. One of the most appealing benefits to a building owner is huge tax savings from the federal government, in some instances up to a 30% tax credit!” Companies like Nebcon can install, service and design geothermal loop systems for any home or office building that best utilizes the HVAC system’s efficiency and help customer be more comfortable and save them money.
“Efficiency means more money in a building owner’s pockets,” concludes Lars. “Geothermal creates awesome savings across the board and also creates a higher resale value for any building. In a bad recession every dollar counts and geothermal can help!”
Waterproofing
Waterproofing is another excellent way to not only help preserve your building, but also to head off expensive repairs due to water damage before they happen. John Kuti with Western Waterproofing states, “It’s like the old adage, ‘pay me now or pay me later’. If you don’t change the oil in your car, you might have to change the engine. The same is true for restoration. If you don’t do that for a building, moisture can get in the interior of the building causing mold, mildew and deterioration of the interior.”
“Business owners should always have a certified or qualified contractor do an evaluation and lay out the critical steps they need to do,” continues John Kuti. “It’s important because you don’t want your building to deteriorate. It’s economics also because by spending a little money now, you can avoid spending a lot later.”
Non-Structural Improvements
Sometimes it’s not the actual office building that needs improvements to be more efficient, but it’s other processes within the office that need an overhaul. One example of this would be your wireless technology. How do you know you’re using the best services and equipment to maximize efficiency and reduce costs? It can be difficult to determine if you’re not knowledgeable in the area. That’s where Cross Pointe Innovations comes in. The objective of Cross Pointe Innovations is to develop strategic partnerships with businesses of all sizes. Offering a variety of customizable solutions, CPI will work to identify solutions which will enhance business revenue through introduction of new industry specific solutions, identifying ways to lower monthly wireless spending and coaching teams to effectively manage their wireless communication.
Making your office run more efficiently is not only good for the environment (in the case of energy efficient changes), but also good for your bottom line! Work with the proper professionals to help determine where you can make improvements.