FirstService Residential

ADVANTAGE

SUMMER 2018

How will your building grade?

T his year our event focused on the Local Law 33—Energy Efficiency Building Grading that will begin

in 2020.

“Our goal since launching this event in 2012 remains unchanged—to provide our clients with knowledge and access to resources that will help them make informed decisions about implement-ing energy efficiency measures,” said Tal Eyal, president, FS Energy. “As always, we strongly encourage board members to consult FS Energy when contemplat-ing energy management opportunities. Our experts will ensure that all alterna-tive solutions have been considered and that the deci-sion is the best solution for your property.”

On May 10, FirstService Residential and FS Energy had the pleasure of hosting our annual Sustainability Symposium for board members and industry professionals.

Highlights from panel discussions and links to partici-pating vendors are included below.

Daytime Event

Pictured (left to right): Tal Eyal (FS Energy), Aubrey Phillibert (FirstService Residential), Kelly Dougherty (FS Energy), Jason Block (Steven Winter Associates) and David Unger (Sentient Buildings).

The daytime panel focused on real-time smart technol-ogy and how to address an energy efficiency project.

u Jason Block, of Steven Winter Associates, spoke about the importance of evaluating heating distri-bution systems in an effort to reduce the amount of energy wasted during the production and distribu-tion of heat and hot water. Block discussed the im-portance of addressing waste issues in these critical systems to save money and help prolong equipment life. Addressing these issues also increases tenant comfort by eliminating water hammer (pipe banging) and over or under heating throughout the building.

u David Unger, of Sentient Buildings, discussed re-al-time building monitoring technology for operators, boards and property managers. When there is an is-sue, these critical systems will send alerts, so action can be taken accordingly. In addition, these smart controllers allow operators to see trending data, which is useful when planning a major investment. National Grid, Con Edison and NYSERDA currently provide incentives for these systems.

u Aubrey Phillibert, of FirstService Residential, discussed his experience with different energy projects—including one that involved installing electric sub-meters that reduced the buildings’ maintenance fees by 15%.

u Kelly Dougherty, of FS Energy, discussed the impor-tance of instituting on-going maintenance programs, keeping track of major repairs on critical equipment and educating staff on the best practices that inte-grate efficiency with daily operations.

What is the Energy Efficiency Grading System?In order for NYC to reach the aggressive greenhouse emission reduction target of 80% by 2050, buildings over 25,000 sq.ft. that are required to benchmark their annual energy consumption will also be required to post their corresponding energy efficiency score (A,B,C,D, F or N) in a visible location of their lobby, beginning in 2020.

GRADE ENERGY STAR SCORE

A 90 or above

B 50 – 89

C 20 – 49

D 0 – 19

F Failure to comply w/benchmarking law

N Exempt building

Although the exact details of how the information will be displayed and whether or not further adjustments will be made is still unknown, we do know that it will include the building’s aggregate energy use data. This means that the energy used by individual apartment units is included in the building’s letter grade, as well as that of common areas (elevators, A/C, heating, lighting, etc.)

How will the score be generated? The United States Environmental Protection Agency’s ENERGY STAR Portfolio Manager is used across the country to benchmark buildings’ energy consumption. This then generates an ENERGY STAR score that compares similar buildings in similar climates. This ENERGY STAR score, from 1 to 100, will then be converted to a letter grade, A to D. Those buildings that fail to benchmark will receive an “F” grade and those that are not required to benchmark will receive an “N” grade.

As discussed at our Sustainability Symposium, we don’t know exactly how this will affect the market, but we do know that we need to be prepared for it.

This new law presents an opportunity for buildings to edu-cate one another, save money, and reduce emissions. As a community, we can work together to educate each other on energy efficient practices, as well as, collaborate on reducing waste and saving money. Whether you personally care about reducing greenhouse emissions, saving money or how your building is perceived by others, we all can win by working toward achieving an A-graded building.

Want to learn more about the law? Visit the Mayor’s Office of Sustainability website.

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continued on page 4

Evening Event

Pictured (left to right): Tal Eyal (FS Energy), Benjamin Atkins (Abingdon Square Partners), Dan Wurtzel (FirstService Residential), Carla Kupiec (FS Realty), Keith Werny (FirstService Residential), Laura Tajima (NYC Mayor’s Office of Sustainability) and Kelly Dougherty (FS Energy).

The second evening panel focused on the energy efficiency building grading system. The panelists shared their personal opinions on how buildings need to prepare for the law.

u Keith Werny discussed his experience in 2013 when the NYC-LL87 Energy Audit & Retro-Commissioning Study was enacted. He quickly learned that the process and reports were extremely valuable and stressed the importance of having it done by a com-petent and established company.

u Benjamin Atkins stated that, although he always considers the importance of energy efficiency when developing a building, he will have to do additional research to ensure his buildings are properly prepared for the upcoming grading system.

u Real estate agent Carla Kupiec stated that realtors will need to be prepared to address any concerns from prospective buyers. This may include understanding the history of the building and what actions are being taken to improve the building’s score. Please contact Carla.Kupiec@fsrealtynyc.com for any realtor-related questions.

Pictured (left to right): Steve Wagner (Board Member), William Payne (O&S Associates), Dan Wurtzel (FirstService Residential), Chris Lima (National Grid), Kelly Dougherty (FS Energy). Seated: Tal Eyal (FS Energy) and Neil Quinn (Willdan).

The first evening panel focused on the current incentive programs in place for multi-family buildings.

u Neil Quinn discussed the Con Edison Multi-family Energy Efficiency Program, which includes electric and gas incentives for equipment replacements and upgrades.

u Christopher Lima discussed various programs that are available for National Grid gas customers. These

programs require that the customer pay into the Systems Benefit Charge (SBC) in order to qualify for the program. For more

information on these incentive programs, please visit their website.

u Steve Wagner, a board member of a 200-unit condominium in Manhattan, discussed his strategy of evaluating an energy project and how to be a ‘project champion’ on the board. Steve also commented that utilizing FS Energy’s expertise is incredibly beneficial when selecting a vendor, introducing technology, and navigating incentive programs.

u Kelly Dougherty and William Payne discussed the importance of taking advantage of the high return on investment projects and incentive programs.

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u Laura Tajima stressed the benefits of reducing building waste to help meet the NYC greenhouse gas emissions reduction targets.

u Kelly Dougherty discussed the importance of edu-cating residents about their building’s score and why operators and boards should always include them in the process. Doing so will stress the importance of reducing energy waste in their individual apartments and help everyone save money.

Dougherty also offered some best practices on how to pre-pare for the upcoming law:

u If you have already gone through LL87, speak with FS Energy about revisiting the report and discuss what measures to implement.

u Start an inventory of your equipment by reviewing repair logs and expenses to map out the rest of their useful life.

u Invest in projects with high ROI or that provide better control and monitoring of your building.

u Take advantage of current incentive programs (Con Ed, National Grid, NYSERDA-Affordable).

u Get a quote to add real-time monitoring of heating, cool-ing and domestic hot water (DHW) distribution plants.

u Provide recommendations to unit owners and residents on how to reduce consumption in their apartments.

u Encourage unit owners to perform regular maintenance on HVAC equipment (up to 25% more energy can be

Evening Eventcontinued from page 3

As part of the Symposium, FS Energy prepared Energy Efficiency Building Grading Sheets based on available 2017 data. Although these scores may not be the final scores used in the 2020 grades, they were calculated using the information available.

“By providing these letter grades, we hope that buildings will recognize the importance of getting started on making improvements and educating their unit owners,” stated Kelly Dougherty.

Board members who would like to receive a preliminary grade sheet for their building can do so by contacting FS Energy.

FS Energy Introduces Energy Efficiency Grading Sheets

Kelly Dougherty discusses the importance of building scores.

FS ENERGY MISSION: To assist FirstService Residential clients in reducing their energy consumption, costs and emissions.

Feedback for 2019 Do you have an energy-related topic or vendor that you would like to see included in our 2019 Sustainability Symposium? We would love to hear your suggestions.

Contact FS Energy with your ideas at 212.634.5500 or info@fsenergyservices.com.

used when not regularly maintained) and replace older, inefficient appliances with new ones.

u Encourage staff training on best practices and implement mandatory daily log sheets to trend operations. Sign-up your staff by emailing info@fsenergyservices.com.

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Plants for a PurposeAs part of the 2018 Sustainability Symposium, FirstService Residential held a Mother’s Day plant sale with 100% of the pro-ceeds going to Community Access, a non-profit orga-nization that helps expand opportunities for people living with mental health conditions through affordable housing, training, advocacy and healing-focused services.

In total, the plant sale raised $3,450. All plants were donated by FirstService Residential and QG Floral and Landscape.

Local Law 87 (LL87)Energy Audit & Retro-Commissioning Study

At the 2018 Sustainability Symposium, panel-ists discussed the value of LL87, which requires buildings over 50,000 sq. ft. to perform a detailed energy audit and retro-commissioning study every 10 years.

Your board will get the most out of the process if you partner with an experienced, qualified energy engineering firm. This process includes correcting overlooked issues that may reduce energy costs, identifying modifications that will improve main-tenance schedules, and providing a list of Energy Conservation Measures (ECM).

“Working with a qualified firm, providing the firm suf-ficient time to do the required testing and meeting with the firm after the report is completed are three important factors of LL87 success,” said Dougherty.

Click here to read Understanding and Getting the Most Out of Local Law 87.

During the second panel discussion, FS Energy’s Kelly Dougherty stressed the importance of evalu-ating alternative solutions when investing in large cap-ital projects. In many cases, other options may be able to deliver a better outcome with less input (electric, gas, steam or oil).

“It is important to recognize that many capital invest-ments are decisions that will affect the building for the next 20 to 30 years,” stated Dougherty. Such projects can include replacing windows, boilers, chillers, cooling towers, unit air conditioning sys-tems, risers, exhaust fans, pumps and elevator motors.

“Whenever possible, boards should avoid ‘under-pressure decision making,’ or being forced to take action when a

A Pivotal Time: Replacing Equipmentpiece of equipment fails to get the building back up and running. The best way to avoid this is to under-stand how much useful time you have left on each piece of equipment and to plan ahead based on technologies and manu-facturers that have been vetted in the market.”

Under-pressure decisions typically result in “for-like” replacement (the same

type) which can leave a building waiting several decades for the next opportunity to replace their equipment with a more efficient system.

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Is Your Board Utilizing Demand Management?

What is a Chiller Optimization Program?A chiller optimi-zation program or COP allows a building to improve their existing cooling system efficiency without the expense and disruption of replacing the entire sys-tem. This program includes an on-site assessment of the chiller and related cooling equipment, review of the building’s requirement for chilled water, anal-ysis of the chiller’s operating characteristics and energy consumption. The analysis report should provide concrete recommendations and strategies for adjustments that can be made to increase effi-ciency and reduce operating costs. Typically, these recommendations are low cost to implement, yield a quick payback and increase building comfort for all residents. Thank you to EN-POWER Group for attending the Sustainability Symposium and high-lighting chiller optimization. For more information on chiller optimization or to receive a quote, contact FS Energy.

Did you know that every building’s energy bill is made up of three different components?

1. Usage/supply Charges (electric, natural gas or city steam)—Kilowatt Hour (kWh), Therm or Mlb—through an Energy Services Company (ESCO) or utility

2. Delivery Charge—The cost for Con Edison, National Grid or PSE&G to deliver the commodity to your building

3. Demand Charge—The rate equal to the greatest amount of electric power used in any one-half hour during the billing period

Understanding a building’s energy bill can assist board members when making decisions on energy projects.

“A professional energy engineer can help determine what your building can do to shave off load during these peak-demand periods when energy is the most expensive,” explained Dougherty. “Investing in energy efficient motors, variable frequency drives, LED lighting, pre-cooling and even shutting down one elevator during peak times can

Getting Started: Evaluating your Building’s Energy UsageNo matter the size of your building, FS Energy can help you determine your first steps in reduc-ing energy usage. The FS Energy team can conduct a Level 1 analysis of the building’s systems and pro-vide recommenda-tions for what the board should ini-tially focus on.

All FirstService Residential properties are provided with an annual energy report card. This report card often prompts an annual conversation between the board, property manager and building operator. It is important that this discussion covers any year-to-year changes and future plans. FS Energy is available to join your conversa-tions as requested.

all help reduce energy. Real-time monitoring systems are also a great way to watch what your building is doing at any given time.”

Did you also know that there are demand response pro-grams that will pay your building to reduce energy when called to do so? This is a great way to save up money for the next energy reduction project.

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Program GoalsParticipants will be educated on efficiency measures that will enable them to:

u Reduce heating and electricity costs

u Reduce overall energy use

u Reduce greenhouse gas emissions

u Increase resident comfort

FS Energy Operators TrainingFS Energy was recently awarded a grant through the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA) to develop and implement a building operators training program. This program is free to all FirstService Residential property managers, building operators and maintenance staff. To sign up, contact FS Energy today!

Senior Building Staff

LEVEL 1

Basics(4 hours)

LEVEL 2Small Group Training(6 hours)

LEVEL 3

On-Site Training(4-6 hours)

LEVEL 4Advanced Voluntary Certification(16-45 hours)

Building Maintainer

LEVEL 1Hands-on TrainingDay 1(6 hours)

LEVEL 2Hands-on TrainingDay 2(6 hours)

LEVEL 3

On-Site Training(4-6 hours)

LEVEL 4Advanced Voluntary Certification(16-45 hours)

Program Overview u Training will cover general energy efficiency topics

such as building science basics, electrical and HVAC systems, heating distribution and proper maintenance protocols.

u Building staff will be trained to perform key tasks such as air vent and steam trap testing.

u In addition to the training courses, FS Energy will monitor each building’s energy consumption, resident complaints and service tickets (i.e., temperature) and repair expenses. This targeted training program can positively influence building operations and residents.

Are you up for a (Carbon) Challenge?In 2013, New York City launched the NYC Carbon Challenge for Multifamily Buildings, engaging build-ing owners to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by at least 30% over the course of ten years by making cost-saving energy efficiency improvements. Currently, FirstService Residential has 62 buildings participating in the challenge!

Your board can sign up for this voluntary commitment at any time. Once enrolled, FS Energy can assist you in identifying opportunities to meet your reduction goals.

Your First Step Toward SolarRecent drops in installation costs have led more and more buildings to consider solar.

But is your building right for solar? The first step is to have your roof evaluated for its potential. The results of this evaluation will ultimately reveal whether or not you should continue investigating or if other alternative energy solutions can help you achieve your carbon reduction goals.

One option is to subscribe to a community solar project. This alternative offers access to clean energy without having to put panels on a building’s roof.

If you are interested in determining your building’s solar potential, contact FS Energy.

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Sustainability Symposium 2018

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PARTICIPATING ORGANIZATIONSThank you to all of the organizations that contributed to our Sustainability Symposium.

Please click the logos below to visit the company’s website.

FINANCIAL INCENTIVES & TECHNICAL SUPPORT

FIRST SERVICE RESIDENTIAL RESOURCES

SERVICE PROVIDER TECHNOLOGIES

NEW YORK CITY RESOURCES & PROGRAMS

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Save the DateCapital Improvement Projects SymposiumSeptember 27, 2018 Click here for more informationJoin us for a unique opportunity to speak one-on-one with architects, engineers, HVAC specialists, project managers, energy management specialists, interior designers and other experts who can provide you with guidance and personalized recommendations for your specific project.

622 Third AvenueNew York, NY 10017

www.fsresidential.com

FirstService Residential’s Green MissionEnvironmental responsibility is a corporate value for FirstService Residential and our subsidiaries. By striving to set a green standard for the real estate industry, we aim to find opportunities—within our operations and for our clients—to develop innovative and cost effective solutions that promote environmentally sound practices.

Advantage is published for board members of properties managed by FirstService Residential. While every effort is made to achieve accuracy in this publication, it is not intended as advice to any property, and FirstService Residential shall not be liable for any damages resulting from reliance on the accuracy of information contained herein.

FirstService Residential supports the highest social and environmental standards. We are contributing to conservation and responsible management by using FSC-certified paper and print products.

Steam EfficiencyDo residents in your building complain about being too hot or too cold?

Do the pipes in your building rattle and bang?

The majority of buildings in NYC are heated with systems that were designed in the early 1900s. Every year, many of these buildings waste a significant amount of money and energy by not addressing the problems that have developed in these systems.

Fortunately, something can be done.

FS Energy can work with an engineer to complete a steam efficiency analysis survey. Surveys of this type typically include an assessment of the operating conditions, boiler, distribution piping, air venting, steam traps, riser conditions, terminal units and control systems.

With innovative solutions, it is possible to correct deficiencies, reduce waste, and bring thermal control and comfort to each apartment.

If your building has a steam system, we recommend speaking to FS Energy about conducting a benchmark analysis to compare your building to similar ones.

Have a comment about this newsletter? Send an email to news.ny@fsresidential.com.

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