The California Energy Efficiency Industry Council has named Irvine Company one of the top three “Energy Champions” in the state for 2016.
The council honored the Newport Beach-based Irvine Company on Sept. 27 for “excellence in advancing energy efficiency” at its annual Energy Champion Awards in Oakland.
“This award recognizes the efforts of forward-thinking organizations and leaders who are achieving long-term savings now,” said Margie Gardner, the council’s executive director.
Irvine Company’s portfolio of office buildings already has earned the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s No. 1 ranking nationwide for energy-efficient ENERGY STAR office buildings, and 64 of those buildings have been awarded Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design certification from the U.S. Green Building Council—the largest LEED portfolio in California.
This month’s honor by the Efficiency Council recognizes Irvine Company’s commitment to energy efficiency throughout its portfolio of low-rise campus offices.
“We’re committed to creating more sustainable office buildings that serve as vibrant workplace communities for our customers,” said Tom Boyer, Irvine Company’s senior director of Engineering Operations for campus offices. “These changes benefit everyone and provide our customers with the green initiatives they want.”
The company, a statewide leader in commercial real estate, has implemented several initiatives that save more than 4.2 million kilowatt hours (or enough energy to power 4.2 million 100-watt light bulbs for 10 hours) annually from 120 buildings located across California.
The initiatives include: An “energy management platform” that controls more than 5,000 devices in 130 buildings covering 6.5 million square feet of office space; a computerized “performance monitoring network” to continually track energy usage, detect faulty equipment and suggest service and repairs; training and certifying all service technicians through a Southern California Edison program on energy efficiency; and creating an in-house team of experts to manage energy use and improve maintenance practices.
