Stepping on the Green

IREM AMO firm helps Adobe conserve energy and save money

by James G. Parker

The following is an excerpt from the Jan/Feb 2008 issue (Volume 73, Number 1) of JPM®, Journal of Property Management.

Nearly every day a new report appears in the media underscoring the importance of “going green,” which really relates to environmental protection, waste reduction and resource conservation. A number of real estate management companies are investing in ways to make their facilities more energy efficient and healthier to work in, and are turning to their property managers to help them achieve those goals. Making this change is a step-by-step process that requires true commitment.

A case in point is the San Jose, Calif.-based computer software giant, Adobe Corp. Adobe’s headquarters consist of three high-rise office towers located in downtown San Jose, Calif. In 2006, one of the buildings in the Adobe complex, known as the West Tower, became the first building in the world to achieve platinum-level certification by the U.S. Green Building Council’s Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design program for existing buildings, or LEED. Later that year, the two remaining towers in Adobe’s San Jose complex also achieved platinum certification. All of the Adobe buildings were certified as existing buildings retrofit to meet LEED certification criteria.

Within nine months of LEED certification, Adobe received $389,000 in rebates from local and state agencies and utilities, and had reduced annual operating costs by $1.2 million, a 121 percent return on investment.

What is a Green Building?

The term “green building” technically refers to a building that has received LEED certification from the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC). According to the council, LEED-certified buildings have lower operating costs, higher lease rates, and healthier occupants than other structures.

Getting a building LEED certified is no small undertaking, however; it is such a rigorous and methodical process that some management companies turn to professionals for help. “We had a consultant from the U.S. Green Building Council who led us through the process,” George Denise, CPM., CFM, FMA, RPA, and general manager of the Client Solutions Group for Cushman & Wakefield of California Inc., AMO,  said. Cushman and Wakefield is the property management firm for the Adobe Towers.

The full article is available as an online exclusive in the Jan/Feb 2008 JPM® issue.

IREM Members have free access to the JPM® online archives and the “Online Exclusives,” articles that are only available on the IREM Web site. Non-members can subscribe to JPM® at www.irem.org/jpm.