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Small and medium businesses are missing out on big energy savings. With energy costs rising 6-8 percent annually, businesses are quoting “energy costs as their biggest expense behind real estate and labor.” A report by the Center for an Urban Future found that one big opportunity for small businesses to reduce costs has gone ignored: becoming […]

While the U.S. does not rank very high in the global race for green buildings, it doesn’t mean we aren’t. In fact, Lux Research found that venture capitalists have invested more than $4 billion in the race to build greener buildings, and “they are now looking at new innovative technologies to further develop this space,” […]

So you've retrofitted your lighting system. What's next? Here is a short, but very informative article about how a company can position themselves as a leader in the green movement, and use their recent upgrade to their marketing benefit. SustainAbility and GlobeScan conducted several surveys over the past few years and found several attributes that […]

The benefits of LED just keep on giving. Sandia researchers recently published an article that showed how LED lighting increases productivity. In the journal Energy Policy researchers at the Breakthrough Institute in Oakland Calif., showed that increased light availability leads to increased productivity. LED lights are a definite improvement from outdated lighting fixtures, including the T12. […]

When we think of ways to save energy, parking garages aren’t usually our first thought. But a garage typically uses 15% of the energy that the building it is attached to uses, according to the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL). A parking garage can be seen as a secondary building, […]

Small businesses should think seriously about their lighting. It seems simple, but lighting is a critical component of any small business because it can improve employee efficiency, and be aesthetically pleasing to encourage sales. “Depending on the type of business you operate, lighting accounts for 20 to 50 percent of electricity consumption. This means that […]

A new study found that the U.S. does not rank on green building policy. Lux Research recently ranked the countries with the best green building markets including Singapore, South Korea, Germany, Australia, and the U.K. The United States did not make the grade, according to the Boston-based firm that compiled the report. Their findings were based […]

The Missouri Public Service Commission approved one of the most aggressive energy efficiency plans in the state. Under the plan, Ameren, which serves 1.2 million electric and 127,000 natural gas customers in eastern and central Missouri, will invest $147 million over three years. The company will fund several programs that seek to reduce electricity use […]

Becoming green is not just something nice to do for the environment; it’s fast becoming a responsible business activity. Sustainability is important from a business growth perspective, costs and margins perspective, and brand perspective, wrote Mark Bernstein of MMW, a public relations firm. Bernstein, who is the Senior VP of MWW’s Energy, Clean Tech and […]