Energy Star and the Environment

In 2003 ENERGY STAR programs prevented the generation of greenhouse gases, by a volume equivalent to what would be produced by 16 million gas automobiles. To better illustrate the magnitude of the “environmental savings” it is equivalent to the power generated by 50, 300-megawatt coal fired power plants. This represents a energy cost savings of more than $8 billion dollars.

What makes ENERGY STAR products environmentally friendly?
All ENERGY STAR approved products must meet the following criteria:

• The products are energy efficient.
• The products are less costly to operate.
• The products reduce the demand on coal-fired power stations producing mercury and greenhouse gases.

The generation of coal fired power plant energy produced to power the commercial sector also contributes approximately 37 percent of greenhouse gases and mercury emissions.
By increasing energy efficiency in the commercial sector we can realize huge cost savings while avoiding dangerous emissions of greenhouse gases and mercury into the environment.

However resistance to do so exists because of;


• The lack of corporate commitment.
• Lack of information on how to undertake effective energy efficiency improvements.
  Lack of measurement tools.
• Utility bills for commercial buildings are passed through to tenants without regard for achieving lower energy costs.

The US EPA provides ENERGY STAR memberships to businesses who adopt superior energy management which results in energy savings and environmental benefits. As a concerned global corporate citizen Viconics is ISO14001 certified, demonstrating that environmental protection is one of our key goals.
Our strategy is to manufacture and promote superior energy management products designed with environmental conservation in mind. Viconics, environmental stewardship starts with the top leadership, and engages all employees throughout our organization.

It has been demonstrated in US EPA studies that;

• A commercial building owner can generate $2-3 of incremental asset value for every $1 invested in energy performance investments.
• A commercial building can realize the equivalent of improvement in energy performance while decreasing greenhouse gas production by up to 30%.
• An independent examination of commercial buildings showed that the best performing buildings used 75% less energy compared to buildings without energy conservation initiatives. To aid Commercial Facilities Managers and Building Owners, Energy Star has developed an on-line rating system for offices, schools, institutional buildings and hospitals.

Concrete examples of superior energy management and environmental preservation are found in the “higher end” commercial market. As a “case in point,” Energy Star published a definitive example of how utilizing a communicating thermostat resulted in millions of dollars in energy and cost savings.

The energy savings study was preformed in a major hotel. The energy management system initially cost the hotel $8.5 million dollars to implement in 2001 however by the end of the first year the building had already realized a net savings of $3.4 million dollars. In 2002, the same building invested approximately $4.6 million in energy saving projects, achieving net savings of $1.3million (the equivalent of renting 9,800 additional rooms).

At Viconics we are committed to the design and manufacture of energy savings thermostats for the commercial sector. By implementing a disciplined, building wide energy management strategy, a cost savings equivalent to the previous example can potentially be achieved. In concert with this cost saving strategy, is the added environmental benefit based on the reduced demand placed on coal-fired power plants.

For more information on our energy wise products contact our sales professionals
at 1-800-563-5660.