Together, the more than 900 public- and private-sector organizations that participate in the DOE’s Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy’s Better Buildings Initiative have saved 1.38 quadrillion British thermal units, equivalent to $8.4 billion in energy and cost savings. These organizations are leading the U.S. in energy efficiency by adopting emerging technologies, advancing the American workforce, and sharing their innovative approaches to energy and water efficiency. The newly released 2019 Better Buildings Progress Report highlights this progress and specific accomplishments in the commercial, industrial, residential, and public sectors to improve energy productivity.
“Using innovative approaches to improve energy productivity, Better Buildings partners are demonstrating leadership every day,” said U.S. Secretary of Energy Rick Perry. “As the Trump Administration focuses on revitalizing prosperous domestic manufacturing, we applaud the Better Buildings, Better Plants partners for adopting advanced technologies to improve their economic competitiveness and sharing the results. By saving money on energy costs, these companies are able to reinvest in their workforce, grow the economy, and strengthen local communities.”
Partners in the Better Buildings Initiative represent 32 of the country’s Fortune 100 companies, 12 of the top 25 U.S. employers, 12% of the U.S. manufacturing energy footprint, and 13% of total commercial building space, as well as 17 Federal agencies, eight National Laboratories, 28 states, and 90 local governments spanning the nation.
Better Buildings Initiative participants’ achievements include:
- More than 360 Better Buildings Challenge partners have saved nearly $4 billion since the program began. Financial allies have extended more than $19 billion for efficiency projects. Partners have also saved more than six billion gallons of water.
- More than 215 manufacturing partners located in all 50 states are working with DOE through the Better Plants program and report an estimated $5.3 billion in cost savings over the last seven years.
- More than 220 Accelerator partners are creating new tools and strategies targeting specific efficiency barriers like access to packaged combined heat and power, sustainable wastewater infrastructure, and building energy data analysis.
- Better Buildings Alliance Technology Campaign participants reported estimated savings of nearly $200 million in 2018 through improvements to lighting, rooftop units, and energy management systems.
Additionally, 20 Better Buildings Challenge partners and allies achieved their energy, water, or financing goals this year. Since the start of the program, 85 partners and Financial Allies have now met their original energy efficiency, water efficiency and financing goals. Many of these goal achievers have publicly committed to new goals, demonstrating that continual energy efficiency improvement is possible even after sizable gains have already been made.
This year’s 20 energy, water and Financial Ally goal achievers are:
- Abundant Power Group (finance)
- Atlanta, GA (energy)
- Bentley Mills (energy)
- Bucks County Water & Sewer Authority (energy)
- Bullitt County Public Schools, KY (energy)
- Cambridge, MA, Housing Authority (energy)
- Chattanooga, TN (energy)
- General Mills (energy)
- Greenworks Lending (finance)
- Hannon Armstrong (finance)
- Havertys (energy)
- Iron Mountain (energy)
- Keene Housing (water)
- Kohl’s Department Stores (energy)
- Las Vegas Sands Corporation (energy)
- Redaptive (finance)
- Roanoke, VA (energy)
- Sparkfund (finance)
- TE Connectivity (energy)
- Tenderloin Neighborhood Development Corporation (energy and water)
Better Buildings partners are leading the market to accelerate the adoption of energy efficient technologies and practices by contributing to more than 2,500 resources with replicable solutions available on the Better Buildings Solution Center. Through Better Buildings, DOE aims to make commercial, public, industrial, and residential buildings 20% more energy efficient over the next decade. This means saving billions of dollars on energy bills, reducing emissions, and creating thousands of jobs.
