AMLI Residential and Bozzuto each have received the 2019 ENERGY STAR® Partner of the Year Award, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) highest honor, for demonstrating exemplary commitment and dedication to leadership in energy efficiency and the ENERGY STAR program.
Likewise, Yardi earned this distinction for Service and Product Provider category, and Lowe’s was recognized for Excellence in Promotion.
Each was selected from thousands of small and large ENERGY STAR partners. Its accomplishments were recognized by the EPA and the U.S. Department of Energy at a ceremony in Washington, D.C., in April.
The ENERGY STAR Partner of the Year Award recognizes ENERGY STAR partner businesses and organizations in good standing that demonstrate superior leadership, innovation, and commitment to environmental protection through energy efficiency and ENERGY STAR.
Bozzuto: Three Years in a Row
It was the third consecutive year earning the award for Bozzuto Management Company, which manages 255 communities along the East Coast, Northeast and Chicago, representing 72,000 market rate and affordable homes. Bozzuto is receiving Partner of the Year—Sustained Excellence recognition and has continued to achieve energy savings across its entire managed portfolio, consistently promoting ENERGY STAR and its resources throughout the rental housing industry.
Key 2018 accomplishments include:
- Pursuing 100 percent benchmarking in ENERGY STAR Portfolio Manager® for all managed assets and achieving energy reductions of more than 3 percent and 2 percent in site and source energy usage, respectively, across its entire portfolio in 2017, which equates to a calculated energy cost savings of more than $4 million.
- Achieving ENERGY STAR certification for 24 of its managed communities in 2018.
- Increasing its average ENERGY STAR Score from a 64 to 67 from 2017 to 2018 across its portfolio.
- Promoting its energy management programs and ENERGY STAR participation through social media, print publications, external job postings, industry speaking engagements and community events, in addition to its corporate website.
- Developing an internal communications program known as “Bozzuto in the Know,” which provides bi-weekly highlights of company activities, including sustainability and ENERGY STAR.
AMLI: Increasing Performance
AMLI Residential has demonstrated ongoing dedication to corporate sustainability and has leveraged the ENERGY STAR program throughout its national portfolio to communicate the value of energy efficiency to both internal stakeholders and its residents across its communities. Key 2018 accomplishments include:
- Achieving ENERGY STAR Certification for 26 communities, representing over 36 percent of its portfolio.
- Increasing its portfolio average ENERGY STAR score from an 80 in 2017 to an 82 in 2018.
- Continuing implementation of its LED retrofit and solar programs throughout its portfolio, which has saved 3,720,596 kilowatt hours (kWh) and 1,902,800 kWh in 2018 respectively.
- Engaging leasing staff to educate residents and prospective residents on the benefits of living in an ENERGY STAR certified community, and the energy efficient features of the properties.
- Partnering with Green Mountain Energy to promote and provide clean energy options to residents.
“We are honored to be selected as ENERGY STAR Partner of the Year,” said Erin Hatcher, its Vice President of Sustainability.
“This prestigious award empowers us to continue pushing and expanding the limits in multifamily energy efficiency and sustainability at AMLI’s apartment communities.”
Lowe’s: Providing Certified Products
Lowe’s has demonstrated excellence in promoting ENERGY STAR-certified products broadly, including participation in numerous product promotions and consumer outreach through marketing, advertising and media publicity, generating more than 1.3 billion impressions. Key 2018 accomplishments include:
- Marketing ENERGY STAR certified products by leveraging numerous owned channels including in-store, and ex-store promotions that informed billions of consumers about its benefits.
- Promoting ENERGY STAR-certified products (including lighting, heat pump water heaters and smart thermostats) in-store through coordinated point-of-purchase signing.
- Comprehensively including the ENERGY STAR logo on all in-store and online Deal of the Day promotions and signage.
- Prominently featuring ENERGY STAR throughout the Lowes.com site in qualified product pages, including its Rebate Center to connect customers with utility rebates on ENERGY STAR-certified products and the Appliance Selector Tool including ENERGY STAR as a key criterion for filtering the product search results.
- Messaging ENERGY STAR products, tips, and promotions on Facebook, Pinterest, Instagram, Next Door and Twitter.
Yardi: Powering Energy Efficiency
Yardi develops software to support investment property, asset and energy management for all types and sizes of real estate companies worldwide. Yardi is receiving Partner of the Year recognition and made an outstanding commitment to develop software for assessing energy efficiency while seamlessly integrating it with ENERGY STAR tools. Key 2018 accomplishments include:
- Promoting ENERGY STAR extensively by helping nearly 50 clients benchmark more than 1,100 existing buildings and earning ENERGY STAR certification for its headquarters building.
- Assisting clients in municipalities requiring ENERGY STAR documentation for new construction projects.
- Promoting ENERGY STAR to thousands of owners, managers and commercial real estate professionals through the BOMA Water and Waste Challenge; participated in webinars and produced corporate blog posts highlighting ENERGY STAR.
- Explaining ENERGY STAR benefits and benchmarking requirements for commercial and residential building owners in webinars, four major corporate client events and individual meetings with property owners.
- Hosting a webinar, “ENERGY STAR Simplified,” addressing the process of regulatory benchmarking and benefits of using ENERGY STAR Portfolio Manager® and promoting the recorded event to more than 23,000 clients.