Energinvest developed the Smart Building Performance Management methodology (smartBPM) to address the needs of large property owners/managers in the areas of existing building operations and sustainability. The intent of the smartBPM is to standardize and simplify building performance management throughout a property owner’s portfolio in order to deliver bottom line results and achieve the following objectives:
- Energy Savings and Carbon Footprint Reduction
- Increased Occupiers Health and Wellbeing
- Cost-effective and efficient Operations
- Increased Building Value
- Third-Party Building Certifications (Breeam In Use)
Overview
Over the last decade, property management has widened its scope and coverage and is moving towards an integrated approach taking into account the energy, environmental, financial, health and comfort related aspects of the buildings. This is the purpose of the smartBPM methodology that helps property managers to measure the financial, energy, environmental and health and comfort gaps against actual levels of performance of their buildings in operation. It also identifies actionable opportunities for savings or capital improvements, forecast operating budgets and capital requirements.
In order to ensure a comprehensive management of the building performance and the related costs of ownership/occupancy, the smartBPM methodology integrates a number of innovative performance-based tools, including among others:
- Guaranteed and/or shared energy saving partnerships using competitive and performance-based contracts management;
- Condition-based maintenance, using the Dutch standard NEN2767, with condition assessment of the entire building and all the technical installations, being the basis for the optimization of the cost and performance of the maintenance;
- Comfort and satisfaction assessment (ComfortMeter), bringing comfort and productivity of the occupants at the heart of the operations management;
- Building value assessment using the NEN2767 condition scores monetization to quantify and monitor the « building value » of the technical installations all along the building lifecycle and/or rent term and to fix the « returned » value requirements for maintenance contracts as well as to calculate the « added » value at the end of the contracts;
- A third party building certification (Breeam In Use), with its own performance scores, enlarging the possibilities of performance requirements to be included in the scope of the contracts management.
Fig.: smartBPM, a comprehensive management system to measure buildings performance, identify opportunities for savings, forecast budgets and capital requirements
smartBPM is fully based on a cost-optimal approach taking into account the global lifetime costs of buildings to shape their future performance level requirements. The evaluation of buildings’ improvements is not solely related to the investment costs, but additionally takes into account the operational, maintenance, comfort and energy saving costs of buildings. As a result, smartBPM establishes a comparative assessment of the actual and future level of performance to determine the cost-optimal set of measures to be implemented in order to deliver future-proofed buildings, lower costs, drive higher income and enhance asset value. This assessment can be performed at various levels, from a technical part of a single building to a whole buildings portfolio.
Methodology
The first phase of the smartBPM puts all buildings enrolled in the program onto a level playing field where performance can be measured, managed and compared. This is typically accomplished through multi-disciplinarily and integrated benchmarking methodologies, which yield energy, comfort, building value and certification performance ratios as well as a cost building model allowing gap analysis.
This in depth analysis allows exploring and identifying actionable opportunities for performance improvements and cost savings to be translated in a multi-year Performance Action Plan. This first phase provides many benefits to the owner, as it:
- Informs the owner of value opportunities for savings or capital improvements across the portfolio;
- Ensures that operating budgets and capital investments are cost optimal and are allocated wisely throughout the portfolio;
- Establishes and tracks metrics and initiatives that contribute to an overall company sustainability plan.
The second phase of the smartBPM improves building performance through implementation the operations, capital and third-party certifications improvements identified in the Performance Action Plan. Depending on the specific objectives of the portfolio and each property, one or all of the strategies can be pursued in a holistic manner. This can be done using the smartEPC approach that leads to cost-savings partnerships with ESCOs or by means of another performance-based way to execute the Performance Action Plan.
Long-term business relationships yield the most valuable results for the client. The third step of the smartBPM relates to the continuous benchmarking via custom-made dashboards, building cost modelling and Measure and Verification monitoring. It’s simply not enough to make performance improvement investments and implement sustainable operations into the portfolio; results must be verified through accurate and on-going benchmarking. As each property improves over time, additional value opportunities become available. Energinvest takes a proactive role with property managers to ensure that informed decisions regarding building performance are being made year-round.
Process
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1. Data Collection - Buildings inventory (location, age, building type) and master equipment's lists data.
- Maintenance & Repair Contracts and Operating levels of services data.
- Actual client expenditures (energy, water, Maintenance & Repair) data.
2. Performances Assessment - Master equipment condition assessment & rating
- Comfort assessment & rating
- Certification assessment & rating
- Energy saving, Comfort, Building Value and certification Opex & Capex improvements valuation
3. Cost Model Development - Develop detailed cost models (Capex & Opex)
- Calibrate Models to match building utilization and economic environment
4. Gap Analysis - Compare model results for your facility requirements against actual expenditures
- Explore areas of high or low spending patterns
5. Action plan - Recommend actionable opportunities for savings
- Highlight specific areas of underfunding
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1. Data Collection - Complete data collection with more detailed information with equipment's and components (if needed)
2. Cost Models up-dating - Develop detailed OpEx cost models from input data
3. Refine Level of services - Calibrate models to match building utilization, labour, utility rates, and economic environment
- Develop forecasts by OpEx categories based upon data entered
4. Report and review - Develop draft detailed building level budgets
- Review and refine draft estimates and model assumptions
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1. Collect Building Data - Complete data collection with more detailed information with equipment's and components (if needed)
2. Cost Models up-dating - Develop detailed CapEx cost models based upon input data
3. Generate requirements - Calibrate models to match actual building utilization and economic environment
- Forecast life-cycle costs based upon data entered
4. Capital Plan - Present long-range capital plan, by year, supported with component-level details for every building
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1. Define scenarios - Alternative assumptions for real property portfolio:
- Levels of Services
- Maintenance & Repair Program
- Energy savings, Comfort, Building value and Certification Opex/Capex improvements
2. Cost Models up-dating - Develop detailed cost models for each scenario
- Calibrate models to match building utilization and economic environment of the scenario
3. Scenarios Reporting - Generate Multi-scenario visualization reports
- Recommend best scenarios to achieve strategic objectives
- Alternative assumptions for real property portfolio:
Key Benefits
- Provides customer-specific benchmark and cost models to measure gaps against actual buildings performance and identifies actionable opportunities for savings or capital improvements.
- Guides senior management decision making for operating budgets and capital planning estimates.
- Increases buildings performance and reduces costs and risks exposure.
Tools
Building Condition Assessment
C.M.C. & B-Infodoc
Comfortmeter
Dutch standard for condition assessment of buildings - NEN2767
Smart Cost Model
Smart Energy Data
Smart EPC Toolbox
Smart Matrix