Insights and observations from our practice and elsewhere
Ten action-packed years, so what’s next?
Buildings Alive started out ten years ago with a simple question: what would happen if you provided building operators with clear, daily feedback about the energy and environmental performance of their buildings? Would they find it motivating? Would they experiment?...
Making our business a force for good!
After a rigorous process, Buildings Alive is proud to announce that we have been certified as a B Corporation (B Corp). We join a global community of over 5000 companies across 158 industries in 85 countries. B Corp is a global community of businesses with a common...
2022 ACEEE Summer Study on Energy Efficiency in Buildings
In August, the first in-person ACEEE Summer Study on Energy Efficiency in Buildings (aka “Summer Camp for Energy Nerds” - around 1,000 of them) was held in Pacific Grove, California. Buildings Alive was privileged to present 3 papers (authored by Craig Roussac and Hao...
We Need Buildings to Help Solve the Energy Crisis
Surging gas, coal, and oil prices are driving up inflation and putting the global economy under enormous strain. Electricity prices too are on an upward spiral because, in most markets, expensive and unreliable gas and coal supplies are the primary fuel for...
Energy Impact of COVID Ventilation Strategies
As we enter Year 3 of the pandemic, it’s obvious that COVID-19 is going to be with us for a while. In response to living with the virus, some buildings have implemented revised ventilation strategies in an attempt to reduce likelihood of transmission in buildings and...
Fast forward to a carbon-free energy future, 24/7
With all the COP26 news last month, there was a lot to digest. One thing you may have missed was that in the United Nation's 'SDG7' pavilion an initiative was quietly released that we think will have a global impact - the launch of the 24/7 Carbon-free Global Energy...
What does five minute settlement on the grid mean for Australian buildings?
If you're in Australia, you may have heard about a rule change that commenced from the 1st of October regarding 5 minute settlement on the National Electricity Market (NEM). The main reason for the change is to support investment in 'fast-response' technologies...
Clean energy needs actively engaged buildings
If the world is to reach net zero emissions by 2050, electricity networks will need to be carbon-free in advanced economies by 2035 and globally by 2040. This will require rapid scaling of renewable energy investments, tripling to around USD $4 trillion per annum by...
Net Zero Carbon: The hidden ingredient
It’s time to rethink what ‘energy efficiency’ means for buildings. Energy efficiency is the most powerful tool we have for accelerating progress to Net Zero Carbon (NZC), but as the California Energy Commission explains in its Energy Efficiency Action Plan: “… it is...
NABERS will soon use the latest NGA Emissions Factors
For the first time in NABERS’ history, the National Greenhouse Account (NGA) factors that are used to calculate NABERS Energy ratings are going to change. Read on to find out what that means for your rating and what you can do to maintain (or improve) your building’s...
How do they do it? Next level GRESB performance is… all about performance!
Buildings Alive works with only a tiny fraction of the more than 1,200 entities and 96,000 assets that participated in last year’s GRESB Real Estate Assessment, and yet we count a surprising number of the global and regional sector leaders as clients (i.e., the best...
Introducing REF+. Finally, smart technology that saves time!
Ever since we conducted our first experiments and built our first prototypes almost a decade ago, Buildings Alive has been saving people time. Sure, our main purpose is to help building owners, operators and occupiers achieve their energy and environmental efficiency...