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(Lower Store Sales + Reduced Margins) X Facility Budget Reductions
= Less Green/More Green?
ShopTalk, December 2008
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By:
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Allen Sandish
Divisional Vice President, Retail Construction & Facilities
Coldwater Creek
PRSM Green Council Member
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The majority of our budgets are being reduced in support of those efforts, and only the most critical facility repair & maintenance issues will receive the full attention they deserve. Any new "Green" initiatives, which would likely increase expenses in the short term while you wait for the return on investment (ROI), are unlikely to be approved by a finance team looking to find expense reductions.
While some parts of a "Green" plan may have to be delayed until sales numbers turn-around, there is low-hanging fruit available that will support a "Green" commitment while making a substantial contribution to the company's profit report.
No new news here: The number-one opportunity to reduce facility expenses while making the largest "Green" impact remains energy management initiatives.
There are hundreds of resources available to support businesses in creating and implementing an effective Energy Management Program, and a large share of those resources are free. Or you may choose to have an External Service Provider work on your behalf for a fee or a share of the savings they generate. That decision will depend on your level of internal resources.
The PRSM Web site has many green and energy resources and links that provide you with a wealth of information. Information is also available on the Environmental Protect Agency (EPA) Web site, or many of the thousands of E-links that popup on a Google search can provide a wealth of information regardless of where you might be with your companies' energy management plan.
Saving your company potentially tens-of-thousands of dollars (or less depending on the company's size) in the immediate future can be achieved fairly easily.
My two most recommended opportunities to give significant dollars back to the bottom line while contributing to environmental sustainability are:
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In the markets where electricity is deregulated, take all of your facilities in that market and bundle their estimated electrical use for the next twelve months (based on the previous twelve months' usage) and auction the contract to supply that electricity to the lowest bidder between several electricity contract providers. |
| 2. |
Design a utility management educational presentation and set of best-practices-to-follow guidelines to be presented to the management team members in each of the companies' facilities. Include all of the calculations that show the potential costs savings and bottom-line financial contributions - plus the "Green" impact of the energy reductions (turn off the lights and air conditioners) on the environment. |
Many companies already have great energy plans in place, but many more do not. With enormous financial pressures right now, everyone should be pressing energy conservation as the first and best way to support the bottom-line, and as a responsible part of environmental stewardship.
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