🏡 Sealing the Envelope
Getting over the last hump to achieve carbon neutrality can be difficult, that's where Sto comes in...
Happy President’s Day.
We hope you are enjoying your day off. Hoping today’s letter can shed some insight into cost saving opportunities and help inform you on what’s going on.
Also - if the Empire Buildings Challenge sounds neat, be on the lookout to hear about similar initiatives. We think this is the first in a wave of comparable strides towards city-wide net zero goals.
Today’s newsletter will take ~ 3.5 minutes
Trends
The Empire Buildings Challenge convinced four large New York landlords to retrofit their skyscrapers.
Empire State Realty Trust, Hines, Omni New York, and L+M Development each received $5 million to implement a number of retrofits and offsets with the goal of reducing the carbon output of their combined 37 million square feet of buildings to net zero. Yes you read that right.
The incentive comes along with New York City’s goal of achieving carbon neutrality across its built environment by 2050.
Leading the pack right now: Empire State Realty Trust which has reduced their carbon footprint by 54% across NYC.
Deals & Developments
Univeristy of Michigan announced it will spend $190 million on building carbon neutral student housing
The three proposed buildings totaling 380,000 SF aim to achieve LEED Gold Certification. Architectural firm Solomon Cordwell Buenz is in the process of designing the project, bidding for build out will begin shortly.
S2A, a sustainable modular building company, broke ground on a new 250k SF factory in Jacksonville
The “MegaFactory” is one of several under construction across the nation to fulfill the strong demand for modular housing. Not only do the factories build sustainable modular components, the factories themselves incorporate Tesla solar and PowerPacks
Technology
Panelized exterior manufacturer, Sto, has partnered with Branch Technology to deliver 3D printed mega panels to outfit building exteriors while tightening building envelopes
Efficient buildings are required to have a “sealed envelope,” and this is one large part missing from the net-zero puzzle. Sto is one of many companies tackling envelope inefficiencies, yet putting a stylistic spin with different exterior panel aesthetics.
Learn More: If you’re a builder or architect and want to learn more about how to increase envelope efficiency, check out Facades+
Legislation
Last week, President Biden launched the “Buy Clean” task force
After signing an executive order in December aimed to catalyze sustainability in the US, the new task force will focus on identifying low carbon materials and providing incentives for clarity on emissions.
What this means: We could begin seeing larger incentives for technology like low carbon concrete and passive heating/cooling systems.
Fact for Thought
Despite Texas being known for its large dependence on oil, it currently leads the nation in renewable projects underway.
Let us know what you liked. Drop a comment!