School Facilities Need a Summer Vacation, Too!

Ah, summer…that time of year when students rejoice and teachers breathe a sigh of relief. While classrooms are empty, hallways dark, and playgrounds quiet, this is also an ideal time to give your school facilities a much needed break. Although there is still a lot going on during the summer months, there is no doubt these are the best months for operational and energy cost reductions.

It should come as no surprise the biggest energy users on school campuses are HVAC equipment and lighting, which account for approximately 70%. Coming in third place is energy consumed by computers, appliances, office equipment and other plug-in devices.

Therefore, it makes complete sense that with much less staff and students on campus, summer is the optimum time to save energy -- and money!

For example, the New York City Department of Energy introduced the Summer Kitchen Energy Conservation pilot program in 2009 in 57 schools citywide. The program was designed to unplug (if feasible) school cafeteria refrigerators and freezers during summer break. As a result, the City reduced energy use by 100,000 kilowatt-hours and saved thousands of dollars in electrical bills. Since then, the program has been expanded to more than 600 schools.

To help you get an A+ in energy conservation this summer, here is a summer shutdown checklist for your school facilities:

Summer School Shutdown Checklist:

1. Turn off all lights not needed for security and ensure all outside and security lights are correctly timed so that they only illuminate at night. Summer break is a good time to change lamps and clean light fixtures to improve efficiency, or to install efficient LED exit signs.
   
2. Turn off and unplug computers and monitors, and any personal appliances in classrooms: Even if all appliances at your school are turned off, they are still drawing a small amount of energy. This "phantom load" is small (usually around 1-5 watts) for each individual appliance, but can quickly add up.
   
3. Maintenance, Repairs and Installation of Timers and Other Energy Saving Devices: Summer break is the perfect opportunity to do a comprehensive cleaning and maintenance of school facilities. Cleaning fans, lights and refrigerator coils may seem inconsequential, but can have a significant effect on the efficiency and life of the device.
   
4. Turn up the HVAC: After those floors are waxed and deep cleaning is done, shut all the blinds and set the thermostat up to 85.  
5. Which campus uses the least energy? Pick that one for summer school programs and shut down the other ones.
6. Schedule cleaning crews early morning or late evening when the temperature is lowest; not during the hottest hours of the day.
   

Even school facilities and equipment deserve a summer vacation. This may sound like a cliché, but it's true: Take care of your school buildings and they will take care of you!

 

Sending Supplies and Prayers to Moore, Oklahoma

Like everyone else in the country, we watched with wide eyes and heavy hearts the horrific damage caused by the tornado in Moore, Oklahoma, on May 20. With 24 deaths and entire neighborhoods and schools demolished, it was painfully obvious recovery would take a long time. And, like many other organizations, our immediate response was, "What can we do to help?" As fate would have it, the opportunity to take action came to us via an employee at the Texas Association of School Boards in Austin. He was helping to collect supplies and donations that would be delivered to the residents of Moore. As word spread throughout Austin and beyond, bottled water, toiletries, non-perishable food, gift cards and more poured into the Hula Hut on Lake Austin, which was serving as the drop off location -- click here to watch the story that aired on the local ABC station. What began as an effort to fill a pick-up truck turned into a moving van full of much need supplies. This makes us proud to be Texans!

When we got the call to donate to this effort, we couldn't write the check fast enough. While we realize $1000 is a drop in the bucket, we sure hope it provided a meal and a ray of hope to families left with nothing.

Call it paying it forward, good karma, or just doing the right thing, this is one of those times when human nature should be to give and not look the other way. While we may not agree with his politics, we wholeheartedly agree with this quote from Bill Clinton: "…when we give what we can, and give it with joy, we don't just renew the American tradition of giving, but we also renew ourselves."

Speed, Quality & Price. Why Settle for Just Two?

A familiar business adage is, “Everyone wants price, speed and quality; pick two because you can’t have all three.” For example, customers expect steep prices to get top quality at breakneck speed. For top quality at low prices, they expect long waits. And if they want delivery fast and cheap, they expect to compromise quality.

Entegral Solutions does not subscribe to this theory. We have become the fastest growing energy efficiency and conservation design build contractor in Texas, and the leader in K-12 energy projects in Texas, by consistently providing all three of these business attributes. Simply put, we realize successful companies must deliver on all three fronts to win and keep customers.

How do we do it? It's in our "jeans." By this, we mean our jeans and boots culture (we are in Texas, after all), while also being a highly motivated, effective and efficient operation.

A company's culture is one of those intangible assets that cannot be touched or held, but it can certainly be seen in employee attitudes, customer service and end results. As defined by wikipedia, culture is shared values, standards, and beliefs that characterize members of an organization and define its nature. Corporate culture is rooted in an organization's goals, strategies, structure, and approaches to labor. As such, it is an essential component in any business's ultimate success or failure.

At the heart of Entegral Solutions' culture is our core values:

• Adaptable
• Transparent
• Accountable
• Straightforward
• Responsible

The results: We don’t have a lot of rework and our projects go in smooth and on time with very little headaches. This is rare in the energy efficiency and conservation industry. And rest assured, we are not afraid of working overtime as proven by our completion of 16 school energy conservation projects in less than two months. Our company motto is "How can I help?" instead of "It isn’t my job."

We are passionate about what we do and determined to deliver speed, quality AND price. At Entegral Solutions, we sum up our culture in three words: Get it done.

An Ounce of Performance is Worth Pounds of Promises

Have you heard the saying, "Being first is not always best"? The same can be said for being new. There are many instances of new products and services that have failed miserably…New Coke, Blackberry PlayBook and Windows Vista come to mind. In some cases, people wait for the next best thing while others return to the tried-and-true. 

We also see this happen in the energy efficiency and conservation industry when a new building does not meet performance expectations. Whether it is a school, fire station or office, a new building is a symbol of growth, expansion and success. But in today's environmentally-conscious world, it should also symbolize energy efficiency and sustainability leadership.

However, what happens if the new building turns out to have continuous maintenance problems and energy bills higher than one built 20 years earlier? What should be an energy-saving showplace can quickly turn into an uncomfortable work environment, money drain, and embarrassment.

It is way too common for schools, or any other entity for that matter, to build a new facility and it is the worst performing school in the district. The reasons are many:

• Too complicated 
• Never properly commissioned 
• Energy efficiency was “value engineered” out 
• Most importantly, no single entity is accountable. The architect points the finger at the engineer, who points it at the mechanical contractor, who points it at the controls contractor, who points it at the engineer, who points it at the budget, and so on. 

How can you prevent this from happening? 

The truth is, while everyone wants a green school or eco-friendly office, it takes a commitment from all parties involved to make it happen. Establishing and implementing aggressive energy performance goals during the design and construction of new commercial buildings is important to achieving those goals over the lifetime of the building. We have worked with more than 27 school districts throughout Texas on energy savings projects and these are the top five things to consider when constructing a new building:

1. Preserve the budget for energy efficiency: Typically the first things to get cut are the things that will save you the most in the long run.
2. Staff: Don’t design systems that are unique and complicated if your staff is accustomed to simple and straightforward.
3. Demand robust commissioning: The most common culprit in any new building being an energy waster is the system not operating as it was designed.
4. Training: Today’s energy saving buildings can be complicated, and your staff needs the knowledge to master their new tools, not be overwhelmed by them.
5. Make someone accountable: Structure your project in such a way that finger-pointing is impossible. Design-build is a good option if you have a good contractor. 

At the end of the day, it comes down to results. Are your students or employees comfortable? Does your HVAC equipment work like it should? Did your contractor deliver? Although an unlikely source, we think this quote from Mae West sums it up perfectly: "An ounce of performance is worth pounds of promises."

Green Schools: All Hat and No Cattle?

When I first heard the phrase “Alligator mouth; bunny rabbit tail” (thank you S.G.), I instantly had my future retort to the countless scenarios that would inevitably come. No doubt, I would use that quick jab when a friend would boast of his team’s prowess, only to get humiliated on the fantasy football field, or when one of my children would claim that she could beat me in arm wrestling, Mario Kart, or holding her breath underwater. Indeed, over the years I have employed the clever saying every chance I could. But not long after I was introduced to the scary/cute creature, I became aware that a whole world of variations existed. For the man’s man, you may observe “all hammer, and no nail”; for your spa loving friend, you may lament, “all wax, and no wick”; your granpa may need the occasional, “all mouth, and no trousers”; and the West Texas rancher that isn’t getting it done may just deserve an “all hat, and no cattle.”

In the energy efficiency and conservation industry, there has been the need for an “all hat and no cattle” synonym for quite some time. As inconvenient as the truth may be, the green wave that has swept the world since before Al Gore’s Nobel Prize has largely been “all sizzle and no steak.” (I’m on a roll here…)

Having been in the industry since 1996, my personal experience has shown me the two distinct sides of “green” very clearly. On one side, there is the PR aspect that involves global catastrophe, slick sounding buzz words, cutting edge gadgets, bold claims, and “quick paybacks”. It is flush with federal subsidy, utility rebates and state grants. Former Presidents make it their mission, cities like to put programs around it, and university presidents band together over it.

The other side of “green” isn’t so sexy. In fact, to the general public it is… yawn… pretty boring. It is behind the walls, above the ceilings, and in the maintenance closets of schools, stores, and skyscrapers. It is comprised of simple, yet very effective engineering and operations practices that fix problems and make buildings work. It is the side that generates real savings, but not a lot of press. In fact, this side has been around much longer, just by a different name and under different pretenses. It is capitalism at its finest, causing people to update their lighting or air conditioning, and set their thermostats back because it saves them money and it is common sense.

Recently, USA Today published an article titled “Green schools: Long on promise, short on delivery” and details a troubling reality of what happens when the hype machine (i.e. the alligator, hammer, hat, etc.) isn’t accompanied by common sense and solid business practices. It is worth reading, but I would caution against throwing the baby out with the bath water. Green schools are a reality, and have been for years. Getting there doesn’t require LEED or the EPA telling you what to do, or reams of paperwork to document how many acres of rain forests you think you can save by implementing a gadget.

Green schools, with the right plan and effective approach, are equal parts “had and herd”. Curious how? Email us and we will show you.

Buy Something!

As an unseasoned, young salesman, I used to spend my windshield time thinking about all the ways I could talk about my company and my offering. I would turn the sentences inside out and upside down, forwards and backwards and everything in between.  My strategy was classic rookie: He who talks best wins.

Over time I moved away from talking and towards listening. I learned about SPIN Selling and how to ask progressively more penetrating questions. Sometimes, my questions were cumbersome and forced; you could tell I was struggling to convert some of my old, well polished statements into probing questions, but wasn't doing a very good job of it.  "Well, Mr. Customer, how has going without my service really put you in a bind?"  Did that really just come out of my mouth???

As time passed, questions became the default, and genuine caring about people's needs took over. But the urge remained to "talk about us" a little bit. When I was with a big company, I somehow had to work in a thing or two about the billions in the bank account, or the office on the west coast.  Surely the client wants to know about how our company is structured and the recent departmental realignment, right?  Just kidding... I never talked about that. But I did feel the need to force some conversation towards us if the Client wasn't going there.

Even the past few years, with a company strategy that builds off of our private ownership and flexibility that allows us to deliver the best services at the lowest cost in the industry, I find myself struggling not to brag. (Get it?)

That is, until recently. In one 45 minute span, I got cured forever. My disease is gone with no trace left. I now confidently pledge to never again talk about myself unless the Client asks. I promise to focus on the Client and to never, ever assume that the Client can't wait for me to deliver my infomercial, no matter how sexy I think it is.  So what happened?  Very simply, we bought something.

I always tried to imagine myself in the Client's shoes, but as a salesman you never really get all the way there. I thought in terms of what the Client might be needing, or thinking, or thinking he is needing. I also focused on how the Client would receive what I would say. But until I sat at a conference table as the customer, and really experience what it was like to be the target of every word spoken, I couldn't know what the Client's shoes felt like.

Then I put them on. I became the Client, and as such, all I cared about was what I cared about. There were things I wanted to know, and thinks that I didn't know I wanted to know, but that I knew I probably needed to know. I wanted the salesman to guide me through that, and help me get where I needed to be. But it was about me, not him. It was about trying to unlock my own thoughts and feelings, not listen to his.  The interesting thing about the experience was how great it felt when he was focusing on me, and how quickly I could become put off by an untimely diversion away from me and towards the merits of his company. I wondered almost out loud how out of touch this guy must be to think I wanted to hear his spiel at that moment. And at the same time, I was so grateful for the lesson he was teaching me. He showed me, quite frankly, me.

There has probably been no greater lesson for me in my career than to have that kind of a mirror exposing a critical flaw in my approach. My suspicion is that what I experienced would help a lot of people take the next step in their sales careers.  It showed me how to better serve, not only my external Clients, but my sales team and other people around me.  Buying opened my eyes and ears to truth, and I will take all of that I can get.  I have taken the lesson to heart, and challenge anyone who has never put the Client's shoes on to do it and get ready to take some notes.  Buy something, and really learn how to sell!

Blessed are the Peace Makers

In Jesus' famous Sermon on the Mount, he admonishes His disciples to strive for great character, and promises blessings for achievement. "Blessed are the gentle, for they shall inherit the earth...blessed are merciful, for they shall receive mercy..." I remember as a young man committing to attempt to try to make an effort to give it my best shot... to follow Jesus and be all of those things. One in particular, though, I thought I had nailed: "Blessed are the peace makers, for they shall be called Sons of God."  I knew I could do that, because I hated conflict. I would go through life, I thought, and help people get along. And when conflict came my way, I would quickly dispose of it. And that is the way I operated for the better part of my adolescence, through college and on into my career.

Fast forward to 2012, in a taco shop in Addison, when I am sitting with my good buddy Matt Levy from Credera discussing our respective businesses and how to make them better. As lunch rolled on, the topic of office conflict came up, in the context of the sometimes difficult task of giving negative feedback to employees.  I quickly reminded Matt that I was a "peace maker", and proceeded to tell him how I handled conflict in my world.  Without much hesitation, Matt told me, quite frankly, "You aren't a peace maker Brian, you are a "peace faker".  You don't resolve conflict, you avoid it.  You don't make peace, you sweep stuff under the rug and act like there is no problem..."

Pow. Right between the eyes.

He went on to describe a continuum, where peace faking was on one end, peace breaking on the other end, and true peace making was somewhere right in the middle. Rarely, he said, was anyone ever truly a peace maker. He didn't have to say anymore; I knew he was right, but I had just never heard it before.

Instantly, though, I felt a sort of weight lifted off of my shoulders. For my entire life, I assumed that peace making meant that I had to save other people from the pain of conflict, when in reality I was keeping people from getting better. I knew instantly because I was so grateful for my friend Matt to shoot me straight. I wondered how many times I withheld critical feedback from coworkers and employees because of my peace faking.

The application here is obvious and of extreme importance. For business and for life in general, remember these three things:

1. It is appropriate for everyone to strive to be a peace maker;
2. Give yourself an honest look in the mirror and decide what your tendencies are. Do you pick fights and attempt to win? Do you flee conflict and "overlook" offenses that shouldn't be overlooked?
3. Practice peace making. Don't flee and don't fight; listen, learn and don't be afraid to speak the truth in love.

Simple, yet powerful, this life lesson was worth sharing.

Be Blessed!