Amanda Provenzano is all about taking energy action

October 19, 2018 by Spark Staff Leave a Comment

Environmental conservation and corporate social responsibility has been the focus of Amanda Provenzano’s college experience and career. After graduating from Dominican University with a Bachelor of Science in Environmental Studies and earning a Master of Environmental Pollution Control at The Pennsylvania State University, she held various sustainability roles for LUSH, ALDI and JELD-WEN prior to joining McKinstry in February 2018 in the newly created position of sustainability coordinator.

Q: What types of projects do you work on in a typical day?
A: One of the things I love about my job is that there’s never a typical day because I work with so many people, groups and organizations. I’m currently working on several exciting programs that employees will be hearing about soon, such as an alternative commute program and resource conservation program companywide. I’ve also enjoyed the opportunity to help employees work more comfortably and productively through our ergonomics program.

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University of Northern Colorado saves big with energy action

October 17, 2018 by Spark Staff Leave a Comment

The University of Northern Colorado (UNC) turned to McKinstry to identify energy-saving measures spanning 1.3 million square feet of campus space and 18 buildings on campus. The effort also included powerED, McKinstry’s behavior-focused energy management program, to boost their sustainability goals.

UNC leveraged powerED to challenge students, staff and faculty to take action in eliminating waste and reducing energy use. A steering committee of more than 25 students and staff assembled to guide the program, and members of UNC’s Green Team volunteered to lead various activities such as a carbon cube demonstration and building energy use tours. Much of the effort focused on demonstrating how small changes – such as turning off lights, unplugging unnecessary electronics, system improvements and conserving energy – can make a big difference.

More than 800 students and staff signed up for a People.Power.Planet account at UNC, checking off over 1,800 routine and 150 key actions to save energy. Through this effort and close collaboration with the facilities team and other departments, UNC has since reduced energy use by 25 percent campus-wide and avoided $1,335,000 in associated energy costs.

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Carson City School District turns energy action into impact

October 10, 2018 by Spark Staff Leave a Comment

“We use more than a third less energy than an average school,” said Mark Korinek, director of operations services for the Carson City School District. “As a district, we recently reduced our Energy Use Intensity (EUI) from 46 to 41. The 46 EUI number last year, down from 49 in 2014, was really remarkable to begin with, but to see a decrease even from there is truly a testament to our retrofit project and McKinstry’s energy-awareness and behavioral change program called powerED.”

The powerED program engages students and staff across the district in energy, water and waste conservation efforts. The program promotes energy efficiency and how to eliminate waste within facilities, ultimately helping the district save money. Much of this effort is focused on demonstrating to students and staff how small changes—such as turning off lights, biking to school, recycling and composting, shutting off unused electronics and buying locally produced items—can make a difference in their lives every day.

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Sylvia McIvor is passionate about helping save our planet

October 8, 2018 by Spark Staff Leave a Comment

Sylvia McIvor joined McKinstry in March of 2018. Based out of our Chicago office, Sylvia is a senior account executive with the Illinois Energy Services team. In her role, she manages the development of business strategies for education and municipal customers in the Midwest region.

Q: Why did you choose McKinstry?
A: What drew me to McKinstry was the company’s cutting-edge view on sustainability as well as the environmental leadership and stewardship. There is so much opportunity here to grow the business, help our customers reduce their environmental impact and make a difference while doing it.

Q: I understand you are involved in the Climate Reality Project. Tell me more about that.
A: I’m fortunate to be working for a company (McKinstry) that supported me in applying for the opportunity, and I was thrilled to have been accepted into the Climate Reality Leadership Corps training. I was one of more than 2,200 attendees who joined former Vice President Al Gore in Los Angeles from Aug. 28-30 of this year (see the collage image above) to learn how to help lead the global fight for climate solutions.

It was a life-changing and awe-inspiring three days. The information and data presented were eye-opening, compelling and frightening, but also very hopeful. If we take action now to address carbon emissions, we can stop the damage and help the planet heal itself.

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Tahoma’s powerED Green Team kicks the year in gear

October 5, 2018 by Spark Staff Leave a Comment

The new school year ushers in Green Team kickoffs for powerED schools across the country. Tahoma School District in Maple Valley, Wash. kicked the year in gear last week with Green Team meetings at schools like Maple View Middle.

Tahoma School District serves more than 8,200 students from pre-kindergarten to grade 12. The district is recognized as innovative in its development and use of curriculum, including a focus on sustainability across all grade levels. Test scores place Tahoma students among Washington’s top five percent on average!

To date, more than 20,500 teachers, students and family members nationwide have pledged to save energy and cut waste through McKinstry’s powerED program. That action has reduced energy consumption 17 percent district wide and avoided 918 metric tons of carbon emissions. Maple View Middle is responsible for an amazing 358 metric tons of carbon avoided—nearly 40 percent of the district’s total!

Congratulations to Tahoma School District and Maple View Middle, and best of luck for another successful Green Team year!

Join McKinstry and our clients as we celebrate Energy Action Month by pledging to take action. If you think you can’t affect the future of energy consumption, you’re wrong. It takes all of us, every day, taking actions small and big. Together, we CAN build a thriving planet.

Here’s how Alison Schwabe takes energy action at work and at home

October 3, 2018 by Spark Staff Leave a Comment

Alison Schwabe joined McKinstry eight years ago and works in our Golden, Colo. office. As powerED program manager for the Mountain region, she works with schools, universities and local governments within the Mountain region to help them save energy and cut waste. She has also been instrumental in building the Mountain Region’s corporate stewardship team including rolling out the office’s composting program.

Q: How do you explain powerED?
A: Our powerED program is all about people and encouraging sustainable behaviors (like this month’s challenge). We drive awareness, action, and impact to help our clients save energy and cut waste through three key components. The first is PEOPLE. We engage building occupants and operators in a campaign to increase awareness and action around energy efficiency. The second is PROCESS, which involves working with our clients to help them identify and implement low- and no-cost energy-saving measures. The third is PERFORMANCE. We’re only as good as our results. We measure impact and demonstrate progress by tracking energy savings, carbon reduction, and other key benchmarks. I’m proud to say that through our powerED program to date, company-wide we’ve helped participating clients save $21.7 million in energy cost and cut carbon by 155,861 metric tons.

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Energized by our future

October 1, 2018 by Ash Awad 1 Comment

October is Energy Action Month. While we take action every day to drive waste out the built environment, Energy Action Month offers an ideal opportunity to reaffirm our commitment. With each action we take, we’re one step closer to our vision of together, building a thriving planet.

McKinstry balances current action with remaining resolute on driving future innovation. Spokane embodies that balance, embracing innovation while honoring its historic buildings and rich past. Every trip to Washington’s Inland Empire inspires me. Here’s why.

The power of net positive energy

Catalyst will be the first net-zero energy building in Eastern Washington.

Net-zero energy buildings and net-positive eco districts are inevitable. State and local governments are now mandating solar photovoltaics as building code, and behind-the-meter energy storage is emerging in both commercial and residential buildings. Technology costs for these renewable energy systems are dropping at an astounding rate. By 2030, we will see net-zero energy system design become the norm in every new construction project with clusters of buildings working together to produce more energy than they consume.

Spokane will soon be home to the future of the built environment. McKinstry and our partners broke ground on the Catalyst Building in August, starting construction on what will become the world’s largest verified net-zero energy building. The five-story, 159,000 square foot building will demonstrate what’s possible in our built environment – and what we’re capable of delivering here at McKinstry.

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My B.L.U.E. Summer: Griffin Small (Seattle)

September 28, 2018 by Griffin Small Leave a Comment

Hello! My name is Griffin Small and I spent the summer of 2018 working as a construction project engineer intern at McKinstry’s Seattle headquarters. Primarily, I’ve been working on the Central Kitsap High School/Middle School jobsite.

Griffin Small.

Learning was my biggest takeaway from this summer—lots and lots of learning. Before I dive into that, though, I’ll introduce myself a little. I was born and raised in Edmonds, Wash. and am currently attending Saint Martin’s University in Olympia, Wash. I’m a rising senior majoring in mechanical engineering. I’m also a soccer player and a goalkeeper (any other goalkeepers should feel free to reach out, we’re a dying breed)!

As you can probably tell from my photo, I’m also a full-on ginger (red hair and freckles, if you were unfamiliar with the term), so other gingers please feel free to reach out as well—we’re also a dying breed. Being an athlete and an engineering student simultaneously has been a tremendous challenge. Learning to manage my time playing soccer and traveling while also keeping with my studies has been tough, but I think it will help me in real-life situations as I get older.

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My B.L.U.E. Summer: Tessa Weiss (Golden, Colo.)

September 28, 2018 by Tessa Weiss Leave a Comment

Hello! My name is Tessa Weiss and I’m a rising junior studying Mechanical Engineering at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). This summer, I’ve had the opportunity to intern as an energy engineer with McKinstry’s Colorado team.

Tessa Weiss.

I’ve always been interested in sustainability and energy, and McKinstry intrigued me because the company sees many of its projects through its entire life-cycle—from development to design to construction to commissioning and measurement and verification. As an energy engineer, knowing that my work is actually helping to make an impact at increasing the energy efficiency of buildings is a powerful feeling.

One of the first words I think of when I think of McKinstry is implementation; this is in part because of their ability to design, construct and verify the project all under the same roof. McKinstry doesn’t just sit around and hypothetically talk about how to increase the efficiency of buildings—they actually design, construct and verify a more efficient built environment.

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My B.L.U.E. Summer: Sara Berry-Maraist (Spokane)

September 28, 2018 by Sara Berry-Maraist Leave a Comment

Hello! My name is Sara Berry-Maraist, and spending my summer as a project design engineer intern in McKinstry’s Spokane, Wash. office has been a wonderful experience. I graduated from Gonzaga University (also located in Spokane) in the spring of 2018, and interning at McKinstry has made for a smooth life transition.

Sara Berry-Maraist.

Everyone has been so welcoming and—even when I ask questions multiple times—I always get nothing but positive responses. I’ve wanted to work at McKinstry since I toured the office in 2017 and working here has exceeded my already-high expectations. Even as an intern, I’ve felt like an important part of the company—doing real work and not stereotypical tasks like getting coffee and making copies.

This summer, I’ve worked on a variety of projects from smaller Seattle projects to significantly helping design the zero energy Catalyst Building in Spokane. Recently, I’ve done a lot of load calculations and duct static pressure calculations. I think my favorite activity, though, is designing in Revit—a building information modeling software. The only modeling software I learned in college was a different one called SolidWorks, so learning Revit and expanding my skillset was important for me.

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SPARK

Discoveries, innovations, and insights that illuminate the future of the built environment

Amanda Provenzano is all about taking energy action

University of Northern Colorado saves big with energy action

Carson City School District turns energy action into impact

Sylvia McIvor is passionate about helping save our planet

Tahoma’s powerED Green Team kicks the year in gear

Here’s how Alison Schwabe takes energy action at work and at home

Energized by our future

My B.L.U.E. Summer: Griffin Small (Seattle)

My B.L.U.E. Summer: Tessa Weiss (Golden, Colo.)

My B.L.U.E. Summer: Sara Berry-Maraist (Spokane)

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