Before applying the cleaning process in Accesso's portfolio, ONPEAK tested the air handling units at 1776 Yorktown.
HOUSTON—As part of its commitment to lead the industry in providing energy efficient and healthy workplaces, Accesso has implemented the Blue Box cleaning process throughout its portfolio. Blue Box enables Accesso to ensure all of its heating, ventilation and air conditioning systems are running at peak efficiency, thereby reducing energy and water consumption, and generating clean high-quality air for tenants.
The Blue Box-patented cleaning process involves injecting pH neutral, anti-microbial enzymes into the coils of HVAC systems to completely remove harmful bacteria and toxic pollutants, resulting in a significant improvement in air quality and overall cleanliness. This helps property owners substantially reduce operating expenses, energy consumption and water usage. And, Blue Box is the only available option that eliminates the need to shut down equipment during cleaning and is gentle on coils, mitigating the potential for damage.
"Blue Box is an important solution for us as we work to advance our mission of making the world a better place, one building at a time," said Daniel Goldstein, managing partner of operations and investor relations at Accesso, an investment manager and multi-tenant office building operator. "We believe in providing our tenants with workplaces that reflect their values and Blue Box is helping us remain at the forefront of employee health and environmental wellness. We have already yielded many positive benefits as a result of implementing Blue Box, including a substantial reduction in energy usage, and we expect the technology will help us further lower our carbon footprint and operating costs."
This Blue Box initiative was spearheaded by ONPEAK Energy, a sustainability consulting company that has played an important role in designing Accesso's portfolio-wide sustainability program. ONPEAK Energy oversees the implementation, data collection and solution design of the Blue Box process for Accesso.
The Blue Box cleaning process is just one of several initiatives Accesso has put in place to help ensure the well-being of its tenants and the environment. These efforts have led to more than $1.2 million in annual energy savings and 12 million kilowatts saved per year, while reducing the carbon footprint of its portfolio by more than 18.7 million pounds of CO2.
Accesso Club, the company's exclusive amenities program, is designed to improve the overall quality of life for all who work at Accesso properties by offering a variety of benefits including participation in wellness seminars, professional development training, charitable events and local fundraisers.
"ONPEAK identified the Blue Box cleaning process as a disruptive and ideal option for Accesso to improve air quality and HVAC performance for its tenants across its portfolio," Goldstein tells GlobeSt.com. "Before applying it throughout Accesso's entire portfolio, ONPEAK tested the process with four air handling units at two of Accesso's properties in the Houston Area, 3900 Essex and 1776 Yorktown. Prior to running the tests, ONPEAK noticed that the systems were very clogged with dirt, grime and biologic fouling. All systems had a substantial amount of blockages in the coils. Blue Box was able to penetrate the complete surface area coverage, and the cleaning positively impacted the temperature transfer across the coils as well as the energy consumption of the blower motor."
The results from the demo included two buildings, four air handling units, 30% pressure differential drop per air handling unit on average, $694 estimated savings per air handling unit on average and 4,430 estimated pounds of CO2 reduction per air handling unit on average, GlobeSt.com learns.
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Lisa Brown
Lisa Brown is an editor for the south and west regions of GlobeSt.com. She has 25-plus years of real estate experience, with a regional PR role at Grubb & Ellis and a national communications position at MMI. Brown also spent 10 years as executive director at NAIOP San Francisco Bay Area chapter, where she led the organization to achieving its first national award honors and recognition on Capitol Hill. She has written extensively on commercial real estate topics and edited numerous pieces on the subject.
