Champion for October!
Sparling is the largest specialty electrical engineering and technology consulting firm in the United States. With over 170 professionals on staff and a track record 61 years-strong, we provide bright minds, design excellence and market leadership to fuel smart decisions in a wide variety of markets, from healthcare to biotech, education to entertainment. And at the heart of our culture is our commitment to the protection and preservation of our planets many precious resources.
Sustainability affects every level of an organization, from the physical office to the local neighborhood and beyond to the entire planet. And as a business and as human beings, Sparling is deeply concerned about the well-being of our environment. As advocates for sustainability, it starts at home, by implementing policies and procedures within our company that will help us work and live in a more sustainable and environmentally friendly manner.
Within each of our offices we implement low flow fixtures in restrooms and kitchens, automatic motion sensors, dimming controls and daylight sensors, throughout our offices to control our energy use. We utilize teleconferencing to connect our four offices together rather than physically traveling and we encourage the use of teleconferencing even with local firms rather than driving 10 miles to attend a meeting, all in an effort to reduce Sparling's Carbon footprint.
Paper is one of the largest consumable materials we use. However, we have greatly reduced our paper consumption by utilizing electronic file storage for all project related documents. And when we do have a need to print documents, all our computers are defaulted to double-sided printing, and all of our copy paper is recycled stock, with a high percentage of post-consumer content and chlorine-free. All of our day-to-day forms are electronic, from vacation request forms to proposal forms to expense reports.
We are also proud members and supporters of the US Green Building Council (USGBC) and the San Diego Regional Sustainability Partnership (SDRSP) and take an active role in these very important organizations. Sparling currently has 21 LEED Accredited Professionals on our staff, in an effort to ensure that at every step of our design process, sustainability and the environment is at the fore-front.
That higher level sustainable thinking has been put into practice on many of our premier projects, such as the new Central Seattle Library, which was LEED Silver, as well as the Evergreen State College Seminar Building which received LEED Gold.
And in an effort to give back to our community, in a sustainable way, Sparling has recently taken on a pro-bono project for the SDSU Sky Oaks Field Station, which was destroyed in the 2003 Coyote fires. Working through the San Diego Regional Sustainability Partnership, Sparling has willingly taken on this very special project to bring back, literally from the ashes, such an important and significant facility.
This new Field Station will incorporate the most energy efficient and most environmentally conscience materials and equipment. It will harness the sun for a portion of its power and derive its heating and cooling from the earth itself. It will truly respect nature.
As sustainable Engineers, we strive for that perfect balance between Nature and the Built Environment. And we've got it right when our buildings become, not a place where we scrape away nature and drop down concrete and steel, but when we can blur the division between nature and our built environment …that's when we've got it right. At Sparling, we work everyday to get it right.
Sparling - Work Together / Stand ApartWhat are the best and quickest ways for a business to save? Taking a few proactive steps to reduce energy usage can conserve natural resources, lower energy costs and save money:
- Reduce lighting where possible and take advantage of natural daylight. Turning lights off or dimming them during the day allows for lower energy costs and a more comfortable environment. Also, remove excess lighting, and turn off signage and other lights not necessary for security and safety.
- Install occupancy sensors. These inexpensive devices can reduce lighting costs by up to 40 percent by turning off lights in unoccupied areas.
- Replace incandescent bulbs with compact fluorescent lamps (CFLs), which can last up to ten times longer. CFLs provide the same amount of (light) lumens as standard incandescent bulbs, but use up to 75 percent less energy.
- Replace incandescent lights in exit signs with LED fixtures, which can reduce costs of these signs by up to 95 percent.
- Adjust the thermostat down in the winter and up in the summer and shut off when not in use. Even a few degrees can significantly reduce heating and air conditioning costs.
- Install programmable thermostats or time clocks to automatically control temperature settings on heating and air conditioning equipment.
- Turn off or set office equipment to power down when not in use. Turning off one computer and monitor nightly and on weekends can save up to $80 a year. And setting PCs, monitors and copiers to use sleep mode when not in use can help cut energy costs by up to 50 percent.
- Lower the thermostat on your water heater. 120° F is sufficient for many common uses. A 10° F reduction can save up to 5 percent on water heating costs.
- Invest in energy-efficient equipment. When upgrading or adding new equipment, look for the ENERGY STAR® symbol, which indicates the equipment meets federal standards for energy efficiency.
- Call SDG&E about our energy efficiency services and rebates at (800) 644-6133.
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