Case Studies

Real estate investment case study: FAA Building sustainability

Unico partnered with MacDonald-Miller Facility Solutions and performed a building-wide investment grade energy audit to identify major deficiencies in building systems and facility improvement strategies.

Net profit from facility improvements reached $1.01M including $99,000 in cash savings recovered before sale

 

Built in 1990, the FAA Building is a Class-A, 200,000 square foot institutional office building fully leased to the Federal Aviation Administration.

In 2008, two years prior to the expiry of FAA’s lease, the asset was experiencing rising energy consumption, with expenditures reaching $2.19 per square foot. The asset had received an ENERGY STAR score of only 65, and the antiquated building systems and limited controls inhibited optimal performance.

The FAA Building, a Class A institutional office building, managed by Unico, a private equity real estate investment firm.

Unico’s work reduced energy consumption, resulting in annual energy savings of $115,000

More Sustainability Stories

 

Exterior shot of the FAA Building and signage, managed by Unico, a private equity firm, fully leased to the Federal Aviation Administration
The FAA Building, fully leased to the Federal Aviation Administration.

In 2008, Unico partnered with MacDonald-Miller Facility Solutions and performed a building-wide investment grade energy audit to identify major deficiencies in building systems and facility improvement strategies. The audit attributed the asset’s excessive energy consumption to a lack of fan control and failing interior zones. Based on these findings, Unico’s engineering team replaced pneumatic zone controls and corrected zoning issues, and installed variable frequency drive (VFD) controls on rooftop fan units and new energy controls to optimize operating schedules.

Unico’s system enhancements resulted in an elevated ENERGY STAR rating of 95, and a LEED Gold certification. By 2011, the asset experienced a significant reduction in energy consumption resulting in annual energy savings of $115,000, and a residual value from energy savings of $1.17M. The net profit from the facility improvements reached $1.01M including $99,000 in cash savings recovered before sale. Additionally, the predicted payback period was reduced from 6.6 years to 2.3 years, and the actual savings surpassed the pro forma estimate by $75,000. Before sale, the single tenant, FAA, renewed their lease through 2015.