Finding The "LEED"-ers

When walking the aisles of the Building Service Contractors Association International or ISSA/Interclean® trade shows, you’ll see a plethora of products geared toward green cleaning. But ask the building service contractors walking those same aisles if they currently implement these types of products for the Washington, D.C.-based U.S. Green Building Council’s Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) programs and most will say, “No, our customers aren’t interested.”

Marketing LEED services to every account in a portfolio will waste time, money and morale. Not every building a BSC already cleans can qualify for LEED, nor is every building owner interested in achieving certification. But, LEED is a growing movement. Already, more than 200 projects have achieved certification and another 2,000 are registered for the certification process — and the number continues to grow. For BSCs this means LEED is a marketing tool that gets more profitable with each building. Luckily, some patterns among LEED buildings are beginning to show, making targeting the right customer a little easier.

A desirable service
For the most part, BSCs are aiming at accounts that quality for LEED for Existing Buildings (EB). To achieve basic certification, buildings need to earn a total of 32 points. For example, a building would earn points for reducing water consumption, using renewable construction materials or encouraging carpooling among tenants. Cleaning services, such as the use of green products, the location of janitorial closets and the maintenance of entryways, can total around 13 points and depending on what other services the BSC provides, the points can add up even further.

What makes a BSC’s services even more desirable is that they are a low investment for the building owner. For example, some points require adding materials such as photo-voltaic panels or vegetative roofs to a building, which can cost upwards of hundreds of thousands of dollars, says Steve Ashkin, president of the Ashkin Group, Bloomington, Ind.

“Building owners address LEED certification from a ‘business’ perspective, which simply means that they add up the points that their building already meets without any investment, and then look at all the other points that require investment,” says Ashkin. “Together, they need enough points to achieve the desired certification level at the lowest capital investment.”

Interested markets
A leader in the LEED movement, Newton, Mass.-based UNICCO has been providing green cleaning programs geared towards LEED-certified buildings for more than a year. The company was instrumental in helping the National Geographic Society become the first LEED-EB certified facility in the world. They also have several clients registered for certification and many more in the process of “going green,” says George Lohnes, vice president of marketing.

One shock the company received when implementing the programs was who the interested audiences actually were.

“We expected a much earlier adoption within our government and then educational portfolio, but we have been pleasantly surprised with the adoption rate within the commercial/corporate arena,” says Lohnes.

And within that commercial market, the office segment often is the leader in adopting new trends, especially in issues such as energy and the environment, says Tom Hicks, program manager for LEED-EB. This is good news for BSCs, as offices traditionally make up the bulk of their portfolios.

By offering to help commercial building owners achieve LEED certification, BSCs are also helping owners differentiate their buildings from the crowd.

“Building owners are finding that if they own a beautiful, Class A office building sitting next to another similar building, LEED can help them differentiate themselves because it serves as an independent validation that they have a better building,” says Ashkin.

For commercial building owners, LEED certification then becomes a marketing tool when attracting new tenants and retaining existing tenants — and tenants can have a direct impact on the cleaning of the building.

“There is a growing awareness in the tenant community about health issues in relation to cleaning supplies,” says Alan Scott, director of consulting, Green Building Services, Portland, Ore.

Tenants are concerned about sensitivity to cleaning chemicals. When they smell the odors around the building, they know to question if their work environment is healthy or not, says Scott. Also, more tenants are becoming educated about the benefits of green cleaning.

Another noticeable target for LEED services are commercial and corporate companies that include health and environmental issues in their core mission.

“For corporate buildings that occupy the building they own, LEED is a way to show and demonstrate to shareholders and the public that they are good stewards of the environment,” says Hicks.

Of course, not every commercial building is going to be a prime target for LEED certification.

“While LEED-EB is available for all existing buildings there are some requirements such as energy efficiency that make it difficult to achieve for older buildings without substantial investment,” says Ashkin.

BSCs should focus on newer buildings built in the last 10 to 20 years, or buildings that have been recently renovated, adds Ashkin.

In second place behind commercial and corporate buildings is the educational market. Universities are looking at LEED for dormitories and classrooms. Even K-12 schools have shown interest in LEED.

“Schools want buildings that are conducive to learning,” says Hicks. “And like the commercial market, they want to show that they are responsible citizens.”

Customer concerns
When marketing LEED services to clients, it is crucial BSCs know exactly what they are getting into and plan to commit to the program wholeheartedly.

“Clients are looking for contractors that really understand what LEED requires. They want to gain as many of the 13 points [associated with cleaning] as possible and not just the one point that comes from changing out chemicals,” says Ashkin.

But what facility managers want most out of their BSC is to not have to worry about the services. They have a lot on their plate and don’t need one more problem.

“It’s easy for BSCs to rally around something like LEED, but make sure claims are substantiated,” says Hicks. “Facility mangers worry about unsubstantiated claims — be honest and upfront to put their concerns to rest.”