The world’s paper consumption comes at the cost of cutting down about 4 billion trees each year. The United States uses about 28% of its lumber for paper, equating to about 71 million tons annually. With sobering statistics like these, plus a gathering storm of environmental woes, businesses and eco-activist organizations are ambitiously pursuing measures by which to reduce such impacts.

While many enterprises, especially those with higher-than-average paper consumption, have begun to implement ‘paperless policies’ as part of sustainability efforts, evidence is mounting that indicates simple digitization might not be enough.

One recent report has shown that, despite a positive rise in digital documents over paper, workplace printers are still spitting out reams of it unnecessarily. For example, the report shows that 77% of electronically transmitted PDF invoices end up in hard copy form.

The take-away for business owners is that, while electronic document management is an essential tool both for streamlining process flows and bolstering sustainability policies, it must be supplemented by awareness, training and a breakaway from the habits driving our need for printed paperwork.

Perhaps those most affected by the plague of paper perpetuation make up the vast majority of the building industry in the U.S. In addition to the forms and documentation common to almost every business, firms in the building space also manage tons of paperwork and files, from drawings and plans to important emails and proposals.

With the advent of Cloud computing and Software as a Service (SaaS) tools (such as our own eTransmittal application) available to Architecture, Engineering and Construction (AEC) firms, paperless policies are becoming easier to implement.

Vendors and solutions developers are offering more solutions with greater diversity aimed at supporting these industries, as well as other high-consumption commercial environments and their sustainability efforts. Still, the paper-piling pandemic remains a process problem, only partially mitigated through digitizing our documentation.

Implementing tools that reduce an organization’s carbon footprint and/or eliminate waste and paper consumption are typically offering greater additional benefits, such as enabling a contractor to send larger files more quickly or keep track of projects with ease.  If your firm is investing in these types of tools, just remember that if you truly want to optimize the utility and versatility of these advanced assets, there’s still no fail-safe keeping those documents from ending up in the printer tray.

How Contractors are netting huge rewards by putting their money where the Cloud is

Back in February, our feature article, “The Secret to Pushing Green Building into the Mainstream” focused on concepts that could improve the adoption rate of Sustainability measures among A/E/C (Architecture/Engineering/Construction) firms. Only a few months have passed, and the trend is catching on like wildfire.

The ‘Secret’ article highlighted the importance of support-based vendors and contractors promoting value in their green-minded offerings. As it turns out, A/E/C firms are quickly discovering that value (and then some) as they internalize green practices – and not without the help of at least one eco-friendly ally in the building industry: ABC Green.

Both the ambitious efforts of ABC and the swiftly growing community of A/E/C businesses pursuing ABC’s Green Contractor Certification program serve to reinforce proof of promising progress resultant from establishing value in green practices.

It appears as though the barrier of justifying investments in sustainability products and policies is rapidly dissipating. Perhaps the most significant evidence to such a claim is the fact that contractors are committing to the cause like never before, by implementing intensive internal sustainability overhauls.

The requirements for companies wishing to net ABC’s prestigious Green Contractor Certificate represent a direct influence within the applicant’s own internal operations – it’s no longer about applying green standards just at the jobsite, and rightly so.

While the program isn’t a newborn (it was established in 2009), we are now entering a period of maturity for the early adopters, as the initial application covers a three-year period. The vastly superior advantages of infusing sustainability measures into the core business, rather than only serving them ‘ala carte’ on projects are now becoming strikingly apparent to those initial applicants such as Oklahoma-based Flintco Constructive Solutions.

We exemplified this type of low-hanging fruit in the form of implementing green-minded measures in our February article by pointing out the bevy of benefits relating to online document management and archiving, including our very own Software as a Service product, eTransmittal.

But there is growing consensus to those benefits elsewhere. Not only does ABC list such requisites for their Green Contractor Certificate as establishing “a policy for archiving documents electronically”, but companies like Flintco are heralding the money- and time-saving returns of implementing cloud-based document management.

An article published this month in Construction Executive magazine entitled “Green From the Inside Out” featured details surrounding Flintco’s three-year venture to internalize their sustainability efforts in line with the ABC Green Contractor Certification requisites.

Cited as one of Flintco’s “biggest operational game-changers resulting from certification” was their new policy governing electronic document storage and submittals. According to the article, the company “no longer runs projects with paper-based documentation, instead relying on digital solutions for three-quarters of its work.”

The list of benefits Flintco touts simply from switching to electronic document management represents an astounding return on investment. Among the rewards realized over the certification period: Postage and shipping cost savings in the hundreds of thousands, flexibility to accelerate project schedules, and the re-positioning of personnel away from paper creation and storage and over to more valuable roles such as quality assurance.

While specific case studies like Flintco carry significant weight, it’s only the tip of the iceberg.  Perhaps one of the most important, albeit subtle, take-aways from such a story isn’t just an encouragement to implement electronic document management, but a rally cry to implement it now. With six-figure savings on the horizon in as little as three years, we doubt too many contractors will be waiting much longer.

Getting More Builders to Adopt Green Standards

Every structure begins with a foundation and a framework; a representation of the precepts applied by an industry that is always building, growing…...creating our civilization as we know it. So isn’t it time that such an enterprise, so focused on growth, take extra measures to prevent the deterioration of our environment?

It’s understandable that most businesses will opt for cost-effective measures over eco-friendly ones… especially when the notion of reducing their carbon footprint threatens those sensitive budget boundaries. 

But what if there were solutions that benefited both profits and planet? Hopefully it would be a no brainer.  Perhaps most A/E/C firms want to operate at the greenest possible standards, but there simply aren’t enough cost-healthy resources available to do so.

There’s no fairness in shaming a construction company for environmentally harmful practices if they lack access to more eco-friendly methods that won’t break the bank. As such, the responsibility falls equally on the shoulders of supporting industries and vendors patronized by A/E/C firms.

Lumber should come from sustainable sources. Vehicles and heavy equipment should produce fewer pollutants with higher efficiency. Tools of the trade, both physical and digital, should help reduce waste as well as overconsumption.  And all of these need a more reasonable price tag.

As the ‘green’ movement gains momentum, most notably with concepts such as “LEED” (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) and similar programs, more contractors and industrial entities will come under scrutiny for eco-friendly practices…and perhaps rightly so.

Even at the Federal level, with environmentally-focused cabinets, committees and legislation becoming a Congressional mainstay, private industry is compelled to make changes for the benefit of our planet.

Fortunately, the first (albeit least expensive) steps are being taken by many firms across the country to initiate proactive green practices. Those first few steps may be small ones but they’re extremely important, as they represent the educational groundwork that is so essential to creating significant and long-lasting changes.

However, simply perpetuating awareness and holding weekly meetings or ‘toolbox talks’ is only a supplement of the greater solution, which involves taking action. Again, we have to remember that the most practical methods are those that don’t require a sacrifice but rather create a win-win scenario for enterprises wishing to employ greener standards.

Just because something is ‘green’… if it doesn’t also contribute an evident value, why would a company adopt it? More importantly…isn’t it a bit presumptuous that we would expect them to? We are only fooling ourselves to think that motivating greener standards through ‘doom and gloom’ scare tactics and guilt trips will ever prove effective in the current ‘cash is king’ society. The solution will be the same as it is for selling anything else to a corporation: Justifying the value.

For example, consider an A/E/C-focused file sharing software such as eTransmittal. At its core, it meets the need for sending, sharing and tracking large files commonly handled among building project teams. The green benefits of using eTransmittal are significant. It eliminates the need for building teams to print and ship large documents, blueprints and other paperwork, thereby slashing paper waste and over-consumption.  It offsets the carbon footprint of typical construction jobs. But no one expects an architect or engineer to pay for such a product solely based on its green benefits. The value lies in the features that cut the core costs, streamline the project, improve overall efficiency and solve problems encountered when using the wrong file sharing tools.

As a support service for A/E/C firms, we know the product has to present value for the core business first and foremost.  Contributing additional green advantages is secondary, although equally important. The bottom line: Pushing momentum in the green building movement is substantially easier and more effective if project teams can acquire environmentally friendly resources that present value in other ways. Support starts with solutions, let’s just try to keep them green.

Building Momentum

As a fresh new year kicks off, full of opportunity, A/E/C companies are gearing up for a busy year. Apart from some amazing architectural exhibitions and record-setting building achievements capturing the attention of an industry recently, one big trend is picking up speed – ‘Green’ Building.

From EPA awareness efforts to green building blogs around the web, the topic of employing ‘greener’ standards in our building practices has taken center stage in a promising new initiative for the betterment of our planet.

Visions of Green

A growing number of enterprises, organizations and building firms have become enchanted by the progressive movement, yielding a promising upswing in the amount of resources and awareness on the internet and other media. Here’s a few of those we’ve noticed recently:

The U.S. Green Building Council: With its ambitious vision focusing on sustainability for buildings and communities, the USGBC anticipates it will contribute $554 billion to the U.S. GDP over a stretch from 2009 to 2013. With tons of resources and educational materials available on their website, and memberships reaching in the hundreds of thousands, USGBC remains a forerunner in the green building movement.

Construction Digital: Despite being first and foremost a construction industry magazine, the Construction Digital website offers a robust suite of resources. Among their offerings, a sub-section focused on green building standards, information and news stories offering fresh perspectives on the newest applications of eco-friendly architecture and construction practices.

GreenBuilding.com: From residential to commercial, greenbuilding.com offers a diverse, almost limitless array of tips, tools, resources and advice about green building. While energy efficiency (in both home and office) is a primary focus for the 30-year building industry veteran and website curator, David Johnston, he takes this invaluable resource above and beyond with myriad training opportunities, localized info guides (by state), and ideas that seek to carve out new frontiers in green building.

Participation Counts

Sure, we’ve only scratched the surface of what’s out there in terms of green building resources, and undoubtedly there will be more to come. The important takeaway from the trends we’re seeing in the building community is twofold:

Firstly, green standards and practices are increasingly imperative for building a sustainable community. Those employing cheaper, less eco-friendly operations are becoming the minority. Providing resources and awareness is a key implement toward progress.

Secondly, everyone must participate. Here at eTransmittal.com, we take pride in offering a software solution that provides greener alternatives for the vast array of file sharing operations that builders employ every day. We are doing our part, and we’d love to hear what you’re doing to jump on the big green bandwagon. We’ll be pointing out more outstanding places on the web as we strive to develop positive A/E/C community relationships, so contact us with your suggestions today!