Landmark Tower | The Farnam

The Landmark Ownership Group in Omaha, Nebraska, purchased the iconic Landmark Tower with designs of converting a portion of the building into a boutique hotel. The project’s primary challenge was to reduce the building’s energy use intensity and evaluate the opportunity to connect to the downtown central utility plant. The project was executed in three phases:

Benchmarking: by reviewing historic utility bills, ENERGY STUDIO was able to develop an energy benchmark for this building. Actual weather data was used to ensure that weather effects were not mistaken for operation or usage anomalies.

Site Investigation: An occupant survey was issued to all building users to capture occupant satisfaction levels with indoor environmental quality, such as thermal comfort, lighting level, air quality, and noise. This ensured the ENERGY STUDIO on-site investigators evaluated areas of top concern at the building. Concurrently, a building operator survey was issued to identify occupancy characteristics, usage patterns, and building-specific problems. Finally, ENERGY STUDIO performed an on-site walk-though of the building, based on the ASHRAE building energy audit process. This walk-through documented existing site conditions including as-built envelope construction, mechanical systems, and lighting systems. Areas of concern related to equipment operation and condition were noted. Data was collected reflecting the current indoor environment, such as lighting levels, background noise levels, and air quality for representative spaces and HVAC systems.

Identification and Implementation of Energy Conservation Measures (ECMs) and Capital Improvements: ENERGY STUDIO developed an energy model for the building to better understand and study the energy usage and potential capital improvements. Using the information compiled in the site investigation and energy model, we developed suggested ECM bundles and associated opinions of probable construction costs for consideration by key decision makers. The ECM bundles were prioritized according to projected Return on Investment (ROI) and presented to project stakeholders. Additionally, a comparison between an on-site energy plant for space cooling and space heating and purchased chilled water and purchased steam was provided. Life cycle cost analysis estimates based on several scenarios were provided to support decision making by the ownership.