Woburn-based property developer and manager Cummings Properties’ TradeCenter 128, pre-certified LEED at the gold level, is the company’s most recent example of its commitment to building and maintaining energy-efficient properties.

Kermit was right. It’s not easy being green. But while it may not be easy, it is worth the effort, since property management companies that can successfully implement energy-efficiency and green-building initiatives are finding that these policies are becoming increasingly important in attracting and retaining clients.

As a property developer and manager, Woburn-based Cummings Properties was early to recognize the benefits of creating and maintaining energy-efficient properties. Several of its major properties long ago earned the Energy Star rating. Launched in 1992, Energy Star is a joint program of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the U.S. Department of Energy, with the goal of helping businesses and consumers save money and protect the environment through energy-efficient products and practices.

According to the Energy Star Web site (www.energystar.gov), commercial and industrial facilities account for half of all energy consumption in the U.S. at a cost of over $200 billion per year – more than any other sector of the economy. Although Boston Celtics fans have recently been accused of jumping on the “green” bandwagon, with so much money spent on energy, it is really commercial property managers who ought to move quickly to create and implement energy-saving green programs.

The Energy Star Web site notes that “commercial buildings that have earned the Energy Star use, on average, 35 percent less energy than typical similar buildings and generate one-third less carbon dioxide. Ever-increasing concern about the financial and environmental risks associated with climate change is driving more organizations to strive for the Energy Star for their buildings.”

In addition to Energy Star, many property developers are seeking LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) certification for their projects. As stated on the United States Green Building Council’s Web site (www.usgbc.org), “LEED provides independent, third-party verification that a new or existing building project meets the highest green-building and performance measures.”

According to USGBC, the benefits to having a LEED-certified building are both environmental and financial, and they include:

• Less waste sent to landfills;

• Energy and water conservation;

• Lower operating costs and increased asset value;

• A reduction in harmful greenhouse gas emissions;

• A healthier and safer environment for building occupants; and

• Qualifying for tax rebates, zoning allowances and other incentives offered by hundreds of cities nationwide.

TradeCenter 128, Cummings Properties’ newest 7-story, 400,000-square-foot office complex, nearing completion in Woburn, has been LEED pre-certified at the gold level. To receive pre-certification, Cummings Properties designed the complex to include high-efficiency HVAC equipment and lighting systems, high-performance glass, water-saving plumbing fixtures, on-site rainwater storage, and construction materials made from high levels of recycled materials. As part of the LEED program, the company also expanded its construction waste recycling and building recycling programs.

While Energy Star and LEED certification are typically undertaken by a building owner, individual clients can take advantage of energy-efficiency programs administered by NSTAR. Property managers and their clients can look to NSTAR for energy-efficient upgrades, cost-saving measures and even how to manage energy use with online Web tools.

Many clients are unaware of NSTAR programs, and turn to their property managers for guidance and leadership. The property management team at Cummings Properties, which strives to create and maintain positive, ongoing relationships with its clients, facilitates their use of NSTAR’s programs. According to NSTAR’s Web site, companies that participate in an energy audit and complete energy upgrades may be entitled to:

• Comprehensive rebates up to 75 percent of the total project cost;

• Prescriptive rebates up to 50 percent of the total project cost;

• Cost sharing for engineering services; and

• Design and commissioning services.

Energy Star, NSTAR and LEED are certainly valuable and useful programs for any commercial property manager trying to implement energy saving policies. Property managers can also establish their own initiatives, and not feel restrained by the limits or requirements of an existing program. Property managers may consider:

• Installing operable windows to reduce reliance on building cooling systems.

• Installing water saving plumbing fixtures, such as waterless urinals, motion activated sinks, low-volume toilets, etc.

• Encouraging public transportation by seeking out solutions such as shuttle bus service from commuter rail/bus stations. Cummings Properties, for example, worked closely with the MBTA to create bus service to West Cummings Park and TradeCenter 128 in Woburn, as well as at its Cummings Center office park in Beverly.

• Installing-energy efficient HVAC systems and actively maintaining existing systems.

• Using recycled materials during construction and renovation, and then recycling or reusing any remaining products. By designing and assembling its buildings using flexible, standard plans, Cummings Properties can typically reuse office buildouts.

• Adding improved insulation to the outside walls when performing a building upgrade or façade renovation.

• Collecting and reusing rainwater for landscaping purposes, which reduces reliance on town or city water supplies.

A company’s energy and water use is easy to measure, and the associated cost savings are just as easy to quantify. One need only compare utility bills to see the impact on a firm’s bottom line. There are other initiatives, however, that may not be as easy to measure but may have a broader impact.

One of the most effective energy-saving or “green” programs for a property manager to institute, and likely one of the easiest for a client to implement, is an onsite recycling program. According to Carnegie Mellon Green Practices (www.cmu.edu/greenpractices), “the average office generates about 1.5 pounds of waste paper per employee per day. By recycling office paper, a typical office may reduce its waste bills by as much as 50 percent.”

In addition to the financial incentives, there is also a growing body of evidence to support the claim that green buildings are healthier to occupy, and that those occupants are more productive while there. A recent study by the Massachusetts Technology Collaborative found that “employers could increase workforce productivity by 7.1 percent per year by controlling indoor temperatures, increasing sunlight and improving indoor air quality.”

With the apparent rapid acceleration in the construction and creation of “green” properties, and the groundswell of interest in occupying energy-efficient office space, property managers would be well served by creating an internal position to focus on sustainability.

Recently, Cummings Properties installed Gary Gresh as its first sustainability manager. Gresh has been charged with identifying and implementing initiatives to reduce energy consumption, helping the company reduce its carbon output, and to take a leadership role among commercial real estate developers and property managers in New England.

It has become increasingly clear that commercial property managers need to identify and implement energy saving programs and other “green” initiatives in order attract and retain clients. These firms expect their property managers to look out for them. While there are many existing resources to help in this process, property managers can and should take smaller steps to achieve energy savings.