City of Las Vegas leads the way with energy optimizationBuildingIQ, a leading energy management software company, announces
that the City of Las Vegas is the first city in the world to deploy
its cloud-based energy management system broadly for optimized power
consumption.
The deployment is part of utility NV Energy’s ground-breaking mPowered
program. By utilizing BuildingIQ’s optimization software, Las Vegas
has become the first major city in the country to leverage this type
of energy management solution to achieve meaningful energy savings,
while reducing strain on the power grid. It also enables Las Vegas to
lay the foundation for creating a fully integrated Smart City.
BuildingIQ’s Predictive Energy Optimization software learns a
building’s HVAC energy patterns to predict consumption. Based on these
predictions and electronic signals sent directly from NV Energy, the
cloud-based system automatically optimizes energy usage and manages DR
events, all while maintaining occupant comfort.
By enrolling in the mPowered program and participating in DR events,
Las Vegas will be able to benefit from access to the software and the
resulting energy reductions. BuildingIQ’s software not only delivers
measurable energy and peak load savings, but provides the City of Las
Vegas with insights and detailed tracking of the performance of its
buildings. In addition, the software can be deployed and deliver
results in a wide variety of building types and sizes. This makes it
the perfect solution for the City of Las Vegas’ diverse portfolio,
which includes its award winning, LEED Gold city hall.
“Sustainability is one of the core values for our city,” said Tom
Perrigo, chief sustainability officer for the city of Las Vegas. “We
are proud to be participating in NV Energy’s unique program which aims
to significantly reduce our carbon footprint. The early results from
BuildingIQ’s Predictive Energy Optimization solution have been
fantastic and we look forward to seeing wide deployment through our
city and the state.”
“The mPowered program, using BuildingIQ’s software, is an excellent
example of how a technology vendor, city government, utility and
multiple building mangers can come together in order to begin to
create a Smart City,” said Ruthbea Yenser Clarke, Research Director,
global Smart Cities Strategies at IDC. “This program provides a
win-win situation for the stakeholders and creates operational
efficiency for all parties. We’ll start to see a wider adoption of
these types of initiatives as they prove successful and people become
educated about the tangible benefits.”
“Through the Demand Response Partnership Program, USGBC is working
with those in the commercial building industry and the energy industry
to find solutions that benefit both sides of the grid and the
environment,” said Brendan Owens, VP LEED Technical Development, U.S.
Green Building Council. “We are pleased to be working with NV Energy
and their mPowered program to help drive demand response in LEED
buildings such as the City of Las Vegas’ LEED Gold City Hall.”
“Demand response can play a pivotal role in meeting the City of Las
Vegas’ energy needs without relying on fossil fuel power plants that
pollute our air and consume the state’s much-needed water resources,”
said Jim Marston, vice president of Environmental Defense Fund’s US
Climate and Energy Program. “EDF applauds the City of Las Vegas for
taking an innovative, dynamic energy management approach that will
spur economic growth, cleaner air and a safer climate for all
Nevadians.”
“The City of Las Vegas is proof that automated energy management can
be extremely successful in large-scale implementations and help to
overcome some of the barriers that are associated with developing a
Smart City,” said Michael Nark, president & CEO of BuildingIQ. “They
are already one of the most water-smart cities in the country and are
now becoming one of the most energy efficient. The initiatives that
have been put into place are turning it into a beacon of
sustainability.”
BuildingIQ will be exhibiting at GREENBUILD 2013 from November 20-21
in the smart grid pavilion, booth 3959. To learn more, visit
http://www.buildingiq.com/.
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Local family wins contest, stars in national holiday ad campaignA local family was selected to model winter styles in Rack Room Shoes’
national holiday ad campaign after submitting a family photo among
nearly 3,000 entrants. As winners of the footwear retailer’s 9th
annual Models Wanted contest, the Balingit family now appears on the
company’s website, newspaper inserts and in-store signage in more than
385 locations nationwide.
Rather than hiring professional models, Rack Room Shoes spotlights
real customers in all of its advertising and promotional efforts.
Without any previous modeling experience, Isaiah, Nicole, and their
three children, Branden, Jayden and Jazlyn, traveled to Charlotte,
N.C. to participate in an all-expenses paid, three-day photo shoot.
The trip included luxury accommodations together with a personal
chauffeur and professional hair, makeup and wardrobe stylists.
“I entered the contest and totally forgot about it. I didn’t even tell
my husband I had submitted our photo,” admitted Nicole. “The best part
was being pampered. We felt like we were true celebrities.”
For family patriarch Isaiah, modeling was a whole new experience.
“I’ve never been the center of attention before,” said Isaiah, who
currently serves in the United States Air Force. “I was definitely
pushed out of my comfort zone, but the Rack Room Shoes team made us
feel very welcomed and relaxed on set.”
The Balingit family will remain the face of Rack Room Shoes throughout
the entire holiday campaign, which extends through December 24.
“We love to shine a spotlight on our customers, which is why we have
continued to host this contest for nearly a decade,” said Jan Mauldin,
director of marketing for Rack Room Shoes. “Models Wanted is an
integral part of who we are as a company. It allows us to show our
appreciation to customers, while connecting with them in a unique
way.”
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Non-Profits Launch “Go Commando” Indiegogo CampaignImpact Bay Area and Impact Personal Safety have been teaching women
and girls effective personal safety skills for over 30 years. These
501c3 non-profits have given thousands of women and girls real,
effective self-defense skills using the tools they always have with
them: their voices, their elbows, their knees, and powerful kicks.
Recently Impact Bay Area and Impact Personal Safety became aware of an
Indiegogo campaign raising over $50,000 to produce “anti-rape”
underwear, basically a modern chastity belt. The makers of “AR Wear”
claim that these undergarments would make women safer, but they
acknowledge that “no product alone can solve the problem of violence
against women.” Nothing can guarantee safety, but anti-rape panties do
not protect women from violence at all, so Impact launched their own
Indiegogo campaign to provide women and girls with real personal
safety choices.
“The notion that women should dress differently to keep themselves
safe from sexual assault is dangerous and wrong. Clothes do not cause
or prevent rape. Nuns and women in burkas are raped. Rapists cause
rape. And rape culture, including the offensive notion that women need
to keep their sexuality under lock and key to be safe, perpetuates the
myth that women are helpless, that they cannot physically defend
themselves.” — Impact “Go Commando” http://igg.me/at/impactsafety
The founders of AR Wear “believe that self-defense skills can help to
resist an attempted assault,” so they did get that one thing right.
Resistance can be very effective. Many women and girls have used their
voices and their physical self-defense skills to stop would-be
attackers. But wearing kevlar underwear is not resistance. It’s a fig
leaf hiding rape culture. It provides a false and dangerous sense of
security.
One of the stated reasons for launching the “anti-rape” underwear
campaign on Indiegogo was that the founders needed “to know that other
people believe that this product line should exist.” Impact Bay Area,
Impact Personal Safety and many others working to end violence against
women have responded with a powerful “No!”
Impact Bay Area and Impact Personal Safety are raising funds to train
expert instructors, teach more teen girls, young adult women, and
women real, effective self-defense skills. They believe safety should
be a right, not a privilege, so they provide this life-changing
self-defense training to women and girls who need it, regardless of
their ability to pay. Their Indiegogo campaign aims to raise $50,000
between now and January 13, 2014.
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