EDITOR’S NOTE: We want to learn how other companies approach sustainability, so we’ve decided to publish a series of posts featuring innovative companies who are doing their part to support our planet. See below to read a Q&A with Steve Saunders, CEO of U.S. Eco Logic, Inc, TexEnergy Solutions & Tempo Mechanical Services.
Tell us a little about your company.
Tempo Mechanical Services, Inc. is an HVAC, Plumbing Services and Installation Company serving the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex. However, we are no longer your traditional A/C and plumbing company. In the last 15 years, we have been transformed by a focus on energy efficiency and sustainability and have worked to help our clients pursue the same objectives. Today, our business purpose is to improve the comfort, efficiency, sustainability and wellness of the buildings where people live and work.
How did that transition come about?
We created a unique formula for success.
(EO + SL + PE + PK) + (ME + BB) + (EE + EF) = P3
People Profits Planet = Triple Bottom Line
It is a balanced equation, which basically means:
- Employee Ownership + Servant Leadership + Performance Excellence + Partners with the Power of Knowledge or People
- More Efficient + Bigger and Better or Profits
- Energy Efficient and Environmentally Friendly or Planet
= Results that are Good for People, Profits and Planet or P3
Our approach is to understand our clients’ objectives and help them achieve what they what. We find that customers are attracted to this model and it is a great recruitment and retention strategy for the best employees.
What do you see as the economic elements driving clients toward energy efficiency and sustainability?
The drivers are personal and corporate energy-cost-savings. There are also factors of health tied to the quality of both indoor and outdoor air. There are very significant emerging issues in the area of sufficient, clean, potable water with drought not far from our minds, even as we recently dealt with a local deluge of rain.
How have your changed your business offerings?
Part of the change was a response to the demands of the market. In the early 2000’s, energy costs were rising rapidly. At that time, making buildings more energy-efficient was a major business opportunity. We studied how to make existing and new buildings more energy-efficient and environmentally-friendly. With respect to existing buildings, we became early national leaders in the Home Performance movement, and we have developed tremendous expertise in understanding the house as a system. For our installation and construction business, we became the market leader for builders of high-performance homes and the design build HVAC contractors for high-volume production builders who focus on customer satisfaction, energy and green performance and design leadership.
What we also found was that as we made homes and building more efficient we made them much more comfortable.
Far from limiting opportunity, the more we know ... the more opportunities we see and understand. For us, as we get deeper and deeper into understanding the ramifications of a changing energy, green and high technology environment, we see that being on the inside of the specialties creates larger opportunities than being on the outside of them, in that they offer exciting new business opportunities where we can help others with our expertise.
What needs did you see and what businesses have you started?
We continue to see the need to help others make intelligent and cost-effective choices as they make their homes and apartment buildings more energy and water-efficient. We consult on the proper management of material and the improvement of indoor air quality. In 2002, we started a local business that did energy-efficiency inspections. That business is now known by two names – TexEnergy Solutions and US-Eco Logic – and has 9 offices around the world. It has become the number one volume provider of LEED for Homes Certificates in the World as well as the leading USA Verifier for the National Green Building Standard. We have several pending patents covering indoor air quality developments and partner with a key manufacturer to produce products that help very tight buildings get an appropriate amount of fresh air.
How do you envision the future of the green movement? What's in the cards and how will we get there?
The sustainability movement makes more business sense than any business alternative. The green building movement will have lasting financial rewards. It is not the only path to economic success ... but it is the most clear and surest path to absorbing the monumental changes in front of us and profiting from them in a personal and business sense.
How did you come to use Green Mountain Energy as your service provider?
Several years ago, we stopped to think about our power purchase and decided to find a product that better represented our company outlook and strategy. For the last 5 years, we have been a Green Mountain Energy customer, purchasing 100% green power to serve the needs of our business operations in this market. We buy green power from Green Mountain because it is a good value and because it is consistent with the services we offer and the character of the organization we have become.
Where can people learn more?
Visit us on our sites: U.S. Eco Logic, Inc, TexEnergy Solutions & Tempo Mechanical Services.
And check out the USGBC leadership award video!
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To read about more businesses and people focused on sustainability, visit our “Sustainability Stories” archive by clicking here.
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