What We Do

At Footprint, our goal is simple: how do we get to less? Less costs…less stress…less waste…these are achievements that truly make a difference for our clients, our colleagues, and, ultimately, the world.

Taking a more integrated approach to sustainability services, we work side-by-side with project teams, providing an informed perspective of sustainable opportunities and considerations for design and construction decisions.

Our goal is to act as a catalyst for balance – to ask the right questions and provide possible solutions that point in the right direction. How do we know what the right direction is? It’s always the direction that points toward less energy, less time, less impact, and more sustainable developments.

Here is everything that you ever wanted to know about the energy performance of your building…now what?

At Footprint, we have varying degrees of assistance available to not only model building energy performance, but also break that data down into digestible information for your operations, engineering, and design teams. We pride ourselves on employing the most certified Building Energy Modelling Professionals of any sustainability firm in Canada. That means we have the technical expertise to back up big picture thinking – and the right staff on board to help you map out and achieve your larger energy goals.

You may be targeting net zero carbon, or simply looking to reduce your overall building emissions. No matter your goals, we can build a strategy that is right for you.

LEED (New Construction, Core and Shell, Commercial Interiors, Existing Buildings, Operations and Maintenance, Neighbourhood Development, and Volume)
WELL
BOMA BEST
Net Zero Energy Strategy
Carbon Reduction Plans
Toronto Green Standard

PROJECTS L to R: Gatineau 2 Library and Archives Canada | Sifton Net Zero Project | U of C Mathison Hall | North East Scarborough Community Centre (Rendering courtesy of Perkins+Will)

At the end of the day, after all of the planning and strategy, the tables and the certification applications, you need to make sure your building is actually performing as intended. Too often, sustainability is viewed as a “nice to have” that has grown in popularity but doesn’t have a lot of data or proof to back it up. The proof is in the performance. Confidence in energy efficiency comes from seeing real time results, and our clients expect to see this proof.

And, if you ARE seeing the performance that you would like to see, how can that data be used in the most effective way? Who needs to see it, and how can it be expected to evolve? Measurement and verification strategies can be effectively integrated into your business processes at the building and the operational level, making effective energy efficiency decisions that are still financially viable.

KEY WORDS: IPMVP Certification | Compliance | Investor Confidence | Metering Strategy

Sustainable standards, technology, and the solutions they provide have rapidly evolved over the last decade. So what do you do with a building that was built 20 years ago? While new projects now receive significant attention for their steps toward sustainability, its existing buildings that typically provide the greatest opportunity for improvement. At Footprint, we have the project experience to provide you with a customized analysis of everything from utility bills, to metering data, to building automation trend logs – providing you with a clear path toward practical solutions that will help you achieve more by using less.

Our team can customize our strategy to meet your needs, performing any one of a number of services as required. A holistic look at building energy audits and system performance analysis has become a base level requirement. The name of the game is strategic improvement, and Footprint can be right alongside you helping you with that strategy for your building portfolio.

KEY WORDS: Energy Planning and Benchmarking | Energy Audit Services | Building System Performance Analysis | Energy Carbon Masterplanning

PROJECTS L TO R: 145 St. George | 25 St. Mary

According to the United Nations Environment Program, buildings and their construction together account for 36 per cent of global energy use, and 39 per cent of energy-related carbon dioxide emissions annually. Buildings are second only to Industry, and Transportation, producing 34.8 metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalent.

Discussions around climate change are urgent, and resilience planning needs to happen now. Canada’s commitment to reducing its GHG emissions by 30% below 2005 levels by 2030 really signals the importance of this topic on a national (really, global) level. Climate change mitigation and adaptation strategies, green building design, and net zero carbon strategies through the lens of master planning now top the list of priorities.

Footprint has the in-house expertise necessary to walk you through the reporting, benchmarking, and assessments needed to make a plan for your built environment. Understanding possible areas of vulnerability, as well as the associated risks, and how to mitigate the challenges ahead.

PROJECTS L TO R: Canada Summer Games Henley Rowing Centre | Gatineau 2 Library and Archives Canada | North East Scarborough Community Centre (Rendering courtesy of Perkins+Will)

For years, building sustainability equalled certification. It was the clearest path, and the simplest solution for many clients to pursue popular sustainability certification processes that kept everyone speaking “the same language”.

Now, the landscape has shifted (both literally, and figuratively). As conversations around climate change become more and more urgent, the path toward true sustainability has become less and less clear. While all buildings contribute to global energy use, not all buildings are the same, and there are a number of factors to consider before determining the best course of action for a new or existing building. Certification may be the way to go, but the various certifications available vary in terms of short and long term commitments. And what about the context of your portfolio or campus of buildings – how do you support the same standard across many buildings, when they were all built at such different times (and with a variety of alternative objectives in mind).

That’s why you need a sustainability “roadmap” for your building – a plan that will tackle the big questions around wellness, energy, carbon reduction, and accreditation. Big decisions require big picture thinking, and Footprint is your wide-angle lens.

PROJECTS L TO R: Abbotsford Law Courts | CAMH Phase 1 C | Bill and Helen Norrie Library

Building commissioning formalizes the review and integration of all project expectations through functional performance testing. Translation? Making sure what you wanted is what you’re actually getting.

Through functional performance testing, verification of operator training and systems manuals, and an assessment of documentation, our commissioning team works to align all building systems with owner criteria and objectives. Correctly executed commissioning leads to enhanced indoor air quality, a reduction in operation and maintenance costs, and overall longer lifespan of equipment.

KEY WORDS: LEED Commissioning | Existing Building Retro-Commissioning | Independent Commissioning | Validation & Certification | Commissioning Management

PROJECTS L TO R: Hyatt House

While “wellness” is defined differently depending on who you’re speaking to (and how that person engages with the built environment), it’s best placed in the context of balance. Location, interior design decisions, building efficiency, long term operational and leasing decisions – all of these decisions contribute to building wellness, and you need someone to help you work through the various options and decisions to create the best solution for your project. Beyond the idea of certification, our Footprint team helps clients get to the heart of their wellness objectives.

KEY WORDS: WELL Building Standard, Fitwel, Community Health, Healthy Workplaces, New Construction Pathway, Existing Building Pathway, Coaching, Certification

PROJECTS L TO R: 16 York | U of T Tall Wood Academic Tower (Rendering Courtesy of Kongats Architects)

OUR SERVICES

ENERGY MODELLING & STRATEGY

PERFORMANCE VERIFICATION

EXISTING BUILDING OPTIMIZATION

CLIMATE CHANGE & RESILIENCE

SUSTAINABILITY CONSULTING & CERTIFICATION

COMMISSIONING

BUILDING WELLNESS