Senior Living Case Study

With a Technology Subscription, retirement community improves resident quality of life portfolio-wide.

Industry

Continuing care retirement community

Equipment

Outdoor solar lighting, LED lighting, HVAC

Expected Savings

$340,000/year

CO2e Reduction

2.3 million lbs/year (based on eGrid)

Participating Locations

Region

Southeast

Organization History

One of the largest senior living providers in the U.S. turned to a technology subscription to update the energy assets across their portfolio of 104 communities. Their chief goal was to improve resident quality of life, including expanding their organization to accommodate more residents.

Renovation and portfolio expansion were both necessary to fulfill this mission, but the company didn’t have the time or capital — or want to take on the risk — to do both at once.

The Solution

With a technology subscription, the organization learned it didn’t have to choose between renovating existing facilities and expanding to new ones. The technology subscription enabled them to get new lighting and HVAC critical to resident safety and happiness without diverting resources away from serving them.

A well-lit environment is critical for older adults who are often visually impaired and have problems walking, maintaining their balance, reading and participating in other activities. Falls are also a significant risk for older adults, as one in five falls can lead to a serious injury according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Increased lighting quality can prevent falls, reduce confusion and improve overall quality of life. New HVAC units are also crucial to a high quality of life, especially for the facilities located in extreme climates.

The Results

The upgrade from fluorescent to LED improved lighting quality and eliminated flickering lights, improving residents’ ability to see and impressing family decision-makers with a modern aesthetic. The upgrades also took place outdoors, with an average of six solar-powered lights installed in previously unlit parking lots. With the successful rollout of lighting upgrades, the organization has begun subscribing to heating and cooling services through upgraded HVAC units at two locations.

With the off balance sheet treatment of the technology subscription, the organization also didn’t have to halt expansion efforts while renovating existing properties. And because the technology subscription includes all maintenance, their staff got time back in their schedules to focus on larger maintenance projects. In the case of one facility, they saved $20,000 per year in maintenance costs from light replacements alone.

With the new lighting installed, they immediately saw an improvement in resident safety and quality of life — their chief goal. The company also realized a 35,000-lumen increase in parking lots and an 80% wattage reduction indoors, which made the project net cash flow positive from day one in some instances. After finding success at three locations, including their corporate headquarters, the organization programmatically rolled out lighting and HVAC upgrades via the technology subscription across 23 locations, with plans to scale across their entire portfolio and incorporate new technology like backup generation.

“We’ve loved the technology subscription because it made the process of updating our building systems across our portfolio incredibly easy. Now we can focus on our residents, which is what we’re most passionate about.”

Senior Living Organization CFO