Case Studies

SSV Partners are Leading the Way

As part of SSV’s commitment to professional development and the ongoing exchange of best practices, we encourage the use of case studies as a means of communicating organizational success. In this section, we aim to highlight the achievements of our partners on their sustainability initiatives.

Have a Story to Tell?

If you would like to have your organizational efforts highlighted on this page, please contact info@sustainablesv.org. Please send a 2 to 3-sentence headline and a PDF document containing the case study in full.

Santa Clara University's Student Center Recognized as LEED Gold Building The university received its LEED Gold certification plaque November 21st and is now being displayed at the Locatelli Student Activity Center, located at the northeast side of campus. "The emphasis on energy conservation and use of materials that are environmentally friendly easily garnered LEED gold certification, one of the highest ratings for building sustainably," Joe Sugg, assistant VP for university operations, said about the new student center. The student center is one of many projects the university has undergone to further its goal of becoming energy neutral by 2015. SCU is definitely making headway with installing solar panels, a solar thermal collector, a smart microgrid, and a wind turbine. Read the article	Smart Data Center Revolution: New Opportunities to Control Costs and Increase Strategic Advantage  Datacenters present multiple challenges – and opportunities, as well. The challenges Data Centers use between 1.5 and 2 percent of world electricity with this usage set to grow 12% annually, according to a report published April 2011 by Greenpeace International – and today the lifetime energy expense for powering and cooling data center equipment can cost more than the equipment itself. Companies balancing concurrent demands to optimize performance, control costs and reduce negative environmental impact have to reconsider their data center design and management strategies. Technology refresh rates are accelerating, and along with them equipment and rack densities are outstripping the electrical capacity of traditional buildings, leading to facility obsolescence. Read the full white paper.	Specialty Solid Waste and Recycling Becomes Climate Registered TM Specialty has been serving the City of Sunnyvale since 1927, and has been demonstrating environmental leadership for decades. To add to the list of accomplishments, Specialty has now achieved Climate Registered™ status, which is awarded to members of The Climate Registry that measure their greenhouse gas emissions (GHG) according to the Registry’s rigorous voluntary reporting program. Through this effort Specialty has verified their 22% reduction in their core business’ GHG emissions since 2002. To read more about this important accomplishment click here.
Adobe Platinum-level LEED Certifications Adobe’s documented improvements earned the site three Platinum-level LEED certifications from the U.S. Green Building Council, ranking it as one of the most environmentally sound business facilities in the world. The company’s initiatives at the Adobe San Francisco office earned that site LEED Platinum certification as well. To read more about the financial and resources savings involved with these projects, click here and here	Symantec Corporate Security and Safety Transition to More Environmentally Friendly Vehicles The Symantec Corporate Security and Safety Department is proud to demonstrate that environmental responsibility and operational efficiencies can go hand-in-hand. A few months ago, CSS negotiated a new contract with our US Security Supplier, AlliedBarton.  As part of the negotiation, we specified new patrol vehicles that were environmentally friendly to comply with the corporate initiative of “Symantec Green Focus. We recognized that the choice of our vehicles was a significant, controllable factor in our department’s carbon footprint.  With both Symantec and AlliedBarton’s commitment to sustainable workplace initiatives, hybrid vehicles were placed high on the list for consideration. Read full case study.