Civil Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
Table 4
Examples of strategic value to NZER (Adapted from Menassa
2011
)
Option
category
Definitions
Application to investments in NZER
Option to
stage
The refurbishment project is divided into stages. At the end of each
completed stage, the costs/benefits are evaluated to determine
whether subsequent stages can be pursued or not
The refurbishment is divided into stages depending on available
budget. First stage might involve installation of PV systems to
achieve energy balance. And the second stage could involve
major renovations of HVAC equipment
Option to
abandon
Terminate the refurbishment before completion and dedicate
resources to other projects
An exhaustive feasibility study of the existing building condition
might indicate that the associated incremental costs to NZER are
too high. In this case, the building stakeholders might abandon
the project
Option to
defer
Postpone the refurbishment without jeopardizing the potential
benefits
The decision to invest in NZER can be deferred until debt financing
becomes available at attractive rates to the owner, or until the
tenants can arrange to lease alternative space for the duration of
the refurbishment project
Option to
grow
Provides an initial baseline that allows the stakeholder to pursue
follow-on opportunities
The owner of several existing buildings nationwide can decide to
invest in one NZER as a pilot project and decide to expand
refurbishment work to the remaining of his/her existing building
stock once perceived benefits from NZER the pilot project
outweigh the costs incurred
Option to
reduce
Reduce the magnitude of the refurbishment and save costs
Reduce the scope of the NZER endeavor when the costs of the
refurbishment exceed the allocated budget. For example,
replacing the existing HVAC system might exceed the allocated
costs due to lack of information about the existing system and
how it is distributed throughout the building. In this case, other
scheduled energy-efficient replacements or updates for the
building will need to be postponed or forgone all together
Option to
switch
Developed assets can be switched or redeployed to serve another
purpose
Stakeholders of a commercial building might decide to switch the
tenant occupancy of certain floors from three to four tenants per
floor to only one tenant per floor to be able to satisfy the market
needs
