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Hudson Pacific Cut EUI to Avoid Washington Penalties: The Same Program Increased Building Entitlements
Hudson Pacific Properties deployed a fault detection and diagnostics (FDD) program to reduce energy use at one underperforming office building and ultimately unlocked additional development rights for the asset.
The Seattle property fell short of Washington State’s Energy Use Intensity (EUI) target, exposing Hudson Pacific Properties to penalties of roughly $0.30 per square foot. The problem was complicated by a tenant data center that consumed 20–50% of the building’s load while providing limited visibility into utility data.
Despite two failed FDD deployments with different vendors, Hudson Pacific attempted a third iteration to address the building’s energy performance. This time, the program was embedded inside its mechanical service relationship with MacDonald Miller, which deployed Clockworks Analytics. Remote analysts reviewed faults, and field technicians carried out the fixes.
The resulting work was not dramatic. Overrides, failed economizer dampers, stuck valves, and bad sensors accounted for much of the improvement. The building ultimately dropped its EUI enough to clear the regulatory threshold.
Then an unexpected outcome surfaced.
While renovating lobby space and adding amenities, Hudson Pacific applied the program through the International Living Future Institute’s existing-building pathway. They secured additional floor area ratio (FAR) for redevelopment — effectively allowing the company to build more square footage on the site than the city would normally permit.
“We were actually able to add value to the building,” Sparrow said.
For most owners, FDD programs start as energy or compliance initiatives. In some cases, the operational performance data they generate can also support redevelopment and entitlement decisions.
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Hudson Pacific Properties deployed a fault detection and diagnostics (FDD) program to reduce energy use at one underperforming office building and ultimately unlocked additional development rights for the asset.
The Seattle property fell short of Washington State’s Energy Use Intensity (EUI) target, exposing Hudson Pacific Properties to penalties of roughly $0.30 per square foot. The problem was complicated by a tenant data center that consumed 20–50% of the building’s load while providing limited visibility into utility data.
Despite two failed FDD deployments with different vendors, Hudson Pacific attempted a third iteration to address the building’s energy performance. This time, the program was embedded inside its mechanical service relationship with MacDonald Miller, which deployed Clockworks Analytics. Remote analysts reviewed faults, and field technicians carried out the fixes.
The resulting work was not dramatic. Overrides, failed economizer dampers, stuck valves, and bad sensors accounted for much of the improvement. The building ultimately dropped its EUI enough to clear the regulatory threshold.
Then an unexpected outcome surfaced.
While renovating lobby space and adding amenities, Hudson Pacific applied the program through the International Living Future Institute’s existing-building pathway. They secured additional floor area ratio (FAR) for redevelopment — effectively allowing the company to build more square footage on the site than the city would normally permit.
“We were actually able to add value to the building,” Sparrow said.
For most owners, FDD programs start as energy or compliance initiatives. In some cases, the operational performance data they generate can also support redevelopment and entitlement decisions.
Register for the next Nexus Labs event.
Sign up for the newsletter to get 5 stories like this per week:
This is a great piece!
I agree.