Regional Developers Make the Case for Solar Power

Rooftop solar arrays are gaining in popularity and a group of regional building developers are looking at solar power as a way to reduce energy costs and enhance the marketability of their facilities. According to an article on NJBiz.com (New Jersey Business News), several New Jersey and Pennsylvania based developers are leading efforts in the region to create more environmentally friendly buildings, with solar roof panels being an integral component.

In the article, Anthony Marchetta, vice president and principal at LCOR, a Berwyn, PA.-based developer, points out that, "Industrial buildings tend to be a good fit for solar-panel installations because they’re just one story and they have these massive roofs." Since many warehouse and distribution facilities have limited electrical requirements, putting solar panels on the roofs of these buildings can produce more energy than they use.

NJBiz notes that the economic benefits of solar energy have led some developers to install rooftop systems. "You're creating power with this one-time investment for at least the next 25 years." commented Robert Neu, vice president of River Terminal Development (RTD), a Kearny, New Jersey-based industrial and office developer.

In 2006, RTD installed one of the state’s largest single-building rooftop solar power systems on a 77,300-square-foot building at the company’s 100 Central Ave. industrial complex in South Kearny. During its first full year of operation in 2007, the system generated 713,000 kilowatt hours of electricity, which accounted for nearly 7 percent of the power supply for the 10-building, 2.4 million-square-foot complex. This has saved the company about $100,000 in electric costs a year, Neu pointed out in the article.

NJBiz reporter Evelyn Lee also highlights that some developers are considering solar installations as a way to attract tenants. With solar-power systems, "our operating costs are going to be much more competitive, and therefore our buildings will be more marketable," noted Richard Johnson, senior vice president of Matrix Development in Cranbury, NJ, in the story.

Johnson says most installations range between 300 kilowatts to 1 megawatt, and can produce a 15 to 20 percent savings per kilowatt hour. He says Matrix plans to begin several pilot projects involving solar installations in the first half of 2008.

Source: www.njbiz.com

Digital Dictation Technology Offers Wide Range of Benefits

According to Philips Speech Consulting, digital dictation technology presents a multitude of benefits, particularly in the legal market. Digital recorders now operate almost identically to traditional tape recorders, so the learning curve for attorneys is short and the frustration is minimized.

In addition, digital technology allows the completed voice dictation to be downloaded electronically to a computer or server for later transcription by a secretary. This removes any possibility that the file could be damaged or destroyed in transit, and reduces the time between the dictation being completed and when a secretary begins work.

Philips points out, that lawyers at Hawkins & Parnell, prompted by escalating frustration with the limitations of analog dictation equipment, adopted a digital dictation solution midway through 2006. The objectives were threefold: to eradicate mechanical failures associated with tape recorders, recover lost productivity due to damaged or erased cassettes, and eliminate bottlenecks that were interfering with timely work completion.

Sources: Philips Speech Consulting, www.technewsworld.com

As Office Space Shrinks, Records Management Challenges Rise

Records management professionals are being forced to meet their operational goals in the face of increasing space planning challenges. According to an article on FMJ Online, office space is becoming more expensive and less available, as business organizations across North America experience strong growth and increased mergers and acquisitions activity.

The added impact for records management is that business growth leads to a similar expansion in file and records collections – with less available space to store and protect them. Compounding the issue even further are environmental regulations, labor law and emerging accountability requirements such as Sarbanes-Oxley – all requiring complete reliable records retention. The bottom line challenge for records managers, according to the article, is finding ways to do more with less.

FMJ offered the following guidelines for helping records management professionals to meet their organizational-wide requirements given the realities of shrinking office space:

• Clearly define records retention scheduling and disposal
  An effective records management program minimizes storage costs, keeping records long enough to meet legal and other business requirements.
  
  
• Tying records classification to business activities
  A more functional records classification system categorizes records based on the business activities they support. This methodology better anticipates business requirements to maintain and retrieve information over a longer period.
  
  
• Destroying non-records
  In addition to official business records, an organization may hold large volumes of redundant copies, drafts, and other "non" records. As long as a complete record of an activity exists in the official file, non-record material usually can be destroyed.
  
  
• Effective use of off-site storage
  Utilizing commercial storage providers can help you free up scarce office space, by facilitating off-site storage of inactive files.
  
  
• More efficient equipment and space utilization
  FMJ emphasizes that not even the best retention schedules and disposal processes can change the fact that certain active records must be kept in the office for regular use. According to the article, this is when effective combinations of equipment and supplies can lead to more efficient space utilization, better facilitating that important records can be properly stored and easily accessed. FMJ encourages the use of things such as lateral filing systems which take up less space in the office environment; end-tab file folders, which can sit higher in cabinets while still keeping information at eye-level; and mobile shelving solutions, which greatly reduce the footprint for the overall filing system.
  
  Source: FMJ Online