The Unbelievable Scope of Utilities | Utilities Management for the Real Estate Industry

Step into any building. 

Flip the switch. Turn on the tap. Crank the heater or run the AC.

Watch that building come to life.

Buildings are living organisms. They possess their own form of lifeblood that sustains their existence and functionality. Brick and mortar veins pulse with electricity, while water pipes ferry the very essence of life to the people who live, work, and play in them. Cool air to calm the summer. Humming heaters to comfort the winter. Power to drive our buzzing networks and flicker our gadgets to life.

Utilities, roiling along in the background, are the lifeblood that keep our buildings alive and transform them into functional spaces.

A Lot of Buildings. A Lot of Lifeblood.

Lifeblood flows through the vital systems and infrastructure that enable buildings to thrive and serve their purpose. The scope of utility operations needed to power life in the United States alone is unbelievable.

111 million buildings stand throughout the country’s more than 3.5 million square miles (and new construction projects keep that number ticking upward).

These buildings consumed 4.05 trillion kWh of electricity in 2022, and according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration, “U.S. natural gas consumption averaged a record 88.5 billion cubic feet per day (Bcf/d). And while a mere 0.5% of the earth’s water is used by humans, the United States utilized 122 trillion gallons of water last year – enough water to fill 185 million olympic size swimming pools to the brim.

Over 334 million Americans rely on the enormous scale of utilities lifeblood to power buildings that in turn support every aspect of our lives: to live safely and comfortably at home, to work, meet basic needs and wants, even to find healing. It’s how our children are educated in environments that foster learning that propel them into the world.

If each building in the United States requires the minimum average of 3-6 utility services, consider that more than 550 million service points support the beating heart of American infrastructure.

The millions and millions of utilities sustain the heartbeat of modern society. And they provide an overwhelming wealth of data to strategically improve sustainability.

So how do building owners and investors guarantee utilities are optimized, keeping the proverbial heart of buildings pumping with lifeblood?

A Lifeblood Infusion – Managed Utilities

While utilities give life to our buildings, they don’t consume the daily thoughts of most. Humanity operates with functioning utilities as a guarantee. And when disrupted, so is the efficiency of daily life.

Managed utilities, our new term for a decades-old service, refers to a partner who manages utilities on behalf of other businesses. A managed-utilities provider handles everything from bill collection to payment processing and data analysis. Automation technology and dedicated expertise infuse insights that support utility savings and time that most property owners and managers can’t allocate to utilities resuscitation.

As the real estate industry’s leading managed utilities provider, utilities are the heart of what we do.

Beyond the Beating Heart – ESG

As blood flows through veins and arteries, and utilities give life to buildings, what is more important than the flow of productivity and efficiency?

Longevity. Health. Sustainability.

Enter ESG – the solution to protecting the quality of a building’s lifeblood, and more importantly, the earth. ESG, which stands for Environmental, Social, and Governance, creates a framework for organizations to utilize utility data to understand and measure opportunities to improve the lifeblood of buildings.

The scope of utilities in the U.S. is remarkable. So imagine the unbelievable impact even incremental changes would incur.

Buildings possess a vibrant lifeblood that breathes life into their structure and purpose, but it’s our job to ensure longevity through ethical and sustainable strategies.

Utilities – The Conservice Lifeblood

Utilities flow through buildings like lifeblood, delivering the vital energy, water, and services that sustain its functionality, productivity, and overall well-being.

As the Utility Experts, we partner with real estate owners and managers to conserve resources and reduce costs through our software-enabled utility management services. Utility expertise and dedication to people are our own life blood.

Better buildings mean better businesses, and in turn a better world.

Learn more from an Expert.

Lauren Bevilacqua

Lauren is the Content Marketing Manager at Conservice. She is an avid reader, fitness enthusiast, Dolly Parton fan, and will never turn down chips and salsa.