Business Plan GBSGreen Building Solutions

Company Description

Product & Service Description

Marketing Strategy & Plan

Environmental Analysis (SWOT/PEST)

Competitive Analysis

Products and Services

Pricing

Promotion

People

Financial Analysis & Projections

Profit and Loss

Risks and Assumptions

GBSGreen Building Solutions

Business Plan

According to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) the impact of commercial buildings on the physical and social environment are such that there is "not questioning the vast impact…" (Environmental Protection Agency, 2006) Commercial Buildings are reported by the U.S. Department of Energy's Energy Information Administration to account for "18% of total energy consumption." (Environmental Protection Agency, 2006) It is reported that energy and climate change issues have "moved from the sidelines to center stage…." (Global Business Network, 2007) This is reported to be due to there having been "…a wholesale shift in business attitudes in the U.S. around climate change and energy. " (Global Business Network, 2007) According to the Global Business Network, ways that the U.S. energy environment might evolve through 2020 includes the following:

(1) Advances in global energy supply and use technologies;

(2) Shifts in U.S. politics and regulations related to climate change;

(3) Public and shareholders perceptions of climate change;

(4) Shifts in financial markets that impact energy markets;

(5) Changes in energy commodities supplies;

(6) International political and economic patterns around energy;

(7) Growth in energy efficiency; and (8) New business opportunities arising from energy and climate change. (Global Business Network, 2007)

The construction industry is reported in Time Business & Money online to be one of the top ten fastest growing industries in the United States. Specifically stated is "Rising energy and other commodity prices have made sustainable building more cost effective, helping green and sustainable construction survive the recent downturn." (2013) In fact, according to Rick Redrizzi, President, CEO and Founding Chair of the U.S. Green Building Council and Bob Hansen, former Global Industry executive Director for the Construction Industry and Vice President and General Manger of the Core Products Business Unit, Dow Corning, buildings, "in the United States…are responsible for one-third of our total energy use, raw materials use, waste output and greenhouse gas emissions. Energy utilization in buildings is comparable in Europe and Asia. Simply put, a green building is environmentally responsible, a healthy place to live and work, and economically profitable. We define green building through our Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED®) Green Building Rating System, which is a voluntary, consensus-based standard that provides independent, third-party certification. It provides the building industry with a common definition of "green" and emphasizes state-of-the-art strategies for sustainable site development, water savings, energy efficiency, materials selection, and indoor environmental quality." (Redrizzi and Hansen, 2005, p.1) The benefit of stakeholders from green buildings are reported to be such that "translates as much as 70% energy and water savings, improved building performance over time and greatly increased property value." (Redrizzi and Hansen, 2005, p.1) Cited as well are improvements in "indoor environmental quality, including daylight and exterior views." (Redrizzi and Hansen, 2005, p.1) Children learning in green schools "can demonstrate up to 21% better performance on tests and patients in green hospitals are discharged earlier." (Redrizzi and Hansen, 2005, p.1) In addition it is reported that increases in natural daylight through designs that enable such results in providing occupants "a sense of more space and connection with nature." (Redrizzi and Hansen, 2005, p.1) It is reported that Down Corning products "make it possible to design structures that incorporate large expanses of glass that are more eye-appealing and bring more light inside." (Redrizzi and Hansen, 2005, p.1) It is reported that the World Bank Council for Sustainable Development has indentified "three pillars of sustainability" and those are stated to include: (1) environment; (2) social; and (3) economic. (Redrizzi and Hansen, 2005, p.1) Presently the revenue reported in the Green Building Industry is $87 billion with the estimated growth stated at 26.9%. This industry presently employs approximately 300,000 workers. There are inherent risks to green construction and as reported there are more than certification concerns as "building-performance expectations often loom over green projects." (Buckley, 2009, p.1) Stated specifically is the following: As green practices continue to gain speed, industry experts express concern about the risks of bringing in unqualified consultants and subcontractors. "Construction firms now have to depend on the subs' ability to do things like make sure that materials are recycled in the correct bins and that proper records are kept." (Buckley, 2009, p.1) The cure for this is reported to be that of contracts being well written.

Green Building Solutions (GBS) has partnered with local builders in the Southeastern U.S. states to support sustainable building solutions in the form of LEED certified buildings that are environmentally and economically friendly including new construction and greening of already existing buildings. Green Building Solutions...

The Green Building Solution Team is capable of managing a green and sustainable construction project from the design stage through the development and construction stages throughout the project until completion.
II. Company Description

Green Building Solutions has partnered with local builders in the Southern U.S. states to support building solutions that are sustainable and environmentally and ecologically friendly. Green Building Solutions staff includes researchers, builders, designers, and engineers.

III. Product & Service Description

Green Building Solutions assists in design and development of commercial building developments that are sustainable building solutions, make sustainable use of the land, and are environmentally and ecologically friendly. The staff at Green Building Solutions are able to assist with design, development, problem-solving, solution finding and is fully staffed with designers, builders, and engineers.

IV. Marketing Strategy & Plan

Green Building Solution will primarily use word-of-mouth and referral marketing.

V. Environmental Analysis (SWOT)

Strengths

Green sustainable building solutions that are energy efficient and save in costs related to construction.

Sustainable practices are environmentally friendly

Sustainability means more durability and less expenses related to replacement and/or repair

Dedicated team of workers with excellent skills.

Weaknesses

New company trying to become established.

Company not yet branded and no customer following or return customer base.

Opportunities

Wide open market for environmentally friendly sustainable buildings with energy savings features. Opportunities in the Southeastern U.S. include Alabama's proposal to "enact the states' first statewide building energy code. In Arkansas, the state energy office has finalized a ruling to update the state's commercial building energy code. In Florida, the state began implementation of the latest building code containing energy efficient requirements. In Mississippi, a bill in the state legislature to update the commercial building energy code is in progress. There are other initiatives in the Southeast related to building energy codes.

Economy downturn makes savings in costs and maintenance of primary importance.

Threats

Threat of new entrants into market.

Threat of substitute products and services

PEST Analysis

Political

Green Construction is a politically correct method of construction and reports show that the government and other regulators as well as insurance companies are paving the way for green construction projects to ensure that system challenges do not bar such projects.

Environment

The present environment in terms of investing in green building is highly conducive to this type of initiative. Regulatory and legal issues are being tackled to ensure that standards are in place for this type of construction

Social

The consumer public is very interested in green construction and ways that they can save energy and ultimately costs.

Technological

Technology will assist the design and development phases of green building construction and will assist in the greening of building projects.

VI. Competitive Analysis

Green Building Solutions has competitors but at the present, there are few competitors offering the same solutions as GBS. The Ecological Building Network reports that building with local resources is of critical importance and that it is able to construct buildings without consuming a great deal of fossil fuel. Whether called "natural building or deep green building, or smart building" it is reported to be using methods other than those involving fossil fuels to make provision of shelter safety and comfort. This business will be initiated during a time in which the environmentally friendly construction industry is just gearing up and this will enable this business to establish a firm basis in the industry.

VII. Products and Services

Products and services include the design, development, and construction of building solutions focused on clean energy, energy savings and ultimately savings in costs. As well, Green Building Solutions will be involved in projects that are greening of existing buildings meaning that existing buildings will be redesigned and renovated equipped with such as solar panels to garner solar energy and where appropriate windmill energy generation may be considered.

VIII. Pricing

Pricing strategy for Green Building Solutions is such that keeps the pricing competitive with other energy conscious construction and other construction that lacks these features.

IX. Promotion

Promotion will be conducted via advertising in local newspapers and magazines in the Southeast however; the company will rely primarily on word-of-mouth referrals.

X. Place

The primary office for Green Building Solutions will be in Birmingham, Alabama however, the company will have satellite offices in Atlanta, Georgia; Memphis, Tennessee, and Little Rock, Arkansas.

XI. Process

Green Building Solutions is a process that involves hands on design and development planning with clients of the company to ensure that the building design is adherent to client's needs and local building and energy codes. The construction phase will require close interaction with…