The science is clear. So is the business case for net-zero buildings.

In the race to meet science-based climate targets –
your buildings play a pivotal role.

37%

of global CO2 emissions are attributable to buildings

50%

of today’s buildings will still be in use in 2050

Swift, sustainable renovations can yield remarkable ROI within a decade.

And we need to move three times faster. Schneider Electric has the expertise and technology to help you reach net-zero buildings.

The Role of Business

Your office buildings are key to solving the climate and energy crises

To accelerate climate action, the industry needs to focus on retrofitting existing buildings to reduce carbon emissions from energy demand.

Retrofitting existing buildings can reduce their life-cycle carbon emissions by up to 83%.

Carbon emissions in buildings are made up of embodied emissions in the design and build phase, and operational emissions from its subsequent use. We need to focus on reducing operational carbon emissions without increasing embodied carbon emissions.

30%

Embodied carbon –

CO2 emissions associated with the construction process of a building, including materials and transport

70%

Operational carbon –

CO2 emissions produced by the building in use, including from lighting, heating, and energy

Energy Crisis
Climate Crisis

Short-term Energy Crisis

We face an energy crisis.

Energy prices are becoming more volatile. Supplies are less certain.

Economic impact:

Inflation

Production risks

Innovation gaps

International trade risks

Debt

€1tn

Costs to government for subsidizing energy price increase.

Societal impact:

Energy security

Fair Transition

Fair Transition

755m

Number of people without access to energy. The first global increase in decades.

Increasing energy volatility

In 2022, energy markets witnessed extreme volatility.

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Long-term
Climate Crisis

At the current pace of change, the world will fail to limit global warming to 1.5ºC by 2050.

Global Warming

Forest fires

Extreme Weather

Ice caps melting

Flash Flooding

Social unrest

To tackle the climate crisis, we must decarbonize our buildings

Retrofitting is part of the solution

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To meet our global targets, operational emissions caused by building energy consumption must reduce by 5% annually between now and 2050.

To meet our global targets, operational emissions caused by building energy consumption must reduce by 5% annually between now and 2050.

Energy and Climate Crisis

We are at an inflection point…

The Role of Business

Your office buildings are key to solving the climate and energy crises

To accelerate climate action, the industry needs to focus on retrofitting existing buildings to reduce carbon emissions from energy demand.

Retrofitting existing buildings can reduce their life-cycle carbon emissions by up to 83%.

Carbon emissions in buildings are made up of embodied emissions in the design and build phase, and operational emissions from its subsequent use. We need to focus on reducing operational carbon emissions without increasing embodied carbon emissions.

30%

Embodied carbon –

CO2 emissions associated with the construction process of a building, including materials and transport

70%

Operational carbon –

CO2 emissions produced by the building in use, including from lighting, heating, and energy

Technology-first retrofits

Technology-first retrofits that rely on modern digital and power management solutions are:

Faster to implement

lower in upfront carbon

lower in upfront carbon

and offer better ROI and lifecycle carbon benefits

Hover Tap on the buttons below to find out more.

Digital

Electric

Sustainable

Digitization drives efficiency. It allows you to make energy more visible, giving you a clearer understanding of how you’re using it.

Technologies are available today to achieve 70% carbon emissions reduction for all-electric, all-digital buildings.

Electrification reduces dependency on fossil fuels and favors a source that can be decarbonized overtime.

Business Drivers

Why businesses must act now to address building decarbonization

Financial & efficiency benefit

Regulatory compliance

Stakeholder / reputational pressure

With 70% of a building's operational carbon tied to its day-to-day functioning, increasing energy efficiency will immediately slash emissions and cut costs-offering both environmental and financial dividends.

Regulations are swiftly moving beyond transparency to require energy and carbon emission reductions.

80% of the top 100 companies per country now publicly report on their sustainability.

A looming financial risk hangs over 90% of current buildings as their failure to decarbonize could shrink their value by up to 30%, making them less attractive for potential investors and tenants.

50,000 companies will need to disclose energy and carbon under CSRD

Companies who publicize their net-zero commitments and reporting are more likely to attract investment

Most commercial buildings return sustainable retrofit investments in 10 years or less.

70+ countries have a net-zero target, covering 76% of global emissions

Publicizing your net-zero commitments and reporting on your progress helps hire and retain top talent

76% of organizations said disclosing sustainability results helps "boost their competitive advantage".

~140 countries have proposed or committed to net-zero 2050 goals.

CEOS with high customer trust scores are significantly more likely to lead organizations with net-zero commitments

The cost of inactivity is

underperforming and overconsuming buildings

wasted energy and excessive operating
expenditure

causing inadequate returns for people, profit, and the planet

Decarbonization Strategy

How businesses can act today to address building decarbonization

Thinking about your long-term carbon reduction strategy and your shorter-term energy needs, what’s the best approach for your business?

Light

For short-term holdings or leased spaces. Light interventions are recommended. This involves deploying metering, monitoring, and modern building management technology for efficient operations. Doing this can reduce your operational carbon levels by 35%.

Medium

Medium-term holdings offer the opportunity to go deeper. A medium retrofit is recommended by upgrading building equipment and installing renewables in addition to light intervention technologies. Now, your building could see an energy and operational carbon reduction of 35-70%.

Deep

For long-term ownership, a deep renovation is recommended. In addition to the light and medium retrofit activity, this involves addressing full electrification and building envelope improvements, achieving reductions of more than 70%.

Retrofit strategies should consider lifecycle carbon impact, ROI, and ease of implementation.

Quantifying building decarbonization

Up to 77% of CO2 reductions can be attributed directly to specific Schneider Electric solutions

Schneider Electric offers a range of industry-leading power management and building control systems.

To measure their impact, we partnered with global design firm WSP to quantify the decarbonization impact across various deployment options.

We identified a series of Energy Conservation Measures (ECMs) associated with each of the potential solutions proposed for a building retrofit.

The results showed that digital solutions should be prioritized first, as they are faster to implement, lower in upfront carbon, and more effective from a long-term lifecycle carbon perspective.

While full envelope retrofits and building systems upgrades are necessary to achieve full building decarbonization, updating an old building management system (BMS) is the most effective first step.

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Baseline
Emissions
Measure and
monitor energy
and carbon
Reduce energy
and carbon w/
automation
Install onsite
renewables
and microgrids
Purchase offsite
renewables and
offsets
Upgrade building
systems and
electrical
infrastructure
Electrify
heating
Envelope
retrofits

Measure and monitor energy and carbon

To begin developing a decarbonization strategy, you first need to understand your baseline.

Power Monitoring Expert technology is designed to help power-critical and energy-intensive facilities maximize uptime and operational efficiency.

It shows whether you are doing anything unnecessary or wasteful, for example, powering the building on the weekend when no one is there.

1.6%

Potential CO2 equivalent reduction per year:

Schneider Electric solution: EcoStruxure Power Monitoring Expert

Measure and monitor energy and carbon

To begin developing a decarbonization strategy, you first need to understand your baseline.

Power Monitoring Expert technology is designed to help power-critical and energy-intensive facilities maximize uptime and operational efficiency.

It shows whether you are doing anything unnecessary or wasteful, for example, powering the building on the weekend when no one is there.

5.3%

Potential CO2 equivalent reduction per year:

Schneider Electric solution:
‍EcoStruxure Power Monitoring Expert, PowerLogic, SmartPanel

Reduce energy and carbon with automation

A modern building management system (BMS) integrates actionable data from all systems and subsystems, and makes it visible.  

Bringing together these once-siloed systems allows for optimized management of many building areas including HVAC, power, lighting, security, fire safety, microgrids, electric vehicle (EV) charging stations, and renewable energy sources.

39.6%

Potential annual CO2e reduction from installing a modern BMS:

Schneider Electric solution:
EcoStruxure Power Monitoring Expert, Planon Workplace Insights, Connection Room Solutions, EBO, EcoCare

Install onsite renewables and microgrids

Schneider Electric offers a wide range of onsite renewable energy solutions including advisory services and marketplaces like EnergySage and the Zeigo Network, as well as the design, installation, and operation of microgrid solutions.

10.2%

Potential annual CO2e reduction from installing renewables and microgrids (onsite solar photovoltaic system).

Schneider Electric solution: EnergySage, Zeigo Network, Microgrid Flex

Purchase offsite renewables and offsets

Schneider Electric is the world’s leading advisor on corporate renewable energy procurement. We have advised on more than 350 Power Purchase Agreements (PPAs) for developers across five continents since 2014.

PPAs can help to hedge against energy market price volatility, achieving long-term cost savings over the contract term

Our platforms simplify the cleantech buying process by connecting members to trusted experts, viable projects and technologies, and exclusive market intelligence.

21.4%

Potential annual CO2e reduction from purchasing offsite renewables:

Schneider Electric solution:
‍Zeigo Network, Zeigo Power platforms, CleanTech Advisory

Upgrade building systems and electrical infrastructure

Install new hardware to enable electrification and improve efficiency.

Schneider Electric offers a wide range of electrical distribution products to help improve energy efficiency and reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

Our solutions offer power factor correction (PFC) and phase balancing – ideal for modern electrical networks with fast-changing loads, multiple digital loads, and distributed power sources.

7.5%

Potential annual CO2e reduction from upgrading building systems and electrical infrastructure:

Schneider Electric solution: EcoStruxure Power Monitoring Expert, AccuSine

Electrify heating

By electrifying the building’s heating system, you can generate significant savings on carbon emissions.

Schneider Electric works through its partners to implement measures in this category.

13%

Potential annual CO2e reduction from electrifying your building’s heating:

Envelope retrofits

Upgrading the building envelope can result in significant reductions to your carbon footprint.

Measures include installing wall and roof insulation, and upgrading windows from single to triple-paned glazing.

Schneider Electric works through its partners to implement measures in this category.

5.6%

Potential annual CO2e reduction from electrifying your building’s heating:

Measure and monitor

Measure and monitor energy and carbon

To begin developing a decarbonization strategy, you first need to understand your baseline.

Power Monitoring Expert technology is designed to help power-critical and energy-intensive facilities maximize uptime and operational efficiency.

It shows whether you are doing anything unnecessary or wasteful, for example, powering the building on the weekend when no one is there.

1.6%

Potential CO2 equivalent reduction per year:

Schneider Electric solution: EcoStruxure Power Monitoring Expert

Reduce energy and carbon

Reduce energy and carbon with automation

A modern building management system (BMS) integrates actionable data from all systems and subsystems, and makes it visible.  

Bringing together these once-siloed systems allows for optimized management of many building areas including HVAC, power, lighting, security, fire safety, microgrids, electric vehicle (EV) charging stations, and renewable energy sources.

10.7%

Potential annual CO2e reduction from installing a modern BMS:

Schneider Electric solution: EcoStruxure Power Monitoring Expert, Planon Workplace Insights, Connection Room Solutions

Limit embodied carbon

Track and limit embodied carbon

Choose products and materials that offer superior sustainability performance to reduce the embodied carbon used by your building.

The Green Premium™ label is Schneider Electric’s answer to help you reduce your energy and carbon footprints, optimize the total cost of ownership of your assets through IoT solutions and circular services, and better protect people from chemical substance risks.

More than 75% of Schneider’s product sales come from Green Premium offers that provide superior transparency and environmental stewardship, with around 300 Environmental Product Declarations (EPDs) published on the PEP Ecopassport Database.

0.9%

Potential annual CO2e reduction from installing a modern BMS:

Schneider Electric solution: Green Premium™ products

Purchase offsite renewables and offsets

Purchase offsite renewables and offsets

Schneider Electric is the world’s leading advisor on corporate renewable energy procurement. We have advised on more than 350 Power Purchase Agreements (PPAs) for developers across five continents since 2014.

PPAs can help to hedge against energy market price volatility, achieving long-term cost savings over the contract term

Our platforms simplify the cleantech buying process by connecting members to trusted experts, viable projects and technologies, and exclusive market intelligence.

12.4%

Potential annual CO2e reduction from purchasing offsite renewables:

Schneider Electric solution: Zeigo Network and Zeigo Power platforms

Upgrade systems and infrastructure

Upgrade building systems and electrical infrastructure

Install new hardware to enable electrification and improve efficiency.

Schneider Electric offers a wide range of electrical distribution products to help improve energy efficiency and reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

Our solutions offer power factor correction (PFC) and phase balancing – ideal for modern electrical networks with fast-changing loads, multiple digital loads, and distributed power sources.

10.6%

Potential annual CO2e reduction from upgrading building systems and electrical infrastructure:

Schneider Electric solution: EcoStruxure Power Monitoring Expert

Install onsite renewables

Install onsite renewables and microgrids

Schneider Electric offers a wide range of onsite renewable energy solutions including advisory services and marketplaces like EnergySage and the Zeigo Network, as well as the design, installation, and operation of microgrid solutions.

5.9%

Potential annual CO2e reduction from installing renewables and microgrids (onsite solar photovoltaic system).

Schneider Electric solution: EnergySage and the Zeigo Network

Electrify heating

Electrify heating

By electrifying the building’s heating system, you can generate significant savings on carbon emissions.

Schneider Electric works through its partners to implement measures in this category.

13%

Potential annual CO2e reduction from electrifying your building’s heating:

Envelope retrofits

Envelope retrofits

Upgrading the building envelope can result in significant reductions to your carbon footprint.

Measures include installing wall and roof insulation, and upgrading windows from single to triple-paned glazing.

Schneider Electric works through its partners to implement measures in this category.

5.6%

Potential annual CO2e reduction from electrifying your building’s heating:

Where to Start

This all looks simple in theory. However, translating theory into physical action can be confusing and overwhelming. Schneider Electric is helping customers all over the world to bridge this gap.

We have created a list of tangible actions to help guide your journey towards net-zero buildings.

Top priorities for net-zero buildings

These priorities have been listed in the order that most efficiently achieves whole-building lifecycle decarbonization, balancing ease of implementation against impact. The ideal retrofit strategy should address all 10 priorities.

Strategize

01

Create decarbonization roadmap

Digitize

02

Track embodied carbon

03

Measure and monitor energy and carbon

Decarbonize

04

Reduce energy and carbon through automation

05

Purchase offsite renewables

06

Electrify transportation

07

Upgrade building systems and electrical

08

Install onsite renewables infrastructure

09

Limit embodied carbon

10

Offset residual carbon emissions

Strategize

01

Create decarbonization roadmap

Digitize

02

Track embodied carbon

03

Measure and monitor energy and carbon

Decarbonize

04

Reduce energy and carbon through automation

05

Purchase offsite renewables

06

Electrify transportation

07

Upgrade building systems and electrical

08

Install onsite renewables infrastructure

09

Limit embodied carbon

10

Offset residual carbon emissions

Retrofit Models

We modeled three ‘grades’ of retrofit, each addressing several of the above priorities.

Light Interventions

  • For compliance and efficiency

  • Deploy metering, monitoring and active building management for efficiency

Cost 75 - 200 €/m2

ROI 1 – 3 years

03

Measure and monitor energy and carbon

04

Reduce energy and carbon through automation

Medium Retrofits

  • To compete in the market

  • Electrify and maximize use of renewables with microgrid

Cost 250 – 400 €/m2

ROI 8 – 15 years

05

Purchase offsite renewables (PPAs and EACs)

06

Electrify transportation

07

Upgrade building systems and electrical infrastructure

08

Install onsite renewables and microgrids

Deep Renovations

  • To lead the market

  • Retrofit the building envelope and other systems to achieve net zero with limited reliance on offsets

Cost 350 – 1.275 €/m2

ROI 25+ years

Envelope retrofit, electrify heating, and other interventions (out of SE scope)

10

Purchase offsets to offset residual carbon emissions

Transversal levers across

01

Create decarbonization roadmap

02

Track embodied carbon

09

Limit embodied carbon

Strategize

Decarbonize

Digitize

Through Schneider Electric’s partnerships

Schneider Solutions

Up to 70% of CO2 reductions can be attributed directly to specific Schneider Electric solutions

Carbon/energy reduction measure

Approach

Schneider Electric product /solution example

Annual carbon reduction (up to)

03

Measure and monitor energy and carbon

Measure and monitor energy and carbon submetering

PME, Power Logic

1.6%

04

Reduce energy and carbon through automation

Modern building management systems

EBO

10.7%

05

Purchase offsite renewables

Carbon offsets and/or EACs

CleanTech Advisory

12.4%

08

Upgrade building systems and electrical

Power factor correction

AccuSine

10.6%

08

Install onsite renewables infrastructure

Onsite solar photovoltaic system

Microgrid Flex

5.9%

09

Limit embodied carbon

Low-carbon products

Green Premium products

0.9%

Decarbonize the office: Unleash the power of digital solutions for building renovations

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Decarbonize the office: Accelerate through electrification

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