Primera is pleased to announce that we were recognized at the annual ComEd Supplier Diversity Awards, winning this year’s Go Green Energy Sustainability Award. The Supplier Diversity Awards recognize high-quality suppliers for their performance in areas ranging from job creation to storm support and diversity supplier mentoring, training and development. Award categories include Overall Performance, Diversity Advocacy, and Community Partnership, to name a few. The Go Green Award recognizes suppliers who promote sustainable energy leadership within their firm. Primera was recognized for our commitment to sustainability and for our efforts in staying atop of emerging energy efficiency technologies.

One of the reasons why we were selected for this recognition was because of our efforts to reduce our firm’s carbon footprint. Every three years Primera’s in-house sustainability experts conduct an extensive analysis to determine our footprint. Based on our utility bills, restroom usage estimates, and office paper orders which include all printers, copiers, and plotters, we estimate the consumption of electricity, water, and paper. To estimate the carbon emissions from our commutes, we require input from our employees. All this information is then analyzed to determine areas of improvement and how we can become an even greener company. The data is communicated to employees to keep Sustainability top of mind, especially when it comes to commuting habits.

The first year this survey took place, our findings emphasized the importance of alternative and public transportation in reducing our carbon emissions. As a way to encourage and reward increased usage in public transportation, Primera implemented a travel voucher program that covers a portion of employees’ public transportation costs. Each year, we continue to seek other opportunity areas to further reduce our impact on the environment. Just this year we also developed a monthly Energy Usage Report which is sent out to each of our offices showing which is more efficient on a day-to-day basis. “We feel this provides a meaningful way to get all of our employees involved and invested in reducing Primera’s impact on the grid,” says Erin Inman, President & CEO.

ComEd, an Exelon company, is one of the largest electric utility companies in the nation, responsible for delivering safe and reliable power to 3.8 million homes and businesses across northern Illinois. In the electric utility industry, Exelon delivers economic benefits to the communities it serves having spent more than $4 billion with diverse suppliers over the past seven years.