Meralco development center tops 2011 Asean energy awards

The Meralco Development Center added another feather to its cap by topping the 2011 Asean Energy Awards, besting entries from 10 other Southeast Asian countries in the small/medium building category and making the Philippines No. 1 on a prestigious list.

It is the center’s first time to enter the 5-year-old competition, which was held in conjunction with the recent Asean Energy Summit for Ministers.

The center—represented by Norman Morte, associate director for facilities management, and Ma. Josefina Ciocon, associate director for rooms management—received the award from Energy Secretary Jose Rene Almendras and other Asean energy ministers in a ceremony held at the Empire Hotel and Country Club in Brunei Darussalam.

In December 2010, the Meralco Development Center received the Don Emilio Abello Energy Efficiency Citation Award from the Department of Energy (DOE). Two months later, the DOE nominated it as a candidate to the competition organized by the Asean Energy Center.

Its entry in the Sustainable Energy Management Program category was cited not only for demonstrating excellence in combining energy efficiency with greater productivity but also for instilling a culture of environmental stewardship among its employees and visitors.

“I think what gave us the edge is that while our competitors invested so much … on energy-saving devices, we invested on people who, in the end, will be effective disseminators and implementers of our energy management program,” Morte said.

“Our structured approach to our energy management program is holistic because it integrates measures and initiatives under each vital component, such as people and practices, infrastructure, technology, policies and procedures, and training and communication,” he said.

According to Ciocon, the center’s Resource Conservation Team “made sure that we are able to practice what we preach, to become role models to our own people and to our families and visitors.”