Suffolk Releases White Paper to Accelerate Climate Tech Adoption in the Built World

White Paper addresses key challenges for adoption and offers owners, investors and practitioners thoughtful strategies for implementing climate technology solutions throughout the building process

Suffolk, one of the most innovative and successful builders in the country, has released a new white paper, “Accelerating Climate Tech Adoption in the Building Industry: A Framework for Owners, Investors, and Practitioners”. The white paper offers practical, action-oriented approaches to the industry’s pressing sustainability challenges, including ways for climate technologies to move beyond pilot projects and accelerate the adoption of proven technologies across entire portfolios. A key takeaway from the whitepaper includes a five-step framework for implementing climate tech solutions at scale throughout the entire construction process. The framework is based on discussions from the recently-held Climate Tech Forum which gathered startups, investors, contractors, designers and public officials to discuss common challenges and potential solutions.

The building industry is at a critical stage for addressing climate variability. Nearly 40 percent of global greenhouse gas emissions are attributed to the construction and operation of buildings. The white paper discusses the role of stakeholders – including owners and developers; investors and financial stakeholders; architects and designers; and contractors and builders – in implementing climate solutions and technologies. Ultimately, the decision and ability to implement sustainable solutions is most critical in the early stages during the design and preconstruction phases of a project. As projects reach the construction phase, contractors and site teams often lack access or authority to implement new technologies, which creates a barrier to adoption. The white paper also addresses ways the building industry commitment to sustainability can be deepened from emerging trends such as advancements in AI and machine learning, particularly by enhancing energy efficiency and an emphasis on circular economy principles.

"The construction industry faces a critical juncture to address its environmental impact through innovative technologies and practices," said Steven Burke, Senior Director of Sustainability at Suffolk. "Our new white paper provides a structured framework for implementing climate technologies that can not only improve our own projects but help transform standard practices across the entire industry."

The white paper examines challenges and opportunities implementing climate technologies. While regulatory and policy frameworks continue to lag innovation, the research identifies significant opportunities for accelerating pilot approvals and creating knowledge-sharing platforms for successful implementations. The document also addresses persistent misconceptions about climate tech solutions as high-risk investments with prohibitive costs, demonstrating how these technologies can offer substantial savings across labor, logistics, and material lifecycle expenses when properly implemented.

To accelerate adoption, the white paper proposes a five-step “adoption framework” focused on identifying viable climate tech solutions, strengthening cross-industry collaboration, establishing metrics for success, securing funding and scaling from pilots to industry standards.

Through the collaboration and gathering of key stakeholder insights throughout the climate tech building lifecycle, Suffolk is leading the industry into a new phase of climate tech solution adoption that will help address the world’s environmental challenges by leveraging economically-viable solutions.

For more information and to download the complete white paper, visit here.

About Suffolk Technologies

Suffolk Technologies is a venture capital platform funding the next generation of companies solving built environment challenges. Led by Managing Partners Wan Li Zhu, Jit Kee Chin, and Puneet Mahajan, Suffolk Technologies invests in early and growth-stage startups transforming the built world across real estate and development, architecture, engineering and construction, property management, and smart cities. Leveraging Suffolk’s expertise and broad network of industry leaders, Suffolk Technologies partners with visionary founders to accelerate industry-wide adoption of breakthrough innovations ranging from pre-product to growth stages. For more information about Suffolk Technologies’ strategy and investments, visit SuffolkTech.com.

About Suffolk

Suffolk – America’s Contractor – is a national company with more than $6.5 billion in annual revenue, 3,000 employees, and offices in Boston (headquarters); New York City and Westchester County, New York; Miami, West Palm Beach, Tampa and Estero in Florida; Dallas; Los Angeles, San Francisco and San Diego; Las Vegas; Portland, Maine; New Haven, Connecticut; Herndon, Virginia; and Salt Lake City. Suffolk manages some of the most complex, sophisticated projects in the country, serving clients in every major industry sector, including healthcare, life sciences, education, gaming, transportation/aviation, federal government and public work, mission critical, advanced technology and commercial.

Suffolk is privately held and is led by Founder, Chairman and CEO John Fish. Suffolk is ranked #8 on ENR’s list of “Largest Domestic Builders” and #10 on its list of “Top CM-at-Risk Contractors.” For more information, visit www.suffolk.com and follow Suffolk on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and YouTube.

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