Effective environmental reporting: How Sørlie Næringseiendom uses Propely for sustainable operations

For several years, Sørlie Næringseiendom has been actively working on sustainability and environmentally friendly operations in its properties. With a property portfolio of approximately 50,000 square feet and over 130 tenants, the company has set lofty goals to reduce its climate footprint.

At the heart of their environmental strategy is the work on existing building stock, where the use of Propely as a tool for documentation, reporting and collaboration with suppliers simplifies the follow-up of environmental requirements and promotes sustainable solutions. We have spoken to Bernt Sondre Sørlie, property manager at Sørlie Næringseiendom, about how they work with environmental reporting in Propely.

A journey since 1913: from furniture carpentry to commercial real estate

Since 1995, Sørlie Næringseiendom has developed and leased commercial real estate, with the twin towns of Fredrikstad and Sarpsborg as the main areas. The company's roots stretch back to 1913, a time marked by the failure of technology such as computers and telephones, to a society where digital solutions dominate.

Sørlie Næringseiendom's environmental objectives

“As part of the construction industry, our goal is to become a leader in reducing the climate footprint of existing properties. This is a complex challenge that requires changing choices and habits. The positive thing is that the industry gives us the opportunity to implement sustainable solutions already today”.

Sørlie Næringseiendom has chosen BREEAM In-Use (BIU) as a measurement tool to document environmental performance in its buildings. Instead of focusing on new construction, which often entails high environmental costs, they focus on the reuse of existing buildings.

“We see our existing buildings as the most important factor in being as environmentally friendly as possible. When reusing building, flexible solutions, quality that ensures a long service life, we strongly believe that the buildings will generate less emissions and have a lower footprint than new buildings” - says Bernt Sondre.

Propely became the key to effective environmental documentation

To ensure that the work on sustainability and environmental strategy is carried out effectively, Sørlie Næringseiendom has chosen Propely as its main tool for documentation and reporting. Through Propely, they collect environmental data relevant to BREEAM certification, and documentation in the platform is continuously linked to the BIU to simplify future certification processes.

“Propely serves as our documentation archive. We document everything from energy consumption to the quality level of deliveries,” says Sørlie.

Propely enables Sørlie Næringseiendom to keep track of projects and documentation spanning several years. They use the platform as a “documentation archive” for BIU, where folders, links and tags, allow documentation to be tracked and linked to specific rooms and deliverables.

“We have numbered all rooms in our buildings and entered room numbers in Propely, so that each document can be linked correctly. This gives us better control over processes that span time and involve multiple projects,” comments Bernt Sondre.

Increased control and traceability

Sørlie Næringseiendom has also learned that Propely has helped identify areas for improvement in their environmental work. Bernt Sondre mentions that the open sharing of documentation between suppliers has made it easier to work continuously with reporting.

“By having declarations, documentation and practices available across properties and suppliers, we build a comprehensive database that makes it easier to deliver high quality and document this correctly,” he explains.

This structured approach has given Sørlie Næringseiendom an advantage in certification processes.

Close collaboration with suppliers

Another important part of Sørlie Næringseiendom's environmental strategy is the close cooperation with suppliers. All vendors involved in the property operations gain access to the Propely platform, which simplifies documentation uploading and learning.

“By making declarations and documentation available across buildings and suppliers, we can build a database that contributes to the continuous improvement of quality,” says Sørlie.

Together with the suppliers, they design deliveries to achieve desired standards for each building, while searching for new products with better quality, functionality and a lower environmental footprint.

The future role of Propely

Sørlie Næringseiendom considers Propely an important partner in its future environmental work. The platform has already increased the efficiency of the documentation process and provided insights into how properties can be operated more sustainably. ‍

“We are very pleased with the cooperation with Propely, which takes into account the needs of its customers and is open to input into the development of the platform.

Having a partner who understands the development of the industry and is willing to find the best solutions for us is extremely valuable.” We look forward to continuing our cooperation to help us achieve our environmental goals,” concludes Sørlie

Through the use of Propely, Sørlie Næringseiendom has made great progress in its sustainability strategy. With a focus on building reuse, close collaboration with suppliers and an effective platform for documentation and reporting, they are well equipped to meet the environmental challenges of the future. By having all documentation gathered in one place, they save time and ensure everything is ready for BREEAM certification. Propely has been a central part of this success.