777 Third Avenue Installs Two Backup Generators
NEW YORK-(Business Wire)-September 15, 2009 - In this economy, most realtors are focusing on cost per square foot to close a commercial real estate deal. They feel that everyone wants a bargain so they attempt to impress renters with complicated price negotiations. What brokers don’t realize is that savvy tenants have more pressing issues on their mind.
Cost is not the potential tenant’s concern. It’s life safety.
In fact, life safety issues have become a top priority for companies on the hunt for new office space. According to Marilyn Davenport, a senior vice president at the Real Estate Board of New York, “tenants expect emergency backup systems in every building, especially since 9-11.”
Armed with this knowledge, Sage Realty, the management company of 777 Third Avenue, has made some revolutionary steps by installing state-of-the-art equipment that will save lives in the event of an emergency.
As of today, 777 Third Avenue has not one, but two 150-kilowatt backup generators, each dedicated to support an elevator bank in this 38-floor building. In the event of a power outage, both the high-rise and the low-rise elevator banks will be able to swiftly transport tenants to safety.
As a bonus, these generators will provide lighting in the elevator machine room and will also allow the building’s freight car to operate as a fireman’s elevator.
The brainchild behind the dual-generator backup system is Melvyn Kaufman, a partner in Sage Realty. “The importance of this element became apparent to us during the black out of 2003. A neighboring hotel on Madison and 50th Street, had one very large generator.” According to Kaufman, “During the blackout, they could not get their generator running. They needed to jump start it by using our small five-horsepower generator." Says Kaufman, “A thousand people were sitting still because that generator malfunctioned.”
While installing two generators is a more expensive alternative than installing one large generator, Kaufman says that Class A tenants will appreciate the added security. “Let’s face reality, people are afraid of heights and are afraid of getting stuck in an elevator. The businessman who genuinely cares about the safety of his employees will want to be in a building with a sophisticated backup system like ours in place.”
The generators were installed by Russ Flaum, of Michael Mazzeo Electric.
According to Flaum, “By putting in two generators we are backing up the backup generator."
Flaum, an electrician with 35 years of experience of electrical installations in midtown high-rise office buildings, says this dual backup system is extraordinary. “This is the only building I’ve ever seen where a generator backups a generator, even in hospitals. It’s unheard of. Even phone companies use batteries as a backup. To our knowledge, no other high-rise office building has such a system.”
About 777 Third Avenue
777 Third Avenue was built in 1963, and is owned by the William Kaufman Organization and the Travelers Companies, Inc. The building is managed by Sage Realty Corporation, a wholly owned entity of the William Kaufman Organization. As of January 1, 2010, approximately 484,600 rsf of office space and 9,000 rsf of basement space will be available. The building is located between 48th and 49th streets in Midtown Manhattan.
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