AT&T Energy Director to Expand Focus to Include Smarter Buildings

John Schinter, who was hired as AT&T’s first Director of Energy in 2009, was recently appointed Assistant Vice President of Energy and Smart Buildings. 

While continuing with his current role to oversee company-wide energy management efforts, Schinter’s focus will expand to include the deployment of new M2M and big data solutions to optimize facility equipment operational performance and reliability. 

“Big data and machine-to-machine technologies are strategic tools that can be used in Real Estate operations to optimize equipment reliability and further accelerate our progress in responsible energy management,” said Mark Schleyer, Senior Vice President of Corporate Real Estate at AT&T. “With John Schinter leading our Energy and Smart Building work, AT&T will be even better suited to optimize our equipment operations and improve energy efficiencies that can positively impact AT&T’s network reliability, the environment and our bottom line.”

Over the next five to six years, Schinter will focus on:

• Driving a technology transformation;
• Deploying centralized real-time data analysis to support the reduction of the company’s real estate footprint and identify potential efficiencies;
• Expanding alternative finance structures; and,
• Expanding alternative/renewable energy, including solar and fuel cell technology.

Under Schinter’s leadership, AT&T implemented over 14,300 energy efficiency projects, producing annualized savings of over $151 million from 2010-2012. Such successes have been part of a company-wide focus on energy conservation.

Through AT&T’s employee engagement program, Do One Thing (DOT), employees across the company drive positive impact with small changes at work, at home and in their communities. The DOT for the month of March was dedicated to energy conservation.

“Personally, I have chosen a DOT to save energy both in my personal and professional life because it aligns with my work and interests, and I encourage employees across the country to join us in this movement to make a positive difference for themselves, their communities and AT&T,” Schinter said. “There’s no single action that’s going to move the needle. The collective actions of thousands of people create an impact.”