Party Walls

If you’re designing and constructing multifamily buildings, chances are you’ve run into one of the many green building certification programs. Whether mandated by code, tax credits, your loan, or because you want to improve building performance, the differences between programs can be difficult to understand. One of the most frequent questions we help design teams answer is “which multifamily green building program should we choose?”

To help shed some light on the major green building standards, we’ve outlined some of the most important requirements for multifamily building performance that tend to differentiate the programs the most.

ENERGY STAR

Administered by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, ENERGY STAR is a free program that includes envelope, mechanical, and moisture management requirements. There are two pathways to certification – ENERGY STAR Certified Homes and ENERGY STAR Multifamily High-rise – based on the height of the building. In the near future these programs will merge into one Multifamily New Construction standard.

Although it isn’t considered a full green building program (it doesn’t address materials, site or water), ENERGY STAR is included in this comparison because several programs and standards reference it as a base requirement.

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A team of SWA consultants recently had the opportunity to tour the newly constructed Delos Office Headquarters, located in the Meatpacking District of New York City. The office, which occupies the fourth and fifth floors of a ten-story building adjacent to the High Line, has obtained WELL Platinum certification through the International WELL Building Institute (IWBI), Petal Certification through the Living Building Challenge, and is currently pursuing LEED v4 Platinum certification through the US Green Building Council (USGBC). From the inception of the tour, it was clear that the space had exceeded the expectations of these certifications, and more.

Overview

Stepping off the elevator, occupants walk over a large metal grate designed to remove debris from shoes, preventing dirt and other particles from contaminating the floor. Then, upon entering the office, visitors are immediately greeted with an abundance of natural light and sense of biophilia. The office is enclosed by large glass curtain walls and filled with an array of plant life. Next to the entrance, a large monitor displays office conditions, such as temperature, humidity, carbon dioxide, and other levels affecting tenant comfort.

The main office area is largely free address, which means employees can freely move to where they feel most comfortable. Each desk is adjustable and includes a monitor, a temperature adjustable task light, and many other utilities that foster productivity. There are greenwalls placed throughout the office (22 to be exact), which are used to purify the air. Clean air is also distributed through floor diffusers and dirty air is removed through the ceiling. Additionally, it is noticeably quiet in the office; the mechanical systems are well insulated and there is a low level white noise sound masking system that lessens harsh noises.  (more…)

Are you in? The US Green Building Council (USGBC) wants you to be. The “All-in” campaign has just officially expanded to include the new and highly anticipated LEED v4.1 for Building Operations and Maintenance (O+M).

Full disclosure: As a member of the Energy and Atmosphere (EA) Technical Advisory Group, I was involved in reviewing LEED v4.1 modifications. In the past, LEED had set significant barriers to entry for existing buildings. For example, LEED O+M EA Prerequisite Minimum Energy Performance set a baseline ENERGY STAR score of 75, which restricted certification to the top 25% of efficient buildings. This limitation often caused building owners to abandon LEED before even getting started, thus eliminating a key incentive for improving underperforming buildings’ environmental impact. LEED 4.1 has fixed this problem. The restrictive prerequisite for energy performance has been replaced with a voluntary credit, encouraging building owners to benchmark energy use and screen capital improvements against energy impacts.

The newest version of LEED O+M also incorporates Arc, USGBC’s performance tracking platform. In Version 4.1, the energy score is calculated based on two energy metrics:

1. The traditional ENERGY STAR metric of annual Source Energy Use Intensity (kBtu/sf);
2. The Arc metric of Annual Greenhouse Gas Emissions Intensity (GHG/person).

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The sunset date for LEED 2009 project registration has come and gone and all new LEED registrations (or existing registrations that will not submit for preliminary review before June, 30 2021) will fall under the V4 rating system. We are still seeing a trickle of requests for LEED 2009 compliance support for projects that were registered before the October deadline, but those are becoming few and farther between. At the same time, design and construction teams are still wondering what the differences are between the rating systems. So, we are highlighting a few changes to the commissioning requirements in LEED V4 BD&C about which Architects and Developers should be aware.

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LEED v4 Changes and Updates

We all knew the time was creeping up on us when LEED v2009, known as LEED v3,would no longer be an option. There are plenty of Halloween ghouls about, but LEED v4 shouldn’t give you a scare! We have a few key resources to help you understand the new rating systems and ensure a smooth transition.

LEED v3 Sunset and Registration Dates

All projects that wish to pursue LEED v3 must register  by October 31, 2016. Additionally, LEED v3 projects must certify by June 30, 2021. Projects that register now under LEED v3 can always transition to LEED v4 at no cost, but you can’t switch back to v3 after 10/31/16.

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High-quality design, engineering, and construction; the guiding principles used to assemble a team of building experts tasked with creating a demonstration project embodying cutting edge sustainability. Led by the New Hampshire-based builder Unity Homes and the Cradle to Cradle Products Innovation Institute, a hand-selected team of product manufacturers and technical consultants have collaborated to develop the 2015 Greenbuild Unity Home. As the green building certification specialists, SWA’s Maureen Mahle and Karla Butterfield are managing the planning, design, construction, inspection, and testing of the modular home according to LEED BD+C Homes v4 Platinum, ENERGY STAR^® v3, and EPA’s WaterSense and Indoor AirPlus certification program requirements. For last year’s conference, SWA provided similar services to verify the 2014 Greenbuild Living Home.

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Written by Anna Speed, SWA Sustainability Consultant

After 61% of those surveyed at Greenbuild 2014 replied that that they were not prepared, or were unsure if they were prepared for the inception of LEED® version 4 (v4), the United States Green Building Council (USGBC) announced that it would allow LEED users to register projects under the LEED version 3 (v3) rating system until October 31, 2016. The original date for LEEDv3 registration to close was June 27, 2015. The USGBC made their decision to extend the deadline based on their understanding that LEED users and members needed additional time to prepare for v4, which is more stringent and requires greater cooperation from manufacturers and suppliers.

As a result of the extended deadline, the USGBC offers projects the ability to pursue LEEDv4 credits while registered under the LEEDv3 rating system. One credit for example is Materials and Resources Pilot Alternative Compliance Path 84 where project teams can pursue the entire LEEDv4 Materials and Resources (MR) Category in place of the MR credits from LEEDv3. This includes Storage and Collection of Recyclables, Construction and Demolition Waste Management Planning, Building Life-Cycle Impact Reduction, Building Product Disclosure and Optimization (Environmental Product Declarations, Sourcing of Raw Materials and Material Ingredients), and Construction and Demolition Waste Management. (more…)