Article Number : 3777 |
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| Date | 10/24/2008 9:44:16 AM |
| Written By | LGM & Associates Technical Flooring Services |
| View this article at: | //floorbiz.com/BizResources/NPViewArticle.asp?ArticleID=3777 |
| Abstract | By William Worthen The term “green building” can have a wide variety of meanings. One person may say it includes water-conserving bathroom fixtures, solar panels, recycling or nontoxic cleaning agents... |
| Article | By William Worthen The term “green building” can have a wide variety of meanings. One person may say it includes water-conserving bathroom fixtures, solar panels, recycling or nontoxic cleaning agents. Another person may say lighting controls, operable windows, variable speed motors or even organically grown foods. All these items are indeed green. But today’s truly successful green building projects are more than just a sum of their green parts. Today, the business case for sustainable design has been made. We are seeing Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED)-certified projects permeating almost all building sectors. Since the launch of the first LEED rating system by the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) just eight years ago, there are now over 1,600 LEED-certified buildings and more than 13,500 LEED registered projects. What is LEED? LEED is a family of green building rating systems applicable to almost any construction project or building renovation. LEED is based on quantifiable, objective and measurable green building criteria. LEED divides green building into six basic green categories: site, water, energy, materials, indoor air quality and innovative ideas. A project is scored based on the total number of credits/points achieved from all LEED categories. Upon review of all submitted credit documentation, USGBC awards four possible levels of LEED certification: Certified, Silver, Gold and Platinum. It is worth noting that only buildings can receive a LEED certification—not materials, vendors or companies. Any product claiming to achieve a LEED point (solely by its specification) is simply wrong. This type of marketing demonstrates a manufacturer’s fundamental lack of understanding of the LEED process— be wary. LEED and flooring Flooring materials can contribute to or prevent several LEED credits from being achieved. Any urea-based glues used in an engineered floor or in any specified adhesive or sealer would prevent LEED credits (select phenol-based products instead). To achieve points, all carpets need to meet CRI’s Green Label Plus requirements, and all types of flooring and substrate adhesives need to meet or exceed stated low VOC requirements. Also potentially contributing to additional LEED credits are: • Use of FSC-certified wood • Specifying green cleaning products (not toxic chemicals) • Use of high recycled content materials • Use of rapidly renewable materials • Supplying regionally sourced materials in flooring William Worthen, AIA, LEED AP, is senior associate at Simon & Associates Green Building Consultants. He also manages his own design practice, Urban Fabrick. He can be contacted at bill@greenbuild.com. |