The U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) has announced the Platinum certification of its new Washington, D.C., headquarters, making it the first project to certify under the latest version of the LEED green building rating system. The USGBC promotes cost-saving and energy-efficient green building and developed the LEED certification system to promote the design, construction and operation of green building.
The new USGBC headquarters is located in the Foggy Bottom district of Northwest Washington D.C. The USGBC moved into the new office building in March 2009. The 75,000 square foot office, divided between two floors, is connected by an open staircase. The elevator, lobby, reception and conference areas are clad in 500-year-old gumwood that was salvaged from the bottom of the Tennessee River.
“The vision of the space was to exemplify everything a LEED building is: high-performing, resource-efficient, healthy and productive,” said Rick Fedrizzi, president, CEO and founding Chair of the USGBC. “Using the newest version of the rating system renders our space on the cutting edge of building science and technology, and will serve as an educational learning lab and highly representative of a transforming building market.”
More than 35,000 projects are currently participating in the LEED system, comprising over 5.6 billion square feet of construction space in all 50 states and 91 countries. The new office space triples the size of its previous space, reflective of the green building industry itself, which is projected to soar to $60 billion by 2010.
Aggressive water and energy reduction goals were set to reduce water use by 40 percent and energy use to be less than half that of a typical office. A dashboard system was implemented to provide real-time feedback on energy use. Floor to ceiling glass windows provide abundant day-lighting to any workstation in the office, while the electronic window shade system maximizes natural light while minimizing glare.
These and other design integrations helped USGBC achieve 36 out of 37 points in the Energy and Atmosphere category of the rating system.
The planning, design and construction of the new headquarters was a 12-month process from site selection to move-in. Prospective buildings were evaluated on various metrics, including green provisions such as recycling programs and the desire to seek certification for the entire building. With three out of five tenants and six out of the 10 floors in the building either certified or undergoing certification, a Vornado Realty Trust property was selected as the location.
Architecture firm Envision Design was selected because of its extensive LEED project portfolio. GHT Limited Consulting Engineers and James G. Davis Construction Corporation were chosen as the engineering and construction firms. All members of the design, engineering and construction teams are LEED Accredited Professionals.
USGBC extends its sincere gratitude to the sponsors and donors whose contributed to the project: Ambius, Armstrong Commercial Ceiling and Wall Systems, Bosch Home Appliances, Convia, A Herman Miller Company, Crestron Electronics, Inc., Excel Dryer, Inc., Forbo Floorings, Haworth, Inc., Icestone LLC, Knoll, Inc., MechoShade Systems, Inc., Price Modern LLC, Sherwin-Williams, Sloan Valve Company, Teknion, The Mohawk Group.
“The committed group of individuals who work for USGBC, our unlikely diverse coalition of member companies who range across every industry, and our donors, whose generosity made the dream of this office a reality, ardently carry out our mission of a sustainable built environment within a generation,” says Fedrizzi. “The green building movement is as versatile as it gets. Building projects of every size, scale and budget are seizing control of our collective environmental challenges and are implementing the solutions.”