LEED® Certified
Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design
 What
is LEED®?
The Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Green Building Rating System™
is the nationally accepted benchmark for the design, construction, and operation
of high performance green buildings. LEED gives building owners and operators the
tools they need to have an immediate and measurable impact on their buildings’
performance. LEED promotes a whole-building approach to sustainability by recognizing
performance in five key areas of human and environmental health: sustainable site
development, water savings, energy efficiency, materials selection, and indoor environmental
quality. This building will have a superior indoor air quality, thus improving the
quality of life for its tenants. What does this mean to you? Fewer airborne viruses,
fewer sick days for employees, and more productivity for all. A healthier and happier
place to visit or work.
Trammell Crow Company (“TCC”) is committed to developing environmentally sensitive, energy efficient, and sustainable office buildings throughout the United States. TCC has formed a national task force on sustainability and the Energy Center II development team participates on this task force.
Energy Center II is registered with the USGBC, has submitted the necessary documentation to the USGBC for LEED for Core & Shell Pre-Certification and is expected to be LEED Certified in 2008. Energy Center II is registered, in the process of submitting LEED for Core & Shell Pre-Certificaiton documentation, and is expected to receive LEED Silver Certification in 2009.
How is This Building Green?
This base building, site and garage have been designed, developed and constructed under the USGBC Core & Shell rating criteria toward the “Silver” Certification level.
Core & Shell consists of the base building elements, such as the structure, envelope and base building-level systems, such as central HVAC.
LEED for Core & Shell works to set up a relationship which allows future tenants to capitalize on green strategies implemented by the Developer.
Key building areas such as tenant space layout, tenant finishes, tenant area lighting, mechanical, and air distribution are under the direction of the tenant and not the developer.
The base building project addresses the following issues in each of the five Core & Shell rating system categories:
- Sustainable Site
- a) An erosion control plan was developed and will be implemented during construction to prevent loss of soil into the stormwater collection system.
b) Site lighting fixtures have been selected with defined cutoff to lessen impact of light on the Houston night sky and to eliminate direct night glare.
c) The site is located near existing and planned mass transit lines.
d) Garage parking will allow for preferred vehicle parking spots for low-emitting and fuel efficient vehicles.
e) “Heat islands” due to developed surfaces which cause temperature gains in the atmosphere will be reduced by using covered stacked parking and highly reflective paving materials.
- Water Efficiency
- a) Landscaping and building core water devices chosen to limit consumption.
b) Native plant species, and weather monitoring device installation to reduce water needed for irrigation.
c) Water saving fixtures chosen to reduce water usage in restrooms.
- Energy and Atmosphere
- a) Building Mechanical, Electrical and Plumbing systems designed to be efficient and set up for lifetime monitoring to maintain efficiency. Examples are the high efficiency chillers and elevators which will benefit the Tenant with reduced operating expenses. Based on our initial whole building energy simulation model, we anticipate the building will be approximately 15% more efficient than the baseline building performance rating per ASHRAE/IESNA Standard 90.1-2004 (without amendments).
- Materials and Resources
- a)During construction a recycling program will be implemented to limit the impact on landfills from construction debris.
b)Materials were chosen that are from rapidly renewable resources and/ or partly recycled content.
c) Use of locally manufactured and fabricated products given preference to lessen impact of necessary travel for delivery of those materials.
- Indoor Environmental Quality
- a) Products and mechanical, electrical and plumbing systems were chosen to provide the highest level of indoor air quality.
b) Indoor air system provides continuous monitoring for sustained quality.
c) Carpeting, paints, adhesives and sealants and other base building products were chosen for minimal contribution of volatile organic compounds which translates to cleaner indoor air quality.
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