Part 2: Investments in LEED's buildings

Yesterday we talked about major corporate investments in green, with an emphasis on the renewable side.  Here's some new projects on the building side:

1.  Environmental Design (LEED) certification.
Owens Corning’s global headquarters in Toledo, Ohio, have achieved Gold certification under LEED for existing buildings (LEED-EB). The building, designed by Cesar Pelli and built in 1996, won silver under LEED-EB in 2007.
The company manufactures insulation, roofing and other building materials, much of it energy efficient.

2. The Kent Denver School, a prep school for grades 6-12 in Englewood, Colo., has achieved what it says is the first LEED Platinum free-standing dining facility in the world. The majority of the facility’s waste is fully composted or recycled, and the dining hall uses about half the energy and water of a typical building, according to food service company Sodexo, which worked on the project with Kent Denver.
The hall will also serve up fruits from the school’s 100-tree orchard, vegetables from its outdoor garden and herbs from its living herb wall.

3. Iowa-based Frontier Natural Products Co-op has won LEED Silver status for a 7,200 square foot renovation at its manufacturing facility. The renovation included a re-finished concrete floor, energy-efficient envelope lighting and more efficient heating, venting and air conditioning (HVAC), consisting of water-source heat pumps and commercial roof-top units.
The company said the measures will conserve more than 77,000 kWh compared to a similar, conventional building.
Flush and flow fixtures in restrooms achieve 35 percent water efficiency compared to conventional fixtures, Frontier said. Bio-swales, detention basins and an on-site wetland will capture and filter more than 90 percent of the site’s average annual rainfall.

4. Finally, Bayer is aiming for Gold-level LEED for commercial interiors (LEED-CI) certification for a $17 million renovation project (pictured) at its U.S. headquarters in Pittsburgh. The planned improvements focus on two buildings that house 825 of the 1,500 employees at Bayer’s suburban Robinson Township campus.
The buildings will feature open-area work spaces using Bayer MaterialScience’s Makrolon MAK clearn polycarbonate, which allows natural light to filter throughout the workplace. LED fixture lenses and architectural panels will also use polycarbonate, which Bayer invented.

Great projects.  Congratulations to all.  Arpin is anxious to move up on the leader board with you as we remodel our headquarters and install our solar array.