Green Building

Major metropolitan office markets across the globe are seeing a significant increase in the adoption of “green” building certification programs, according to the inaugural International Green Building Adoption Index (IGBAI) – a study by CBRE and Maastricht University (Netherlands). The study reports that 18.6 percent of space in 10 markets across Australia, Canada and Europe is now certified “green” versus just 6.4 percent in 2007.

As part of its efforts to grow and differentiate the brand while keeping energy stewardship at the forefront, Wendy’s® recently unveiled a new “Smart Family of Designs,” providing a portfolio of development options to franchisees, including buildings that fit into smaller footprints. Wendy’s recently introduced the Smart 2.0 design, which reduces environmental impact and includes features that promote energy efficiency.

As Greenbuild Europe came to a close this week in Berlin, the International WELL Building Institute™ (IWBI™) used the occasion to highlight how the WELL Building Standard™ (WELL™) has elevated health and well-being to the forefront of sustainability conversations across Europe.

The International WELL Building Institute™ (IWBI™) and the Blue Building Institute (BBI) announced a new agreement to accelerate market transformation toward healthy buildings and communities in the Netherlands.

The International WELL Building Institute™ (IWBI™) today announced new market partners with several green building councils and other key organizations, marking an important milestone in the shared global mission to transform buildings to actively promote human health and wellness. Each organization is working with IWBI within their respective markets to accelerate the uptake of building practice that helps improve the health and wellness of people everywhere.

In the U.S., human health is largely determined by five key factors: social/economic environment, physical environment, behavior, genetics and access to healthcare. Although access to healthcare is often considered one of the smallest health determinants, a disproportionate 86% of our national health spending is directed toward treating chronic diseases that are generally preventable.

ECN Magazine highlighted the 2 megawatt, 24-acre solar photovoltaic array that is being constructed at the Dugway Proving Ground (DPG) site in Dugway, Utah. This new system will allow DPG’s existing electrical grid to produce 4 million kilowatt-hours of energy per year. Tetra Tech and joint venture partner TriEco are serving as the prime contractor for the design and build of the array. DPG is executing this project to optimize efficiency and conserve natural resources through on-site renewable energy generation and to support their objective of meeting renewable energy goals. This is the first of many prospective renewable energy projects to support to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) renewable energy goals.

etra Tech is helping Kenya create a 5,000-acre technopolis, supporting the country as it grows into a globally competitive, prosperous nation. The Government of Kenya, through the Konza Technopolis Development Authority (KoTDA) selected Tetra Tech as the Master Delivery Partner 2 (MDP2) for the Konza Technopolis project. Tetra Tech is providing program management, architecture-engineering services, and capacity building to support KoTDA with the implementation of Phase I.

Mohawk Industries announced today that it has been awarded LEED® Gold certification for its renovated showroom at the Glasgow, Va. commercial carpet tile manufacturing facility. LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) is the most widely used green building rating system in the world. Available for virtually all building, community and home project types, the rating system provides a framework to create healthy, highly efficient and cost-saving green buildings.

Have you ever approached a WELL precondition and wondered where to begin? Not to fret - we’ve launched a Navigating preconditions series to help project teams get started incorporating a number of preconditions from different WELL concepts into their project’s design and policies.