The Right Time to Make LEED Decisions
Thomas Taylor,
Posted
08/31/2012
Many people believe that overseeing certification under the LEED
rating system is the only service the U.S. Green Building Council
(USGBC) furnishes to the market. However, USGBC also provides a
variety of tools and resources for delivery teams related to
sustainability.
One resource is guidance for teams trying to make their projects
more sustainable but lack the knowledge to effectively do so. The
suggested first step for a project team is to make the key decision
to pursue sustainability early in the process. Another
recommendation is that this decision and the commitment that goes
with it must start at the top, with the main decision-makers for
the project. USGBC encourages building owners and delivery teams to
make this vital decision early in the project, not only because
increasing the level of sustainability in a building is the smart
and responsible thing to do, but also because this one decision
will drive all others in the project.
Recently, I have witnessed two project teams fail to make this
driving decision early, resulting in sustainability diminishing as
the project progressed to the eventual abandonment of core concepts
of sustainability and the inability to achieve LEED certification
at any level.
Prioritize Project Drivers
Planning for the first project took place before the economic
downturn hit the U.S. economy. The project had priorities of
safety, budget, schedule and sustainability. The design-build team
had previous experience with sustainable projects, and the owner
trusted that when the team specified sustainability as one of the
four main drivers, the concepts of sustainability and the design
elements required for LEED certification would automatically be
incorporated into the design.
Throughout the design phase, the budget, schedule and safety
plan were closely scrutinized. Because the owner believed that LEED
was already being incorporated into the design, he felt that, as
the project slowed due to the economic condition, a final decision
regarding LEED certification could be put off and would be made as
the design progressed and the construction phase approached. As the
design phase came to a close, a representative of the owner's
executive management asked about the status of the sustainability
effort and what level LEED certification the project was
tracking.
The delivery team had performed a LEED scorecard exercise very
early in the schematic design phase but had never taken any time to
review the results or the impacts as the design progressed and
changed. When the team gathered to review the data to answer the
question and provide a status report, they found that many of the
early concepts related to sustainability had been dropped from the
design, and the project scorecard no longer showed sufficient
points to allow for even basic level certification.
The owner then asked what it was going to take to get the
project back to LEED certified. The team provided a host of
options, all of which were difficult and costly to incorporate due
to the design being complete and the construction ready to begin.
In the final report to the owner, the team advised that it was
going to cost the project too much to achieve LEED certification,
but the building had incorporated all types of "sustainable
features."
Unfortunately, when pushed, the team was unable to pinpoint very
many sustainable attributes because there had never been any real
effort put into documentation and tracking of sustainability during
the design phase. In the end, the team boasted that the contractor
diverted more than 50 percent of its construction and demolition
waste from the landfill and that every effort was made to source
local products.
Understanding the Motivation
In the second example, the project owner committed to
sustainability with the statement, "I would like a LEED certified
building as long as it fits the budget." In this case, the
design-build contractor was seeking to secure this work in an
overly competitive market, and therefore took the project with a
promise to meet the budget, which had been established by using
examples of typical buildings that had no sustainable features.
As the design progressed, the team found themselves having to
reject items that enhanced sustainability and long-term operational
cost savings for the owner in favor of less expensive conventional
elements. Things like improved insulation values for the walls and
windows were conveyed as an expense necessary only because of LEED.
An improved HVAC system was regarded as a useless upgrade even
though it would have saved money on the energy bills years after
the project was complete. In the end, the contractor provided a
quality-built conventional building. The project came in on budget,
but through this experience, another owner came away with the view
that sustainability and LEED certification was too expensive, and
really, that was just an easy way to justify a lack of effort by
the delivery team.
EARLY LEED DECISIONS = Success
My team is often asked whether a LEED certified building costs
more. Our response is usually, "More than what?" There are plenty
of examples of owners paying excessive premiums to have their
buildings LEED certified. There are just as many examples of owners
paying no more for their LEED certified buildings than what they
had in their original budgets. The difference between these two
scenarios is that the teams that provided certified buildings
within a mandated budget were guided by clear direction from the
project's start. The owner made the decision early and provided
clear direction that sustainability was a-or the only-primary
driver the team should use while making decisions during design and
construction. Taking the time to make a decision about
sustainability early in a project may seem unconventional.
It takes time and effort to think about the long-term effects
that will result from these early decisions, but when you stop and
think about it, the design and construction of a new building will
probably be the shortest phase in the building's overall life.
Taking the time to collect data, create buy-in from shareholders
and commit to sustainability early in the process are the keys to
delivering a project that's on time, within budget and a
sustainable success.
Thomas Taylor, a 30-year veteran of the
construction industry and noted expert on sustainability, is the
general manager of St. Louis-based Vertegy. His recent book, "Guide
to LEED 2009: Estimating and Preconstruction Strategies," provides
step-by-step information about the LEED 2009 for New Construction
process. To learn more about Vertegy or Taylor's new book, visit
www.vertegyconsultants.com for more information.