Ewing Cole LEED CI Gold Breakfast and Tour

Interest:

• Membership Committee
• Metro Philadelphia Events

Federal Reserve Bank
100 N 6th St, 6th Floor, Philadelphia, PA 19106

EwingCole was recently awarded LEED for Commercial Interiors Gold Certification for environmental design efforts integrated into our Philadelphia office renovation project. To receive this high level of integrated sustainable design practice, thirty-eight environmental strategies (and six LEED prerequisites) were completed during the project. Since our recent renovation was not a complete renovation and the current LEED CI Rating System is for newly constructed tenant fit-out work with a limit on reuse of existing space, we could only submit 16,000 square feet (the northeast corner including the renovated courtroom, reception area, and re-organized conference rooms) for formal LEED Certification. All other renovated areas included the same LEED criteria where possible, but they were not included in the NE corner submitted for formal LEED CI Certification.

Key highlights of our office renovation’s LEED pursuit include the following:

• THE GREENEST BUILDING IS THE ONE THAT IS ALREADY BUILT- One of the larger challenges of our office renovation was designing efficient systems within the Federal Reserve Bank Building originally constructed in the 1970’s. Eight LEED CI credits were earned from existing environmental conditions already present in our space. Examples include existing under-the-building parking, a somewhat water efficient landscape irrigation system (which uses drip irrigation technology), a very dense urban location, accessibility to SEPTA, PATCO, and the R- commuter trains, as well as multiple bus lines, bike racks, and shower facilities. These existing conditions help to provide a foundation for our LEED success. However, an outdated HVAC system with little controllability, a very inefficient existing lighting system, inefficient plumbing fixtures, a very deep floor plan for access to daylight and views, and a number of other pre-existing conditions made it very difficult to achieve many LEED credits. The design team was challenged to maximize our building products selection and convince the Bank to renovate our restrooms earlier than originally planned. Challenges existed in meeting the basic LEED prerequisites. The Bank achieved only 3 of the required 6 LEED CI prerequisites. Modifications had to be done to achieve the minimum energy performance, recycling program, and fundamental commissioning prerequisites in this renovation project.

• MAKING EXISTING FEDERAL RESERVE BUILDING SYSTEMS MORE EFFICIENT- Although challenging, the project team made modifications where possible to the existing building systems to aid in the project’s LEED success. These strategies earned seven LEED credits. They include:

-waterless urinals, electronic sensor low-flow restroom faucets, and replacement of water closet flushometers helped reduce the water usage in our restrooms to be 40.04% better than the USGBC baseline.

• An inventory was taken of our computer equipment, AV equipment, televisions, fax machines, and photocopy machines throughout our office space. 94.9% of that equipment is EPA Energy Star Equipment, showing a consistent attention to the purchase of energy efficient office equipment.

• A green power renewable energy certificate (REC) was purchased to ensure that 100% of our energy for our office was provided by a renewable energy source through a green-e certificate. The REC EwingCole purchased was through Renewable Choice. In 2008 and 2009 25% of EwingCole’s power in our Philadelphia office comes from a renewable energy source.

• The Bank required adjustments to meet LEED minimum energy performance requirements. The existing lighting system, at an average of 85-90 foot-candles, is well above the ASHRAE 90.1 requirement of between .5 watts/sf to 1.4 watts/sf in various spaces. The new areas well exceeded the ASHRAE 90.1 requirements, compensating for some of the existing work area lighting systems. De-lamping was required to comply with the prerequisite.

• The previous recycling program at the Bank did not comply with LEED prerequisite standards. Working with the Bank, modifications to the janitorial services requirements, the trash collection agency, and our office waste receptacles was required. It was modified to allow for employee recycling of paper, plastics, glass, metals, and corrugated cardboard.

• PAYING ATTENTION TO THE DETAILS OF ENVIRONMENTAL INTERIOR DESIGN, ENGINEERING, AND DESIGN ISSUES- A large number of progressive strategies were integrated in product selection and construction of our renovated spaces. Those strategies earned Eighteen LEED credits. They include:

• A very aggressive approach to selecting environmental products was incorporated by our design team into this project. Of 14 available M&R credits, 12 credits were achieved. A detailed letter submitted to the USGBC about our commitment to specifying and installing environmentally friendly materials is attached. This clearly shows a very conscious effort to make the best choices in our materials selection for this interiors project.

• A conscious effort to obtain as many Indoor Environmental Quality credits as possible was included in our renovation, resulting in 6 earned credits. Examples include requiring low-emitting materials in all five LEED CI areas, requiring the Paul Restall Company to comply with LEED Construction Indoor Air Quality Management requirements to protect EwingCole staff, including a thermal comfort monitoring strategy, minimizing Indoor Chemical and Pollutant Sources, and allowing for personal Controllability of Lighting Systems throughout the space.

• INNOVATION IN ENVIRONMENTAL DESIGN- A large number of innovative strategies were integrated into our renovation. Those strategies earned ALL FIVE available LEED INNOVATION credits. They include the following:

• Exemplary Performance in Resource Reuse-Furniture and Furnish- Due to the cost of our existing workstations and our decision to reuse them, not only did we save money but we saved a lot of natural resources. 86% of the furniture cost in our renovation was reused, earning a LEED innovation credit.

• Exemplary Performance in using Green Power- By purchasing a REC for 100% of the power for our LEED project to be provided by a renewable energy source, we earned an innovation credit.

• Proactive Employee Transportation Management Plan- EwingCole has a very aggressive program to encourage our Employees to use alternative transportation for both commuting to/from work and our business travel. The mass transit reimbursement program, the free subway token program, the access to Philly carshare vehicles, the company travel vehicle fleet on the ground floor of our building, and accessibility to many alternative transportation opportunities is much better than many businesses in our city. Our strategies, when combined, earned an innovation credit.

• Exemplary Performance Water Use Reduction- The modifications made in the North restroom facilities in the latest Bank renovation project save 40.04% compared to an office facility that meets the LEED CI baseline. These water efficiency strategies earned an innovation credit.

• LEED Accredited Professional Expertise- we had 6 LEED accredited professionals work on this project at some point during its life. We need one for a LEED credit.

These strategies demonstrate a clear intention by EwingCole staff to include integrated environmental design in our office renovation. Whether you realize it or not, the decision to keep existing conditions that have not been used for their useful life and renovating new areas for our programmatic needs, both cost and environmental leadership were included in this team’s efforts. LEED strategies were included to the greatest extent possible within an existing building which added some difficult challenges to creating a green interiors space. The US Green Building Council has awarded LEED CI Gold Certification (see attached final review) to EwingCole for our Leadership in Environmental Design. Congratulations to all team members who helped make this possible!