LEED stands for Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design. It is a worldwide rating system that is for builders who invest in sustainable and environmentally sound buildings and building design. Developed by the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC), LEED also rates the maintenance and operation of buildings according to how energy efficient they are. Neenan Archistruction® offers building design and construction for healthcare, education, commercial, and government projects. Below, we’ll go over why LEED matters in building construction principles. Get in touch today!
Sustainable building materials are those that are produced without an impact on nonrenewable resources, as well as those that aim to have very minimal impact on the environment. Some great examples of sustainable building materials include low-flow plumbing fixtures, solar panels, concrete flooring and walls, metal roping, reclaimed wood, and the like. The use of these materials in buildings helps to reduce the impact on global resources.
Energy efficiency is simply using less energy to accomplish the same task, such as heating your building. Thus, by incorporating energy efficiency in architecture building design, the building will be able to use less heating and cooling resources due to higher-performing insulation, a tight building envelope, and better ventilation. Lighting and overall energy use are also important.
LEED puts an emphasis on better air quality inside buildings for the health and safety of its occupants. Allowing for more natural light and cleaner air free from harmful pollutants and chemicals improves people’s quality of life and does not sacrifice comfort. Here, it’s important for architecture builders to incorporate the best ventilation and filtration systems, humidifying systems, and air filtration systems.
The emphasis for the use of environmentally friendly building materials is their ability to be recycled. Green building materials are those that use natural, renewable resources. Examples include concrete, stone, brick, bamboo, and recycled plastic. All of these save on new source materials, preserving existing environments, and help to keep building materials out of landfills.
Neenan Archistruction® is a Colorado architecture and construction firm that believes in doing everything we can to not only craft beautiful, functional buildings for our clients, but also to do so in a sustainable, environmentally conscious way. We work one-on-one with our clients throughout the entire design and construction process using our collaborative design process. We also implement target costing, which is our way of ensuring cost is incorporated into every phase of construction so we are ensuring your design and construction project is on-time and on-budget. To learn more and to get started, reach out to us today!
