BuildingGreen Report

Author

Anne Hicks Harney, FAIA, has more than 30 years of experience, focusing on high-quality design imbued with a solid technical and sustainable foundation. At Long Green Specs, she provides sustainability-focused construction specifications and building material expertise to architectural firms across the country. She was chair of the AIA... Read more

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Hi- Happy Monday!  

Does anyone know if there is an open-source list of manufacturers that have take-back programs? Looking for a summary/spreadsheet with details (costs, qty, etc). I have a small list but I'm guessing there is already one out there...

Also, Doesn't stage D in LCA account for take-back programs? Could this be... Read more

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All,

Our firm has been struggling to find carbon reduction strategies for concrete that move us beyond a fly ash only approach. Frankly, the knowledge just isn't there internally or with our consultants. We've known that there are a few folks out there that have a deep bag of tricks, but we haven't had the chance to work with them... Read more

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Hi all,

I wanted to reach out to fellow MEP energy modeling teams to assess everyone's experience with the new PCI calculation methodology in 2016. It was a substantial change in how we show savings on projects. Big changes can often come with un-intended consequences. I'm all for pushing to higher efficiency - just want to make sure we... Read more

Firm-wide Group

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Hi, a local sustainability not for profit whose board I'm on is considering a vinyl siding collaboration with the Vinyl Sustainability Council, started in 2016 by the Vinyl Institute. There would be some funding to create a program to help recycle siding and a chance to win a full new vinyl cladding. I don't think we should collaborate with... Read more

Quiz

Welcome to the quiz portion of Protect Your Spec: 14 Strategies. 

Learning Objectives
Upon completing this course, participants will be able to:


Identify ways to ensure continuity between the environmentally preferable materials in a project specification, and the less-than-ideal materials that end up used in the final... Read more

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Hi everyone,

As designers who sometimes work in the field of healthcare, we occasionally like to gather data about both current attitudes and future possibilities. Steffian Bradley Architects would greatly appreciate your participation in our 2018 survey by completing the questionnaire linked below.

All responses are anonymous to... Read more

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Is EV100 on your radars? We're reviewing our company leases and aleady have employee free access to EV charging at our office and jobsites by request (if technically feasible).

"With businesses owning over half of all new registered vehicles on the road, it is crucial that companies lead the shift to electric vehicles." Does your role in... Read more

Working Group

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Our firm is looking into our hiring process with JEDI objectives and looking for examples that have been successful. Just like any other firms, we utilize career fair opportunities from local Universities, we have scholarship & endowment programs for several institutions, which became a major pipeline. We are working on evaluating all... Read more

Quiz

Welcome to the quiz portion of Wood: What’s Good?

Learning Objectives
Upon completing this course, participants will be able to:


Define “biogenic carbon” and explain its implications for life-cycle assessment of wood products. List the benefits and limitations of seven types of structural wood products.  Understand how... Read more

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Hi folks,

It's here! Highlights, key takeaways, and pics from our packed few days together in Ashland, Mass. in the 2023 Summer Summit report.

From the intro:

Effectively meeting the challenge of the moment is what the world needs from us. Being grounded and energized by connections and sharing with our peers in a safe... Read more

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Hello Green Gurus.

I've been looking into EPDs lately and ran across a few companies with Product Envionmental Profiles (PEPs) which they say are also known as EPDs. Does anyone have any experience with PEPs or know if they actually are EPDs? They reference ISO standards 14040 and 14044 in the writing and ISO 14025 in the list of... Read more

Product Guide

Textiles have some of the worst environmental records of any product found in our buildings. Textile production uses a number of hazardous chemicals and pollutes water; and its environmental impacts often affect our most vulnerable populations.

BuildingGreen favors textiles made using fibers and manufacturing processes that have low... Read more

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Would anyone have an example LEED Homes v4 specification they would be willing to share?  We are working on our first LEED Homes project, a midrise low income housing development here in Houston.  We have a LEED Homes provider, but she will not provide the specifications, which seem to be quite different in requirements and submittals from our... Read more

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Https://www.metropolismag.com/architecture/yale-un-environment-eco-living-module/pic/44437/

Many of you will be passing through NYC on your way to the SDL Summit in Garrsion this week. I encourage you to make a pit stop at the United Nations. You’ve heard me talk about the next generation, tech transfer building systems... Read more

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