Green Buildings | Energy Efficient Buildings
Building Green with Metal
The demand for environmentally-friendly construction products and practices, or green building, has accelerated in recent years. Heritage Building Systems is taking a leadership role in this initiative through innovation and expert consultation in the use of metal construction products and processes.
The American Iron and Steel Institute reports that steel is the most recycled material in North America. However, green construction ideas go far beyond recycling. A building’s design and construction methods, its end use and occupants’ productivity, as well as maintenance requirements throughout the
life of the building are among the many considerations that have changed the way Heritage works with our builders and designers. It has also been the catalyst for developing programs to help our products’ users meet their green building objectives. Use this section to learn more about how building green can work
for you.
WHAT IS GREEN?
More recently, Heritage, along with the rest of the construction industry, has experienced a greater demand for environmentally-friendly, or green, construction solutions. A building is considered green if it has characteristics that reduce its environmental impact during its life cycle—from construction all the way to the end of the building’s useful life. These green building characteristics are measured against three criteria:
- The environmental impact the building will have now and in the future when considering such factors as energy use, efficient use of space, recyclability, and the materials used for construction, all in an effort to conserve natural resources.
- The economic impact, such as lowering operating costs, enhancing asset value, improving productivity, as well as optimizing lifecycle performance.
- Health and community, through the improvement of air quality, occupant comfort, and overall health conditions.
The US Green Building Council cites these advantages for building green:
- Decrease in a building’s cost to operate, including energy savings
- Increase in a building’s value, improving ROI
- Improved occupant comfort
- Increase in a building’s occupancy capacity
- Increase in potential rent
- Reduction in urban heat island effect and smog
- Mitigation of global warming
LEED Certification for Metal Buildings
USGBC’s LEED program is designed for building owners and operators. To receive certification through the LEED program, designers, builders and building owners incorporate energy-saving strategies throughout the complete cycle of a building, from best construction practices to occupation and the end of the building’s useful life. Strategies include: choosing environmentally sensitive design, roofing, insulation, delivery methods and other assorted criteria, which earn points toward certification.
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LEED Certification
To learn more about LEED Certification requirements, click here.
If you are interested in the LEED Certification chart, click here to download the LEED Certification PDF.
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GREEN RESOURCES
Heritage is affiliated with several trade organizations involved in regulating general building practices, which can include standards for green buildings associations, as well as the following associations focused specifically on the improvement of environmental building policies and products.
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GREEN ORGANIZATIONS:
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