Greenbuilders
The trend toward "Green", sustainable, environmentally responsible construction is here to stay. Pick up any newspaper or magazine and you'll see that the trend is exploding, both in residenatial as well as commercial construction. In fact, many local, state and federal agencies are now adopting Green building standards as a way to preserve our natuaral resources and reduce our dependency on fossil fuels. Public and private building owners are demanding high-performance, earth-friendly construction methods and materials.
It has been documented that the ongoing energy use of a building is the single greatest environmental impact of that building and continues to impact the environment for decades, even centuries. As a member of both the United States Green Building Council-USGBC, www.usgbc.org and the Green Building Initiative www.thegbi.org, Greenblock is committed to providing products and services to the green building community that will result in conservation of our natural resources. Greenblock insulated concrete forms can have a significant impact on energy use as well as create a structure that is safe, strong and sustainable for centuries to come.
What is LEED?
Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) is a rating system devised by the United States Green Building Council (USGBC) to evaluate the environmental performance of a building and encourage market transformation towards sustainable design. The system is credit-based, allowing projects to earn points for environmentally friendly actions taken during construction and use of a building. LEED was launched in an effort to develop a “consensus-based, market-driven rating system to accelerate the development and implementation of green building practices.” The program is not rigidly structured; not every project must meet identical requirements to qualify.
LEED was created to:
- define "green building" by establishing a common standard of measurement
- promote integrated, whole-building design practices
- recognize environmental leadership in the building industry
- stimulate green competition
- raise consumer awareness of green building benefits
- transform the building market
LEED provides a complete framework for assessing building performance and meeting sustainability goals. Based on well-founded scientific standards, LEED emphasizes state of the art strategies for sustainable site development, water savings, energy efficiency, materials selection and indoor environmental quality. LEED recognizes achievements and promotes expertise in green building through a comprehensive system offering project certification, professional accreditation, training and practical resources.*
*Excerpt from U.S. Green Building Council's website
Detailed information on the LEED program and project certification process is available from USGBC at http://www.usgbc.org/.
What is LEED Certification?
Companies and products are not LEED Certified. Actual structures can earn LEED Certified status by earning points for various green building elements. There are four levels of LEED Certification:
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There are six categories in which a project can earn LEED points. Building with Greenblock ICFs can contribute to LEED points being awarded in some of the categories:
- Sustainable Site - Applies to building site; ICFs do not contribute to this category.
- Water Efficiency - Applies to landscaping and water usage; ICFs do not contribute to this category.
- Energy & Atmosphere - ICFs can help your project earn up to 10 LEED points due to optimized energy performance.
- Materials & Resources - Up to 2 points are rewarded to materials which are recyclable or use recycled materials in their manufacture. The EPS foam in Greenblock ICFs is recyclable. The plastic web ties are made from 100% reprocessed polypropylene.
- Local/Regional Materials - The project can earn one poin if 20% of all materials used are manufactured within a 500 mile radius of the project and two points if half of the materials are. Greenblock has six distribution and manufacturing sites located throughout North America with plans to add additional facilities in 2007.
- Indoor Environmental Quality - ICFs are proven to provide superior indoor air quality. The soild poured concrete walls allow for zero air infiltration which greatly reduces dust and contaminents that can aggravate conditions like asthma and allergies.
- Innovation & Design Process - This category encourages designers to use new and creative construction approaches, of which ICFs may play a role.
Learn more about the U.S. Green Building Council's LEED® Program on their website.
What is Fortified...for safer living ®
The Fortified…for safer living ® program specifies construction, design and landscaping guidelines to increase a new home's resistance to natural disaster from the ground up. All regions of the country are exposed to one or more extreme weather events, such as high wind, wildfire, flood, hail and earthquake.
The Fortified program is different because it adds protection to windows and doors, provides better connections between the roof, walls and foundation, and the roof is thicker, stronger, and designed to stay drier.
The Fortified…for safer living ® program heralds a new way to build homes in disaster-prone areas, as safety-conscious consumers drive the market for hazard-resistant residences.
Greenblock ICF's can be an integral part of building your home to meet the Fortified For Safer living Standards. Consult your builder for more details.