MGE Talks Business Newsletter - November/December 2005


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David Orr, president of General Heating and Air Conditioning, in the atrium of their new building that is built to meet LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) gold certification requirements.

General Heating and Air Conditioning has daily opportunities to play a role in improving energy efficiency in the region. When the company recently built a new headquarters, they decided to take that role to a new level by creating a building designed to meet LEED® gold certification requirements.

LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) is a third-party certification program of the U.S. Green Building Council for the design, construction and operation of high-performance green buildings. "Our standard business practices were already so close to the LEED gold standards that it just made sense to take our efforts up a notch and try to achieve it," said Carol Mori, PE, LEED AP, QCP, a project engineer at General.

Here's an overview of the many design and equipment measures General included in their effort to go for (LEED) gold.

Site sustainability
"This facility was a balancing act," said Mori. "We were very concerned about creating a building that preserved the natural environment and reduced energy usage, but was affordable and neighbor-friendly too."

One important step was to install a highly reflective roofing system. This helped General avoid creating a "heat island," which can occur when a large expanse of material absorbs heat and causes the temperature of the surrounding area to go up.

Other site-related steps included using down-directed exterior lighting to deliver security without light pollution, building a retention pond to prevent erosion from storm water runoff and using native plants to avoid the need for irrigation and promote natural habitats.

Indoor air quality
As a company whose tag line is "Setting the standard for complete indoor comfort," high air quality was an obvious priority. To achieve it, the building crew covered the ductwork and pipes with plastic during construction, used low volatile organic compound (VOC) materials—carpets, paints, adhesives, sealants and composite woods—throughout the facility and did a 10-day fresh air flush of the entire building before occupancy.

To maintain air quality long-term, General uses high-efficiency filters in its air distribution system, maintains air ventilation rates during occupied times that are 30% above code and design standards, doesn't permit smoking in the building and uses green cleaning procedures and supplies.

Energy efficiency
"We're very proud of our achievements in this area," said Mori.

Energy modeling—which measures how much energy will be used on an annual basis—shows that the building should be 28% more cost efficient than ASHRAE (American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers) standards and guidelines, which are the standards used by LEED. The facility is also 35.5% more cost efficient than current Wisconsin code requirements. The building has an Energy Star® rating of 95, which means that when compared to similar buildings nationwide, the General facility will perform better than 95% of them from an energy consumption standpoint.

General achieved these impressive stats with a number of critical measures, including the installation of energy-efficient windows and doors and high levels of insulation throughout. Its reflective roof reduced heating and cooling loads, and vapor barriers and a sealed HVAC distribution system ensured a tight building envelope and maximum energy efficiency.

Other HVAC efficiency measures included installing variable frequency (speed) drives on the fan and pump motors and an energy recovery ventilation unit that pre-treats outside air before it enters the HVAC system.

In addition, each office has individual climate controls with a limited adjustable temperature range and occupancy sensors that switch an office to unoccupied if there's no movement in 20 minutes. "It's more economical from a control standpoint to have three to five rooms on one thermostat, but it's more energy-efficient—and has greater user-satisfaction!—to have controls for each room," said Mori.

Lighting
General achieved lighting efficiency with daylighting in every room, occupancy sensors that turn the lights off if there's no movement in 20 minutes and shades on every office window. Task lighting is available throughout the office and rooms have two-level switching for more flexibility in lighting vs. an "all or nothing" option.

Renewable energy
Because General built the facility on land the company already owned, it had limited choices when it came to building location and orientation. "We didn't have the exposure we needed for solar energy or the space to accommodate geothermal," said Mori. "Instead, we did the next best thing: joined Green Power Tomorrow."

As a participant at the Major Partner level, General now offsets 50% of its electricity-produced carbon dioxide emissions with power from renewable resources. This will eliminate 155 tons of carbon dioxide and 105,000 pounds of coal each year.

Waste reduction
General went into the project with a goal of reusing or recycling 75% of the waste generated by the teardown and construction. The final tally was even better: an outstanding 93.79%. This was accomplished by recycling nearly 540 tons of concrete, asphalt, metal, mixed recyclables and wood and sending just under 36 tons to the landfill.

Ongoing company recycling efforts include paper, can and bottle recycling, recycle/reuse of packing materials and taking steps to become a paperless office.

To encourage employees to consider energy-saving transportation options, General has added bike racks (and showers!), created a separate driveway to ensure biker and pedestrian safety and designated parking spaces for carpoolers and fuel-efficient vehicles.

Water optimization
In addition to choosing native plants that don't need irrigation, General installed automatic low-flush toilets and urinals, automatic faucets and low-flow shower heads, and decided not to include drinking fountains and water coolers in the new building to save water and energy.

Education
As an HVAC contractor, General has a unique opportunity to influence the energy efficiency of others and works to make the most of it. "Our customers are very interested in new technologies and we're diligent about staying on top of changes in this area," said Mori. "Plus, we have multiple team members who are LEED accredited and qualified as commissioning agents (a person who can measure and verify that systems are working as they're supposed to)."

The company has also taken on more of an educator role in recent years. "We conduct building tours for customers and the general public so they can see a green business in action, and we've produced written materials and presentations that highlight the initiatives we've made," said Mori. "In fact, some of the LEED credits that we're hoping to qualify for fall into the 'education' category."

General is very committed to the community and extremely conscious of the impact its choices have on the environment. "We're committed to reducing our company's carbon footprint and glad to be a part of programs like Green Power Tomorrow that help us achieve those goals," said Mori.