Dunkin Donuts has launched a green building certification program to help franchisees build sustainable, energy-efficient restaurants. The company says it will work with franchisees and construction managers to build 100 new certified restaurants by the end of 2016.
To be recognized as a DD Green restaurant, franchisees, construction managers and architects will follow a five-stage program during planning, design, and construction. Those that meet the DD Green criteria will display a DD Green plaque inside the store.
The program includes site development, store efficiency, healthy indoors, sustainable operations and innovation, and community. Each stage includes guidance and metrics that focus on sustainable strategies such as: mitigation of construction pollution and waste recycling, installation of energy-efficient LED light fixtures, mechanical units, and water-saving plumbing fixtures. The standards also pertain to implementation of healthy environments with indoor air quality management and use of zero-VOC paints and a required sustainable building operations training for employees.
Franchisees can achieve two different levels within the program, DD Green, where stores meet minimum sustainable requirements, and DD Green Elite, where stores reach additional suggested goals. UL Environment reviewed the DD Green achievement program structure.
Related Stories
| Mar 15, 2012
ANSI approves new fall protection standards
The American National Standards Institute (ANSI) has approved two American Society of Safety Engineers' (ASSE) standards addressing fall protection.
| Mar 8, 2012
Engineering innovation provides new option for meeting seismic codes in skyscrapers
Two University of Toronto engineers have developed “viscoelastic-energy-dissipating dampers” to replace many of the heavy concrete beams used in tall structures.
| Mar 8, 2012
CSI webinar on building code compliance March 22
A March 22 webinar will provide an overview of a 28-step process during the design of a building to ensure compliance with building codes.
| Mar 8, 2012
Federal silica dust rule caught in bureaucratic limbo
A federal rule meant to protect the lungs of workers has been caught in bureaucratic purgatory for more than a year.
| Mar 8, 2012
New LEED-EBOM rating has requirements for specific project types
Several key changes are proposed for the LEED-EBOM Rating System in 2012.
| Mar 8, 2012
Green buildings more resilient than conventionally built structures
A new study by the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) and the University of Michigan’s Taubman College of Architecture and Urban Planning suggests that structures built to green standards can advance building resiliency.
| Mar 1, 2012
LEED Platinum standard likely to mean net-zero energy by 2018
As LEED standards continue to rise, the top level, LEED Platinum, will likely mean net-zero energy construction by 2018.
| Mar 1, 2012
EPA beefs up stormwater discharge rule from construction projects
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has now finalized its 2012 construction general permit (CGP) that authorizes stormwater discharges from construction projects that disturb one or more acres of land in the areas where EPA is the permitting authority.