Energy-saving light control manufacturer Lutron Electronics’ Washington, D.C. Commercial Experience Center has been awarded LEED Gold by the USGBC. LEED is the USGBC’s leading rating system for designing and constructing the world’s greenest, most energy-efficient and high-performing buildings.
Lutron Experience Centers showcase residential and commercial products and solutions. The Washington, D.C. facility specifically showcases commercial products in use in a variety of vignettes (conference rooms, offices and more).
“We’re pleased to have achieved USGBC’s LEED Gold Certification,” said Andy Wakefield, director of government relations at Lutron. “Knowing that our products contributed not only to our Gold certification, but to dozens of other building certifications throughout the country, shows the impact Lutron products and solutions can have on a building’s control strategy.”
The Experience Center was designed by DC-based architectural firm Interplan Inc. to achieve LEED certification for energy use, lighting, water and material use as well as incorporating a variety of other sustainable strategies. LEED verifies environmental performance, occupant health and financial return. LEED was established for market leaders to design & construct buildings that protect and save precious resources while also making good economic sense.
“The strength of USGBC has always been the collective strength of our leaders in the building industry," said Rick Fedrizzi, president, CEO and founding chair, USGBC. "Given the extraordinary importance of climate protection and the central role of the building industry in that effort, Lutron demonstrates their leadership through their LEED certification of their Washington, DC Experience Center.”
LEED certification of the Lutron facility was based on a number of green design and construction features that positively impact the project itself and the broader community. These features include: optimization of energy performance through the use of lighting power, lighting controls and HVAC, plus the use of daylight.
Per the rating system, the space scored 63 out of 110 possible points. Of those 63 points, Lutron products and solutions contributed 19 points. Lutron products can help contribute up to 41 points on a project, making them effective, energy-saving solutions for any space. BD+C
Related Stories
| Apr 5, 2011
Top 10 Buildings: Women in Architecture
Making selections of top buildings this week led to a surprising discovery about the representation of women in architecture, writes Tom Mallory, COO and co-founder, OpenBuildings.com. He discovered that finding female-created architecture, when excluding husband/wife teams, is extremely difficult and often the only work he came across was akin to interior design.
| Apr 5, 2011
What do Chengdu, Lagos, and Chicago have in common?
They’re all “world middleweight cities” that are likely to become regional megacities (10 million people) by 2025—along with Dongguan, Guangzhou, Hangzhou, Shenzhen, Tianjin, and Wuhan (China); Kinshasa (Democratic Republic of the Congo); Jakarta (Indonesia); Lahore (Pakistan); and Chennai (India), according to a new report from McKinsey Global Institute: “Urban World: Mapping the economic power of cities”.
| Mar 30, 2011
China's low-carbon future city
In 2005, the Chinese government announced its target to reduce energy consumption per GDP unit by 20% by the year 2010. After a multi-billion investment, that target has been reached. The Chinese Climate Protection Program’s goal to increase energy efficiency, develop renewable energies, and promote energy savings while reducing pollutant emissions and strengthening environmental protection is reflected in the “Future City” by SBA Design.
| Mar 30, 2011
Is the AEC industry at risk of losing its next generation leaders without better mentoring?
After two or three horrifying years for the AEC industry, we are finally seeing the makings of a turnaround. However, data developed by Kermit Baker as part of the AIA Work-on-the-Boards survey program indicates that between 17% and 22% of design firms are eliminating positions for interns and staff with less than six years of experience. This data suggests the industry is at risk of losing a large segment of its next generation of leaders if something isn't done to improve mentoring across the profession.
