New Orleans, La. (May 12, 2011) -- The U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) today announced that the virtual tour of its LEED Platinum headquarters is now available online at www.usgbc.org. The tour features embedded videos, audio podcasts and information on building materials and products used throughout the space. By taking the virtual tour, professionals can earn GBCI Continuing Education (CE) hours for the LEED AP with specialty and LEED Green Associate credentials. The tour went live online concurrently with the AIA 2011 National Convention and Design Exposition in New Orleans.
“Our headquarters was envisioned to serve as an educational learning lab to professionals yearning for real-world examples of successful green practices,” said Richard Graves, USGBC’s SVP for Education and Community. “The virtual tour allows us to reach professionals in every corner of the globe, using an interactive, cutting-edge medium.”
Modeled after live tours given at its D.C. headquarters to members of the green building community worldwide, the three-dimensional tour explores the integrated design approach fundamental to the LEED green building rating system, and integrated throughout the offices.
Several educational courses offered by USGBC’s broad network of education providers are linked throughout the tour, including Excel Dryer Inc./Sloan Valve Company, The Mohawk Group, National Gypsum, USG Corporation, IceStone and Wilsonart International, Inc. These courses qualify for continuing education units (CEUs) for several industry organizations and professional development requirements, including AIA/SD LU's in addition to GBCI CE hours.
The virtual tour was developed by Igloo Studios using Google SketchUp and Google Earth, and continuing educational credit for the tour was made possible by AEC Daily Corp. Take the virtual tour.
About U.S. Green Building Council
The Washington, D.C.-based U.S. Green Building Council is committed to a prosperous and sustainable future for our nation through cost-efficient and energy-saving green buildings. With a community comprising 79 local affiliates, nearly 16,000 member companies and organizations, and more than 162,000 LEED Professional Credential holders, USGBC is the driving force of an industry that is projected to contribute $554 billion to the U.S. gross domestic product from 2009-2013. USGBC leads an unlikely diverse constituency of builders and environmentalists, corporations and nonprofit organizations, elected officials and concerned citizens, and teachers and students.
Buildings in the United States are responsible for 39% of CO2 emissions, 40% of energy consumption, 13% water consumption and 15% of GDP per year, making green building a source of significant economic and environmental opportunity. Greater building efficiency can meet 85% of future U.S. demand for energy, and a national commitment to green building has the potential to generate 2.5 million American jobs.
About AEC Daily
AEC Daily is the largest provider of FREE online continuing education to construction professionals. Over 300 courses are available online 24 hours a day, 7 days a week and provide credits that are either registered or meet the requirements of over two dozen professional institutions. Architects, engineers, interior designers and other construction professionals rely on AEC Daily to maintain their accreditation with ease.
About Igloo Studios
Igloo Studios, an official Google SketchUp™ partner, develops 3D building product models and related productivity applications for design industry professionals. Having converted thousands of real-world products into Google SketchUp-enabled 3D models, Igloo Studios has collectively generated over 1.7 million product downloads to date from the Google 3D Warehouse for its manufacturing clients. Igloo Studios also offers the design industry custom SketchUp-based applications and training designed to assist in the finding, presenting and selling of projects and integrated products. Through the School brand, Igloo Studios provides worldwide training and consulting on 3D design software. Established in March 2005, Igloo Studios is headquartered in San Francisco, CA with an office in Los Angeles, CA.
Related Stories
| Aug 11, 2010
Green consultant guarantees LEED certification or your money back
With cities mandating LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) certification for public, and even private, buildings in growing numbers, an Atlanta-based sustainability consulting firm is hoping to ease anxieties over meeting those goals with the industry’s first Green Guaranteed.
| Aug 11, 2010
Turner, Webcor, Hensel Phelps top BD+C's list of the 75 largest green contractors
With more than $3 billion in value of construction put in place for green buildings in 2008, Turner Construction tops BD+C’s ranking of the nation’s 75 largest green contractors, published as part of the Giants 300 report. Webcor Builders ($2.27 billion), Hensel Phelps Construction ($2.10 billion), The Whiting-Turner Contracting Co. ($1.97 billion), and Clark Group ($1.89 billion) round out the top five.
| Aug 11, 2010
Free waterproofing and roofing resource handbook available from American Hydrotech
American Hydrotech is now offering a waterproofing and roofing resource handbook for all architects and design community professionals. Topics include sustainable design, waterproof product specification, and proper installation techniques for use by building professionals in designing and waterproofing roof decks, plazas, vertical foundations, reflecting pools, and green roof applications.
| Aug 11, 2010
Installation work begins on Minnesota's largest green roof
Installation of the 2.5 acre green roof vegetation on the City-owned Target Center begins today. Over the course of two days a 165 ton crane will hoist five truckloads of plant material, which includes 900 rolls of pre-grown vegetated mats of sedum and native plants for installation on top of the arena's main roof.
| Aug 11, 2010
Jacobs, Holder Construction top BD+C's ranking of the nation's 50 largest industrial building contractors
A ranking of the Top 50 Industrial Contractors based on Building Design+Construction's 2009 Giants 300 survey. For more Giants 300 rankings, visit http://www.BDCnetwork.com/Giants
| Aug 11, 2010
AASHE releases annual review of sustainability in higher education
The Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education (AASHE) has announced the release of AASHE Digest 2008, which documents the continued rapid growth of campus sustainability in the U.S. and Canada. The 356-page report, available as a free download on the AASHE website, includes over 1,350 stories that appeared in the weekly AASHE Bulletin last year.
| Aug 11, 2010
AECOM, Arup, Gensler most active in commercial building design, according to BD+C's Giants 300 report
A ranking of the Top 100 Commercial Design Firms based on Building Design+Construction's 2009 Giants 300 survey. For more Giants 300 rankings, visit http://www.BDCnetwork.com/Giants
| Aug 11, 2010
'Flexible' building designed to physically respond to the environment
The ecoFLEX project, designed by a team from Shepley Bulfinch, has won a prestigious 2009 Unbuilt Architecture Design Award from the Boston Society of Architects. EcoFLEX features heat-sensitive assemblies composed of a series of bi-material strips. The assemblies’ form modulate with the temperature to create varying levels of shading and wind shielding, flexing when heated to block sunlight and contracting when cooled to allow breezes to pass through the screen.
| Aug 11, 2010
New book provides energy efficiency guidance for hotels
Recommendations on achieving 30% energy savings over minimum code requirements are contained in the newly published Advanced Energy Design Guide for Highway Lodging. The energy savings guidance for design of new hotels provides a first step toward achieving a net-zero-energy building.