LEED Certification for new construction 3

[NKT]

I am in the final stages of negotiating a scope of work with an architect, and the subject of "Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design" (LEED) certification for the project came up. The architect wants me to add this to my scope of work for the structural engineering. Does anyone have experience with LEED certification as it relates to the structural portion of a project? I'm looking for estimates of the additional effort required.

Based on my initial review of the LEED certification handbook (

http://www.usgbc.org/ShowFile.aspx?DocumentID=1095),

I would guess about 10% additional effort, but I'm looking for some opinions based on experience.

Thanks,
-NKT

 

[WillisV]

In my experience with LEED the structural engineer has little to add. Basically, you get a point for using structural steel as it is a recycled material and another one if it is produced "locally", and you can also get a point for having high fly-ash/silica fume content in your concrete. Other than that - not too much for us to add and very little effort is involved. Maybe others have had more difficult experiences with higher certified buildings.

 

[haynewp]

I agree there is not much for structural. I am damn glad there isn't.

 

[DonPhillips]

Talk to your E&O carrier about suggested contract language. If your contract has carryovers from the main owner-architect agreement, you may be signing up for some unforeseen liability if a LEED rating is not acheived.

Don Phillips

http://worthingtonengineering.com

 

[phuduhudu]

I think it is a shame that we as structural engineers don't take the issues brought up by LEED and other rating systems more seriously and some of these responses are sort of symptomatic of that. As others have pointed out there may not be much in the way of points for using one structural system over another but there is a lot of embodied energy in the structure and we can have a significant impact on the environmental footprint of the building. Also it is a case of needing much more integration with the design team if you are going to design an environmentally high performing building so I would say that 10% additional effort is definitely justified. The unfortunate thing is that many consultants will not give that 10% extra effort whether they charge for it or not.

Carl Bauer

http://www.bauerconsultbotswana.com

 

[NKT]

Thanks for the replies, this has been very helpful. I ended up adding 5% to my fee; That translates to about four full days of work for this project. It seems that it's mostly a matter of documenting recycled and locally produced content as I go through the design.

I'll definitely add a "no guarantee of LEED certification" clause to the agreement (thanks Don).

I'm enthusiastic about this aspect of the project; I like the idea of designing in an environmentally responsible manner... and documenting it. I am just a bit concerned about the scope of work being larger than my contracted fee.

From my limited research to date, it looks like the items I'll be paying attention to are:
1. Certified sustainably-harvested wood products
2. Recycled content:
fly ash in concrete
structural steel
3. Locally produced materials:
lumber
concrete aggregate
4. ...Any others to be aware of?

Thanks again,
-NKT

 

[jnadeau]

Some reading, if interested:

Earning LEED points with concrete:

http://www.concrete.org/FAQ/afmviewfaq.asp?faqid=37

Structural Steel Contributions toward obtaining a LEED rating:

http://www.aisc.org/Template.cfm?Se...Management/ContentDisplay.cfm&ContentID=25766

LEED and masonry:

http://www.masonrymagazine.com/11-04/green.html

American Forest & Paper Association - Green Building Fact Sheets (in particular, see "How using wood can get you credit"-link):

http://www.afandpa.org/Content/Navi...ng_Fact_Sheets/Green_building_Fact_Sheets.htm

 

[HouseBoy]

Perhaps this was alluded to in the earlier replies but I would be mindful of getting into a situation where construction materials might be changed in order to achieve LEED Cert. and you are required to "re-design" substantial parts of the structure.

 

[lrhg]

It was about three years ago we did our first LEED project.
I was the "green" one - I learned a ton and it was a great opportunity for an all-exposed structural steel building. We ended up with a Platinum rating and a few other awards.
Make the most of the opportunity - you can really help shape the architecture of the building and at the same time increase LEED points. In terms of additional work, we were required to participate in an all day LEED workshop at project kick-off. There were accessories - solar panels, trees on the roof, solar shades, green house, cisterns and the like that you don't run into on your usual office building. You may also need to get all the LEED requirements into your specs.