USGBC APPROVES NEW CONSTRUCTION GUIDE FOR LEED PILOT CREDIT LIBRARY
(Portland, Ore.) Feb. 11, 2016 – (RealEstateRama) — The U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) has approved the addition of New Buildings Institute’s (NBI) New Construction® New Construction Guide as a LEED Pilot Alternative Compliance Path (ACP). By following the prescriptive path in the New Construction Guide, projects can earn up to 10 energy points in LEED v4. This approval continues NBI’s presence in LEED as the second New Construction guide available to earn LEED points, the first being the Core Performance Guide, which is currently referenced in the Energy & Atmosphere sections of LEED 2009 and LEED v4 as an option to meet the Minimum Energy Performance prerequisite.
The New Construction Guide option for the LEED Optimize Energy Performance credits was submitted and published through USGBC’s Pilot Credit Library, which allows projects to test more innovative credits that have not been through USGBC’s complete drafting and balloting process.
A summary of the two possible options for using the New Construction Guide to receive Optimize Energy Performance credits in LEED v4:
- Achieve up to six points by complying with the requirements of Section Two: Tier 2 of the New Construction Guide
- Achieve up to 10 point by complying with the requirements of Section Three: Tier 3 of the New Construction Guide
“The addition of our New Construction New Construction Guide to the USGBC’s LEED v4 expands the ability of those pursuing LEED certification to have a prescriptive pathway to achieving LEED Energy points , avoiding costly energy modeling that is usually required in LEED certification,” said Ralph DiNola, CEO of NBI and LEED Fellow.
“Performance and flexibility are two important elements to the effectiveness of LEED,” said Jeremy Sigmon, Technical Policy Director at USGBC. “This pilot credit/ACP offers LEED users expanded opportunity to leverage strong technical guidance for building performance from the New Buildings Institute.”
For more information on the process to use the prescriptive path in the New Construction Guide for LEED points: http://www.usgbc.org/node/5044062?return=/pilotcredits/all/all
For more information on the New Construction New Construction Guide: http://www.advancedbuildings.net/newconstruction
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About New Buildings Institute and New Construction:
New Buildings Institute (NBI) is a nonprofit organization working to advance the energy performance of commercial buildings. We work collaboratively with commercial building market players—governments, utilities, energy efficiency advocates and building professionals—to remove barriers to energy efficiency, including promoting advanced design practices, improved technologies, public policies and programs that improve energy efficiency. We also develop and offer guidance to individuals and organizations on designing and constructing energy-efficient buildings through our New Construction® suite of tools and resources.
New Construction is a designation for high performance new construction projects that stand out for their energy efficiency and healthy environments, representing a best-in-class commercial building that adds value and saves time and money. Projects that apply the New Construction Guide can be deemed an Advanced Building.
About U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC):
USGBC is committed to a prosperous and sustainable future through cost-efficient and energy-saving green buildings. USGBC works toward its mission of market transformation through its LEED green building program, robust educational offerings, a nationwide network of chapters and affiliates, the annual Greenbuild International Conference & Expo, the Center for Green Schools and advocacy in support of public policy that encourages and enables green buildings and communities. For more information, visit usgbc.org, explore the Green Building Information Gateway (GBIG) and connect on Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn.
