How to "Green" Specs on LEED Projects

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J Douglas Dietrich

May 13 2010 LEEDuser Member

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8 Comments

John Ida President Urban Works, Inc.
Dec 14 2011

LEEDuser Member

712 Thumbs Up

Spec Sections vs. LEED Credits checklist?

http://www.masterspec.com/users/specifying_leed_requirements.php

ARCOM offers some sort of checklist or template where you can select the credits you are attempting and it will give you a chart of which spec sections should include specific LEED language (going for approach B here). Is there any type of tool offered through leeduser that does the same thing?

I have a PDF and have also used the Harvard Green Building Initiative as a guide reference before, but wondered about this excel chart or spreadsheet. See link: http://green.harvard.edu/sites/all/themes/green-ofs/theresource/new-cons...

Any insight would be appreciated!

Thanks

Susan Walter Sr Project Architect, Wilmot/Sanz Dec 15 2011 LEEDuser Member 6706 Thumbs Up

We use e-specs linx here and that was our starting point. It was not the ending point. We beefed up a lot of language pulling from the Reference Guide, military/gov't specs and other resources. I did not find that a simple excel chart very helpful personally. Jim's comment below is also spot on. You must include the LEED language in ever section that you have products that contribute to your strategy. We do this in the section's submittals portion and we always reference Div 1 LEED Requirements and Div 1 Construction Waste Management sections. We also ensure than anything specified in Part 2 of any section actually has the LEED qualities we need. That was a lot of work.

What we found is that after we got the Part 2 items worked out and standardized language for Part 1 that subsequent projects are easy. We don't need to reinvent the spec wheel with each new project. Now all we do is maintain for updates. I wish I could tell you that is as easy as it sounds.

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Brad Hollebrandse Sustainability Consultant Jain Sustainability Consultants
May 14 2010

Guest

133 Thumbs Up

"Green Specs"

Projects I have been on, there are generic "LEED" requirements in Division 1 for Products (regional/ recycle, FSCIndependent, third-party verification that forest products are produced and sold based on a set of criteria for forest management and chain-of-custody controls developed by the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC), an international nonprofit organization. FSC criteria for certifying forests around the world address forest management, legal issues, indigenous rights, labor rights, multiple benefits, and environmental impacts. etc) , VOC, IAQIndoor air quality: The quality and attributes of indoor air affecting the health and comfort building occupants. IAQ encompasses available fresh air, contaminant levels, acoustics and noise levels, lighting quality, and other factors., Waste Management, LEED submittals, ESCAn Erosion and Sedimentation Control (ESC) plan is a collection of measures designed to reduce pollution from construction activities by controlling soil erosion, waterway sedimentation and airborne dust generation

And in applicable sections ensure there is language outlining what is needed for that specific division, either recycle/ regional, VOC requirements must be followed, FSC.

hope that helps

J Douglas Dietrich May 14 2010 LEEDuser Member 291 Thumbs Up

Brad,

Thank you for the quick response. Would you happen to know the source of the language regarding the generic LEED requirements in Division 1? I realize there are different sources, but wondered if there is a consensus from practitioners regarding which source or sources are most clear and comprehensive.

Thanks again,

Doug

Brad Hollebrandse Sustainability Consultant, Jain Sustainability Consultants May 14 2010 Guest 133 Thumbs Up

Doug,

All I could say is develop one for a project based on multiple sources and ask for comments for the future.

From experience I've seen LEED requirements split up into individual divisions.
ex
General LEED requirements
LEED Products
Waste Management
Erosion Sedimentation Control
IAQIndoor air quality: The quality and attributes of indoor air affecting the health and comfort building occupants. IAQ encompasses available fresh air, contaminant levels, acoustics and noise levels, lighting quality, and other factors. Management

Here is a couple links i found when I googled "LEED Specifications"

http://www.buildinggreen.com/guidespecs/index.cfm
http://www.arcomnet.com/masterspec/faq_green.php

If you can get your hands on a previous LEED project and "reference" that spec is the best way to start.

J Douglas Dietrich May 14 2010 LEEDuser Member 291 Thumbs Up

Thanks, Brad.

This is very useful.

Best regards,

Doug

Jim Newman Principal, Linnean Solutions May 14 2010 LEEDuser Member

Hi Folks

As a participant in the team that created the Green Guideline Specs that are posted on the BuildingGreen site (noted above), a couple of points are probably useful.

First, these specs are quite comprehensive for the Division 1 material... well written and quite useful. However, they are now a couple of years old, and refer to older versions of LEED. Mitigating their age is the information included in the main webpage link, which is quite explicit in defining the levels and thresholds used in the spec language.

Also, in putting the guide specs together, it was pretty clear to us that it was crucial to include LEED reference material in each section whenever possible. This is a big job, but very important. Your subs won't likely get the Division 1 material, but they WIIL get the sections relevant to their work.

We saw this last situation as an opportunity, in some way, to engage the contractor and subs in a process of creating those spec sections. Maybe a pipe dream, but when we have done it, it is amazingly effective.

jim