Understanding Sustainable Insulation and LEED v4  

The green building market is set to experience a 13 percent growth rate through 2020.¹ In fact, the global average of those expecting to design more than 60 percent of their projects sustainably by 2018 more than doubles the 2015 levels from 18 percent to 37 percent.² And, design firms tell us that nearly ⅔ of their projects were green by 2015 and green renovations were undertaken by half of all firms worldwide. The global spread of sustainability is on fire.

All images courtesy of Owens Corning^®

Strong growth is attributed in part to the rising awareness of global warming and climate change issues and the knowledge that green building techniques lead to a lower level of greenhouse gas emissions.

Other drivers of growth include multiple government policies supporting green building construction, growing awareness of energy efficiency, and the cost-effectiveness of green buildings.

Health-related concerns are also driving product selection, especially regarding indoor air quality and chemical content. Although energy efficiency is king in the commercial built environment, indoor air quality and water are gunning for the crown. Among B2B decision makers for product selection, the number-two criteria (after energy efficiency) was: “product contains no chemicals of concern."³

LEED 2009 vs. LEED V4: What’s New in Sustainable Design, Construction, and Operations

Building materials impact both architectural performance and the human experience. The definition of sustainable design, construction, and operations is using practices that significantly reduce or eliminate the negative impacts of a building on its occupants and the environment.

One way to achieve sustainable design is through LEED certification. LEED has evolved since 1998 as a guide and measure for incorporating green building technologies. The pilot version, LEED New Construction (NC) v1.0, led to LEED NC v2.0, then LEED NCv2.2 in 2005 and LEED 2009 (aka LEED v3) in 2009. LEED v4 was introduced in November 2013 and as of October 31, 2016 was the only version of LEED under which new projects could register.

There were quite a few changes made to the New Construction (NC) category within the Building Design and Construction (BD+C) Rating System from LEED 2009 to LEED v4. A new credit, Integrated Process, encourages teams to plan and work together before a project starts in order to perform an early analysis of the interrelationship of systems. The Site Assessment credit is also new and awards one point for projects that assess the site’s condition before design for features such as topography, hydrology, climate, vegetation, soils, human use, and human health effects.

Sustainable Sites (SS)

LEED v4’s Sustainable Sites (SS) credit category is similar to version 2009 and still contains credits for Construction Activity Pollution Prevention, Heat Island Reduction, Light Pollution Reduction, Protect or Restore Habitat, and Open Space. But some credits such as Bicycle Facilities, Access to Quality Transit, and Green Vehicles have been moved to the new Location and Transportation (LT) credit category. Location and Transportation now comprises 16 percent of credits, while Sustainable Sites is 10 percent.

Prior Stormwater Management credits are now referred to as Rainwater Management and are under the Sustainable Sites category. Options for credits are 1) percentile of rainfall events and 2) natural land cover conditions. For percentile of rainfall events, the project must manage the runoff on the site for a certain “percentile of regional or local rainfall events.” For the natural land cover conditions option, the project must “manage on-site the annual increase in runoff volume from the natural land cover condition to the post developed condition.”

Location and Transporation (LT)

The new Location and Transportation credit category addresses sustainable communities and land use. Some notable new features in this category include points for projects that build on LEED for Neighborhood Development certified sites, as well as a credit for “high-priority sites.” New projects can earn points for building in historic districts, on brownfield remediation sites, or on a site with “priority designation,” such as one that is on an EPA National Priorities List or one that is sited as a Federal Empowerment Zone.

Energy and Atmosphere (EA)

The Energy and Atmosphere credit category is similar in structure to LEED 2009, as it still addresses commissioning, refrigerant management, minimum and optimized energy performance, green power, and renewable energy, but Energy and Atmosphere now requires building-energy metering in a new prerequisite. The building must install a meter (or submeters) that track the total building energy consumption at least monthly, and the project must commit to providing that data to USGBC for at least five years. A project can also earn an additional point for more rigorous metering and tracking of its energy usage. This is consistent with USGBC’s increased emphasis on building performance rather than just design.

Water Efficiency (WE)

There are some significant changes to the Water Efficiency category; the credits are now Indoor Water Use Reduction and Outdoor Water Use Reduction. The indoor water use prerequisite and credit are similar to the Water Use Reduction credit from LEED 2009, but the Outdoor Water Use Reduction is now required as a prerequisite. Water metering is perhaps the most significant update to this credit category, as building-level water metering is now required as a prerequisite. Projects can meet the requirement by installing water meters for a selection of various water subsystems, such as irrigation, domestic hot water, and indoor plumbing fixtures. Projects can earn an additional point for installing more water meters on more types of subsystems.

Materials and Resources (MR) and Indoor Environmental Quality (EQ)

Materials and Resources (MR) now takes a more holistic view, integrating human health into the equation rather than only considering the materials used on a project. Similarly, the Indoor Environmental Quality (EQ) credit now has more low-VOC requirements, and acoustics has been added as an area where projects can gain points. Both are vital to the health of building occupants.

As you can see, LEED v4 has kept some prerequisites and credits virtually the same but has made some significant changes to nearly every major credit category. Many of these additions, such as the water and energy metering requirements, focus on the certified building’s continued performance rather than just the design. LEED v4 has also made site selection and consideration an important part of the LEED decision-making process and provides extra incentive for integrated project design. As mentioned, new projects were not eligible for LEED 2009 registration as of November 1, 2016, but there are projects in progress registered before this date.

Let’s delve deeper into these last two credit areas: Materials and Resources and Environmental Quality.

BROCK ENVIRONMENTAL CENTER

Sustainability in Action

Resting on 118 acres of undeveloped salt marsh land, the Brock Environmental Center was built as a regional home for the Chesapeake Bay Foundation’s environmental education programs. Through student field trips and tours for the general public, the building serves as a tool to teach those within the community about the Chesapeake Bay and why its conservation is so important.

What makes the Brock Center unique is that it was constructed with the goal of receiving the Net-Zero Energy Building Certification and meeting the guidelines specified by the much more demanding Living Building Challenge.

“Many of the kids of Hampton Roads have never been on our waterways, even though they live right next to it,” Chesapeake Bay Foundation Hampton Roads Director Christy Everett says. “This is what is around us. This is the treasure we have. This is also something we need to take care of. We see this building as a model. So when people come to the site and they see what we’ve done, we hope we will be able to inform them of why we did it and how important it is to change the way we build.”

To attain these goals, stringent specifications had to be followed. One requirement included using on-site renewable energy to achieve 100 percent of the building’s energy needs on a net annual basis. Another important requirement was to utilize functional, efficient building materials, such as XPS insulation, that contributed to the sustainability of the building throughout the project.

Brock Environmental Center Sustainability Facts

• It uses 80 percent less energy than most office buildings.
• Seventy percent of energy comes from photovoltaic solar panels, and 30 percent comes from two residential wind turbines.
• It does not use any water other than what is captured on-site in rain cisterns and for all drinking needs.
• It utilizes geothermal wells, composting toilets, and reclaimed materials.

How to Meet Strict Material Specifications

The Living Building Challenge has very strict specifications when it comes to the building materials being used in construction. Beyond the consideration of energy efficiency and performance, architects and contractors must also be aware of material toxicity and sustainability, requiring countless hours of research. “Finding materials that were compliant [with the Living Building Challenge] was definitely the hardest thing,” recounted Tyler Park of Hourigan Construction. Every product had to be closely studied and scrutinized, and thermal insulation was no different.

The Solution

One of the reasons XPS insulation was chosen for the project was its excellent insulation value and high compressive strength for use in deck and floor applications, as well as a recycling option for all scrap insulation that was critical to the project. “One of our mandatory goals was to limit the amount of materials going to the landfill,” explains Janet Harrison, the project’s Green Consultant. Leftover material was shipped back to [the manufacturer], where it was reground to produce new insulation. High-compressive-strength rigid foam XPS insulation saves energy* and reduces greenhouse gas emissions by providing a durable exterior insulation that is resistant to moisture, accommodates the loads for the application, and provides a reliable insulating value of R-5 per inch.

Materials and Resources

The Materials and Resources credit category has arguably changed the most out of all of the existing credit categories. The only prerequisites and credits that look remotely similar to the LEED 2009 version are Storage and Collection of Recyclables and Construction and Demolition Waste Management Planning. The new credits include Building Life-Cycle Impact Reduction and Building Product Disclosure and Optimization for Environmental Product Declarations (EPD), Sourcing of Raw Materials, and Material Ingredients.

The Building Life-Cycle Impact Reduction has four options: historic building reuse, renovation of abandoned or blighted buildings, building and material reuse, or a whole-building life-cycle assessment. The intention of the credit is to encourage reuse of the energy already embodied in creating the existing building and lessen the building’s environmental impact.

The Building Product Disclosure and Optimization credits aim to encourage the use of products with limited impacts throughout their lifetimes and from manufacturers that provide transparency about their products’ ingredients and manufacturing processes. Chemical transparency and disclosure is understanding materials in products and understanding the hazards associated with those materials (pure chemical hazards, not risk as an end product). These credits are intended to allow for greater understanding in decision making.

In LEED 2009, these credits really focused on individual features like FSC-certified wood or a certain percentage of recycled material, but the new credits attempt to capture a more comprehensive view of the material’s sustainability throughout its life cycle. They not only encourage the project teams to use more sustainable materials but also incentivize product manufacturers to provide better, detailed information about where their products came from, how they were produced, and what they contain. Essentially, the new Materials and Resources category seeks to first disclose, then optimize, therefore transforming the market by driving product improvement.

The Product Life Cycle

LEED v4 includes product and whole building life-cycle assessment. A life-cycle assessment (LCA) is a compilation and evaluation of the inputs, outputs, and potential environmental impacts of a product system throughout its life cycle. In other words, a product’s cradle-to-grave environmental life cycle. ISO standards define “product” to be inclusive of a product or a service. The life-cycle assessment process not only can be applied to both items, but it also provides very good results for each. The term “life cycle” refers to the notion that a fair, holistic assessment of environmental impact requires the assessment of:

• Raw material production,
• Product manufacturing,
• Distribution,
• “Use” phase,
• Disposal phase, and
• Impact of all transportation steps.

Building Life-Cycle Impact Reduction Credit: Whole Building LCA Option

Under the Building Life-Cycle Impact Reduction Credit, there is also a Whole Building LCA option available for new construction only (this is one of four options). For new construction (buildings or portions of buildings), project teams should conduct a life-cycle assessment of the project’s structure and enclosure that demonstrates a minimum 10 percent reduction, compared with a baseline building, in at least three of the six impact categories listed below, one of which must be global warming potential. No impact category assessed as part of the life-cycle assessment may increase by more than 5 percent compared with the baseline building. These are the impact categories:

• Global warming potential (required)
• Stratospheric ozone
• Acidification
• Eutrophication
• Smog potential
• Nonrenewable energy

Product Disclosures: Environmental Product Declarations

The Materials and Resources category also has a Product Disclosures credit, which can include environmental product declarations (EPDs), sourcing of raw materials and material ingredients. There are both industry- and product-specific EPDs.

A project seeking credits under Option 1: Environmental Product Declaration must use at least 20 different permanently installed products sourced from at least five different manufacturers that have either a product-specific declaration (LCA) (¼ of a product), a generic industry-wide EPD (½ of a product), or a product-specific EPD (one full product). To qualify for an industry-wide EPD, the manufacturer must be explicitly recognized as a participant by the program operator.

Under Option 2: Multi-Attribute Optimization, a product must comply with at least one of the following criteria for 50 percent, by cost, of the total value of permanently installed products in the project. Third-party-certified products that demonstrate impact reduction below industry average in at least three of six categories:

• Global warming potential
• Depletion of ozone layer
• Acidification of water/land
• Eutrophication—pollution of water resources
• Formation of tropospheric ozone
• Depletion of nonrenewable resources

Value is determined as follows:

• 100 percent of cost for above criteria, and
• 200 percent of cost if product sourced within 100 miles of project site.

Life-cycle assessment data can be very technical with a lot of calculations and assumptions. An EPD is typically around 20 pages in length and is essentially a summary of all the data that is included in an LCA. However, an EPD presents the information in a format that is relatively easy to read and understand. In some ways, an EPD is similar to a nutrition label on a cereal box. However, in the case of an EPD, it covers the product’s environmental impact. The contents of an EPD include:

• Product definition and information about building physics
• Information about basic materials list
• Description of the product’s manufacture
• Indication of product processing and energy consumption
• Information about the in-use conditions
• Life-cycle assessment results
• Testing results and verifications

An EPD transparency brief is an even more concise, two-page summary showing life-cycle impact categories for a product and is a quick EPD reference tool. This document shows environmental impact categories in addition to standards upon which the declaration is based, as well as energy sources and usage, use of recycled content or materials, and other certifications held by the product. A transparency brief is a quick way to assess the environmental preferability of a product, quickly conveying important evaluation data for the purchaser, without having to dig through all the other text and less meaningful data.

Material Ingredients

In LEED v3, the Material Ingredients credit did not exist. In LEED v4, there are three options, but only two points are possible.

Option 1: Material Ingredients Reporting (one point)

The project must use at least 20 different permanently installed products from at least five different manufacturers that use programs to demonstrate the chemical inventory of the product to at least 0.1 percent (1,000 ppm). These programs include:

• Manufacturer inventory
• Health product declaration
• Cradle-to-Cradle certified at the v2 Basic or v3 Bronze level
• Declare: The Declare product label must indicate that all ingredients have been evaluated and disclosed down to 1,000 ppm.
• ANSI/BIFMA e3 Furniture Sustainability Standard: The documentation from the assessor or scorecard from BIFMA must demonstrate the product earned at least three points under 7.5.1.3 Advanced Level in e3-2014 or three points under 7.4.1.3 Advanced Level in e3-2012.
• Cradle-to-Cradle Material Health Certificate at the Bronze level or higher, and at least 90 percent of materials are assessed by weight
• ProductLens certification
• Facts: NSF/ANSI 336: Sustainability Assessment for Commercial Furnishings Fabric at any certification level
• Other USGBC-approved programs meeting the material ingredient reporting criteria

And/or Option 2: Material Ingredient Optimization (one point)

A project must use products that document their material ingredient optimization using GreenScreen, Cradle to Cradle, or REACH criteria for at least 25 percent, by cost, of the total value of permanently installed products in the project.

And/or Option 3: Product Manufacturer Supply Chain Optimization (one point)

A project must use building products for at least 25 percent, by cost, of the total value of permanently installed products in the project that source from a manufacturer with a robust safety, health, hazard, and risk programs, as well as a certified supply chain.

Some manufacturers of fiberglass, mineral wool and XPS foam insulation have Health Product Declarations, Declare labels, or Material Health Certificates from the Cradle-to-Cradle Innovations Institute that identify human health impacts and meet LEED MR Ingredients Disclosure requirements. Levels are Certified, Bronze, Silver, Gold, and Platinum.

The International Living Future Institute recognizes products and buildings designed for sustainability and well-being through their Living Product Label. Some fiberglass insulation such as unfaced batts and unbonded loosefill meet the International Living Future Institute’s Living Product Certification as well as Declare, which can help to meet LEED MR: Ingredients Disclosure requirements

Sourcing of Raw Materials

The intent of the Sourcing of Raw Materials credit is to encourage the use of products and materials for which life-cycle information is available and that have environmentally, economically, and socially preferable life-cycle impacts, as well as to reward project teams for selecting products verified to have been extracted or sourced in a responsible manner.

Option 1: Raw Material Source and Extraction Reporting (one point)

A project must use at least 20 different permanently installed products from at least five different manufacturers that have publicly released a report from their raw material suppliers that include extraction locations, and commitment to long-term ecologically responsible land use, reducing environmental harms from extraction and/or manufacturing, and address responsible sourcing criteria.

And/or Option 2: Leadership Extraction Practices (one point)

A project must use products that meet at least one of the responsible extraction criteria below for at least 25 percent, by cost, of the total value of permanently installed building products in the project:

• Biobased materials
• Recycled content
• Wood products certified by the FSC
• Extended producer responsibility
• Materials reuse
• USGBC approved program

For credit achievement calculation, products sourced (extracted, manufactured, and purchased) within 100 miles (160 kilometers) of the project site are valued at 200 percent of their base contributing cost.

Note that third-party certification identifies whether a product’s recycled content is post-consumer, pre-consumer, or post-industrial. Some common insulation materials with high recycled content are fiberglass insulation, mineral wool insulation, and XPS foam insulation.

Indoor Environmental Quality Credit

Indoor environmental quality (IEQ) refers to the quality of a building’s environment in relation to the health and well-being of those who occupy space within it.⁴ IEQ is determined by many factors, including lighting, air quality, and damp conditions. IEQ influences material selection in green or sustainable buildings. This is particularly important since the average person spends up to 90 percent of their time indoors. Unlike Materials and Resources, Indoor Environmental Quality is very similar to the original credit category from 2009. It still addresses minimum indoor air quality performance, environmental tobacco smoke control, and minimum acoustic standards for schools in its prerequisites. It also addresses daylight, views, thermal comfort, low-emitting materials, and a construction indoor air quality management plan in its credits.

Enhanced Indoor Air Quality Strategies is a new credit in this category that builds on Increased Ventilation from the previous rating system. It does include a requirement for increased ventilation but also for carbon dioxide monitoring, entryway systems, cross-contamination prevention, filtration, and air contamination prevention and monitoring. Depending on whether the building uses mechanical, natural, or mixed-mode ventilation, it must meet certain elements of the credit.

Low-Emitting Materials

The Low-Emitting Materials credit includes requirements for product manufacturing as well as project teams. It covers volatile organic compound (VOC) emissions in the indoor air and the VOC content of materials, as well as the testing methods by which indoor VOC emissions are determined. Different materials must meet different requirements to be considered compliant for this credit. The building interior and exterior are organized in seven categories, each with different thresholds of compliance. The building interior is defined as everything within the waterproofing membrane. The building exterior is defined as everything outside and inclusive of the primary and secondary weatherproofing system, such as waterproofing membranes and air- and water-resistive barrier materials.

In LEED v3, there were four total points available in the IEQ Low-Emitting Materials credit, but now there are three. And LEED v4 now requires specific criteria for emissions from wood and adhesives, and total volatile organic compounds (TVOCs) must be reported. There are two options to gain Low-Emitting Materials points in LEED v4: Product Category Calculation and Budget Calculation Method.

Option 1: Product Category Calculations

Projects must achieve the threshold level of compliance with emissions and content standards for the number of product categories. The number of categories has moved from four to seven so that more materials are included. Product categories are:

• Interior paints and coatings (>90 percent by volume for emissions, 100 percent for VOC content)
• Interior adhesives and sealants (>90 percent by volume for emissions, 100 percent for VOC content)
• Flooring (100 percent)
• Composite wood (100 percent not covered by other categories)
• Ceilings, walls, thermal and acoustic insulation (100 percent)
• Furniture (>90 percent by cost)
• Exterior-applied products for school and health-care projects only (>90 percent by volume)

Option 2: Budget Calculation Method

If some products in a category do not meet the criteria, project teams may use the budget calculation method. Points are given for percentage compliance under this method. The budget method organizes the building interior into six assemblies:

• Flooring
• Ceilings
• Walls
• Thermal and acoustic insulation
• Furniture and
• Exterior applied products

Include furniture in the calculations if it is part of the scope of work. Walls, ceilings, and flooring are defined as building interior products; each layer of the assembly, including paints, coatings, adhesives, and sealants, must be evaluated for compliance. Insulation is tracked separately.

Low-emitting insulation products can include:

• Light-density fiberglass batts and rolls, including acoustic insulation
• Unbonded loosefill
• Formaldehyde-free mineral wool insulation
• XPS foam board
• Ductboard
• Pipe insulation
• Metal building insulation
• Duct liner and wrap

Acoustic Performance

Acoustic performance is imperative in environments such as schools and health care where learning and privacy, respectively, are of utmost concern. For schools, there is a prerequisite to provide classrooms that facilitate communication through effective acoustic design for background noise, exterior noise, and reverberation time. There are two options for credits.

• Option 1: For each room, confirm that the surface area of acoustic wall panels, ceiling finishes, and other sound-absorbent finishes equals or exceeds the total ceiling area of the room. Materials must meet NRC of 0.70 or higher to be included in the calculation.
• Option 2: Confirm through calculations in ANSI Standard S12.60-2010 that rooms are designed to meet reverberation time requirements as specified in that standard.

In new construction, provide workspaces and classrooms that promote occupants’ well-being, productivity, and communications through effective acoustic design. For occupied spaces, the project must meet requirements for HVAC background noise, sound isolation, reverberation time, and sound reinforcement and masking.

In health-care facilities, provide appropriate spaces that promote occupants’ privacy, enhanced healing, and improved communications through effective acoustic design. There are two possible credits.

• Option 1: Speech Privacy, Sound Isolation, and Background Noise (one point)
• Option 2: Acoustical Finishes and Site Exterior Noise (one point)

Evolving Green Rating Programs

Beyond LEED, more programs are evolving to encourage sustainable design, such as the previously mentioned Living Building Challenge and Well Building Standard. The Living Building Challenge and Living Product Challenge call for the creation of building projects at all scales that operate as cleanly, beautifully, and efficiently as nature’s architecture. Projects must meet a series of ambitious performance requirements, including net-zero energy, waste, and water.

The Well Building Standard, administered by the International WELL Building Institute, calls for building features that impact health and well-being and are third-party certified by Green Business Certification Inc. (GBCI), which administers LEED certification and LEED professional credentialing. These programs are advancing the use of healthier products through stringent requirements related to chemical content and emissions, in addition to material extraction and reuse. Just like the LEED program has, they will continue to evolve and expand as consumers, building occupants, and the industry demand a more sustainable environment and healthier buildings.

SUSTAINABLE SOLUTIONS SPECIFIED FOR NEW WORLD TRADE CENTER CONSTRUCTION

The World Trade Center (WTC) site is arguably the most extraordinary construction site anywhere in the world. More than a decade after the tragic September 11, 2001 attacks, rebuilding the 16-acre WTC site in lower Manhattan represents a momentous undertaking. From innovative architectural design and engineering precision to thoughtful product specification and world-class workmanship, every step of the reconstruction process reflects a commitment to excellence. Ultimately, the new WTC site is comprised of five elements, including five new skyscrapers (One, Two, Three, Four, and Seven WTC), the National September 11 Memorial and Museum, the World Trade Center Transportation Hub, 550,000 square feet of retail space, and a Performing Arts Center.

Products from a leading manufacturer of commercial building materials, glass fiber reinforcements, and engineered materials for composite systems were specified in several WTC sites, including One World Trade Center, the World Trade Center Transportation Hub, and the National September 11 Memorial. Product solutions were selected to deliver performance and help meet sustainable building goals. Extruded polystyrene insulation (XPS), mineral wool insulation, and corrosion-resistant glass reinforcements were incorporated into the construction of these structures.

ONE WORLD TRADE CENTER

The construction of One World Trade Center has transformed New York City’s skyline. Soaring above Manhattan at 1,776 feet, it is still America’s tallest building as of 2018—and a new, iconic New York landmark. Built on the northwest corner of the site where the twin towers once stood, the 2.6-million-square-foot building includes office space, an observation deck, world-class restaurants, and broadcast and antennae facilities.

Under the leadership of architects Skidmore, Owings and Merrill, structural engineers WSP Group, Tishman Construction, and The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, One World Trade Center construction and operation incorporates the latest technologies and sustainable solutions to maximize efficiency and performance. In keeping with this goal, construction conforms to the LEED Gold standard.

Mineral wool insulation was specified to help support fire protection, sound control, and energy conservation in One World Trade Center. Also, the product selection contributes to the overall sustainable building goals, as mineral wool insulation products contain a minimum 70 percent recycled content that is noncombustible, inorganic, and mold resistant. With a proven history of performance for more than 30 years and extensive testing by Underwriters Laboratories (UL), noncombustible mineral wool curtain wall insulation was used in conjunction with mineral wool safing insulation to achieve outstanding fire protection in curtain wall and perimeter fire-containment systems. In addition to customized details and insulation assembly layouts provided by the manufacturer for the curtainwall, a unique insulation hanger system was also developed to make installation simple, accurate, and fast.

THE NATIONAL SEPTEMBER 11 MEMORIAL

The National September 11 Memorial is located at the site of the former WTC complex. It serves as a tribute of remembrance and honor to the 2,983 victims who were killed in the September 11 attacks in New York City, Washington, D.C., Pennsylvania, and the February 1993 WTC bombing. Titled “Reflecting Absence,” the design by architect Michael Arad and landscape architect Peter Walker was selected from a worldwide design competition that included more than 5,000 entrants from 63 nations. This poignant memorial was officially unveiled on the 10th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks in a dedication ceremony for victims’ families and opened to the public the following day.

Occupying an 8-acre plaza set within the footprints of the original Twin Towers, the Memorial has two recessed reflecting pools that are each nearly an acre in size and feature the largest man-made waterfalls in North America. A team of project engineers, specifiers, and representatives from Industrial Fiberglass Specialties, a full-service provider of FRP composites, spent three years perfecting the design and engineering to ensure the 600,000 gallons of water in each of the vast reflecting pools would continuously flow without any disruptions.

Industrial Fiberglass Specialties also provided the guided specifications for the quality and performance standards needed in the fire-resistant FRP composite piping system. As part of this process, it was determined that composite piping for larger-diameter sections should be specified, as it is roughly one-third the weight of stainless steel pipe, making it easy to install in the tight space constraints. Industrial Fiberglass Specialties custom fabricated 4,300 lineal feet of 12-inch and 16-inch-diameter FRP composite pipe using a dual-wound construction designed to handle corrosive water treatment chemicals and avoid the complications that might occur with some metal alloys.

To create the FRP composite pipe’s interior liner, structural wall, and exterior fire-retardant reinforcement, Industrial Fiberglass Specialties utilized corrosion-resistant glass fiber reinforcements. Both the inner and outer layers of the FRP composite pipe are reinforced with boron-free glass fiber reinforcement. Introduced to the market in the late 1990s, corrosion-resistant glass reinforcements is a proven composite product that offers excellent performance when facing harsh corrosive environments.

WORLD TRADE CENTER (WTC) TRANSPORTATION HUB

Major progress can also be seen at the World Trade Center Transportation Hub that was completed in 2016. The Hub significantly expands transit access and brings dramatic architectural beauty to downtown Manhattan.

Designed by renowned architect Santiago Calatrava, the $3.9-billion hub serves as the new home to the Port Authority Trans-Hudson (PATH). Located close to the northeast corner of the World Trade Center site at Church and Fulton streets (between Towers 2 and 3), the hub’s primary function links virtually all forms of mass transit. This includes connecting to 13 subway lines via the Fulton Street Transit Center and other terminals and linking pedestrians to the World Financial Center (WFC) and its ferries through an underground concourse. The Hub also makes the rebuilt WTC easier to access for the 250,000 daily visitors and commuters and links them to other parts of the city and region. As a result of this activity, the Port Authority expects the hub to generate $3.7 billion per year in direct economic activity.

During the 10-year construction period, approximately 10,000 construction jobs were created to bring the 800,000-square-foot transportation hub’s innovative design features to life. Notable architectural features include a largely column-free interior space with retractable 150-foot-high glass-and-steel “wings” that allow natural light to reach the rail platforms 60 feet below street level. Padilla Construction and Wolkow-Braker Roofing were among the New York City-based companies awarded contracts to work on the Transportation Hub. Wolkow-Braker Roofing installed XPS insulation, and Padilla Construction installed 170,000 square feet of moisture-resistant, 2-inch-thick, high-compressive-strength rigid foam XPS insulation in a temporary waterproofing application under the Hub’s concrete deck due to both the product’s moisture resistance and high strength in compression. This insulation was installed in a sandwich construction consisting of waterproofing membrane, drainage board, insulation and concrete.

Extruded polystyrene (XPS) rigid foam insulation is certified for recycled content and indoor air quality and once again contributes to the overall sustainability goals for the New World Trade Center site. Through its moisture resistance, it provides long-term durability and performance by retaining its high R-value. Available in a variety of compressive strengths, it is also certified by Scientific Certifications Systems (SCS) to contain a minimum of 20 percent pre-consumer recycled content. As part of the GREENGUARD Certification Program, this XPS Insulation also has achieved GREENGUARD GOLD Certification.

EDITH GREEN-WENDELL WYATT FEDERAL BUILDING (MODERNIZATION), PORTLAND

The Edith Green-Wendell Wyatt Federal Building in the heart of Portland is an 18-story, 525,000-square-foot facility that is home to more than 16 federal agencies and 1,200 federal employees.

The building was originally constructed in 1974 and underwent a major renovation between 2009 and 2013. Today, the building is a cornerstone of GSA’s green building portfolio with all new mechanical, electrical, plumbing, and data systems designed to make it one of the most energy-efficient office buildings in the country. The work was completed by a team of Cutler Anderson Architects as the design excellence architect, SERA Architects, and Howard S. Wright Construction, who were awarded the contract in 2010.

The newly renovated Federal Building includes a number of efficient, sustainable, and innovative technologies, including mineral wool curtain wall and safing fire-containment insulation with a minimum of 70 percent recycled content that helped the building earn a LEED Platinum certification. Similar to the One World Trade Center project, a mineral wool insulation hanger system was also used. Not just for fire performance, these insulation products and solutions help conserve energy, improve acoustics, and ease installation and use.

The operationally and economically efficient high-performance building is expected to achieve a 50 percent reduction in energy use compared to the old building and a 60 percent water reduction compared to Oregon code. The facility is designed to meet the Federal Guiding Principles for High-Performing Green Buildings and the government's directives for agencies to lead by example in environmental, energy, and economic performance. Through these directives, agencies are required to meet a range of energy, water, pollution, and waste-reduction targets. Additionally, the facility is expected to achieve LEED Platinum certification for its use of cutting-edge sustainable design and technology.

Summary

Green building is about architectural and human performance—creating spaces to enhance the experience—and LEED v4 and other green programs can drive market transformation. LEED requirements are changing to increasingly emphasize materials and health, moving from a single-attribute focus to life-cycle thinking for a more holistic, transparent approach. New credits with higher standards for health and performance are raising the bar for project teams and the sustainable buildings they design.

© 2018 Owens Corning. All Rights Reserved. The color PINK is a registered trademark of Owens Corning.

End Notes

¹Hermes, Jennifer. Green Building Market to Experience 13% Growth Rate through .” Environmental Leader. 17 February 2015. Web. 3 July 2018.

²World Green Building Trends 2016: Developing Markets Accelerate Global Growth.”.” SmartMarket Report. Dodge Data & Analytics. Web. 3 July 2018.

³Head, Lee Ann. Energy efficiency is king in the commercial built environment – but indoor air quality and water are gunning for the crown. .” Shelton Insights. 22 April 2015. Web. 3 July 2018.

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