Greener Buildings

Marriott to Launch Prototype for Green Design of Courtyard Hotels

Leslie Guevarra — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 23:38:19 +0000

In the latest move to expand its sustainability efforts, Marriott International Inc. says its green hotel portfolio will grow tenfold in the next five years with the introduction of a design prototype for new green properties.

Vetrazzo Gets a Green Audit to Back Its Product Claims

GreenerBuildings Staff — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 20:10:20 +0000

The manufacturer of recycled-glass surfaces announced during Greenbuild 2009 that it had published an Environmental Product Declaration, allowing customers to verify the reduced impacts of its product line.

The Companies Mixing Up Greener Cement

Jonathan Bardelline — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 15:00:09 +0000

Cement and concrete companies are using a range of strategies to lower the impacts of their industry, which contributes 5 percent or more of CO2 emissions. Using a power plant byproduct, secret ingredients and mixtures that make concrete waterproof are just some of their methods.

Greenbuild 2009: Gore Lauds USGBC for 'Leading the Charge' to Battle Climate Change

Leslie Guevarra — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 12:46:54 +0000

Nobel Laureate and former vice president Al Gore welcomed thousands of building professionals to Phoenix, praising the U.S. Green Building Council and its members for being the vanguard of the movement to green the world's buildings.

The USGBC's 2009 Green Jobs Report

GreenerBuildings Staff — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 23:25:58 +0000

This study, conducted by the U.S. Green Building Council and Booz Allen Hamilton, predicts that the green building industry will be responsible for the creation or support of 7.9 million jobs, contributing $554 billion to the U.S. GDP, in the next four years.

BD+C's Green Buildings and Water Performance Report

GreenerBuildings Staff — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 23:41:54 +0000

This report is seventh in an annual series looking at impacts in the green buildings market, and explores how water use and water conservation pose daunting challenges to building owners and the environment.

Greenbuild 2009: Research Explores Buildings' Impact on Jobs, Water, Real Estate

GreenerBuildings Staff — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 23:21:16 +0000

A slew of reports released during Greenbuild 2009 explore how green buildings are impacting resource use, the job market, facility management and more.

Greenbuild 2009: Of Certifications, Solar and Smart Grid

GreenerBuildings Staff — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 22:14:54 +0000

The first 24 hours of Greenbuild 2009 brought a flurry of announcements, including the latest version of the Living Building Challenge standards, the largest city-sponsored residential solar financing program in the country, and a big push from Electric lighting control firm Lutron to revamp its technologies to take advantage of potential energy savings and smart grid development.

Greenbuild 2009: Conference Opens the Doors to Its Largest Expo Yet

Leslie Guevarra — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 20:20:15 +0000

Day 1 of the world's largest showcase for green building products and innovation brought together more than 1,800 exhibitors and tens of thousands of attendees; here is a look at some of the companies holding court on the showroom floor.

Perkins+Will Launches First Chemical Blacklist for Building Designers

Jonathan Bardelline — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 20:50:00 +0000

Architectural firm Perkins+Will has unveiled its Precautionary List, which includes 25 chemicals commonly used in buildings, explains why they are a threat to humans and the environment, and lists safer alternatives.

Fortune Data Centers Lands LEED Gold Certification, Facebook as Tenant

GreenerComputing Staff — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 01:09:05 +0000

Six months after opening its latest green facility, Fortune Data Centers has become one of a very small number of LEED-rated data centers; internet phenomenon Facebook also confirmed that it was one of the facility's new tenants.

Companies More Likely Than Ever to Invest in Efficiency Retrofits, Study Says

GreenerBuildings Staff — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 01:03:33 +0000

Seventy-four percent of corporate real estate executives now say they would be willing to pay a premium to retrofit office space they own to achieve sustainability goals, according to results of a new survey by CoreNet Global and Jones Lang LaSalle.

'LEED for Landscapes' Aims to Green the Nation's Greens

GreenerBuildings Staff — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 13:22:09 +0000

The United States' first voluntary rating system for sustainable landscapes launched last week, a development its creators hope will do for the landscaping sector what LEED did for the building industry.

Greenbuild 2009 Blazes a Trail to the Southwest

Leslie Guevarra — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 15:25:08 +0000

More than 20,000 building and sustainability professionals are heading to Arizona where the U.S. Green Building Council’s annual Greenbuild convention, the world’s largest green building conference and expo, opens next week at the Phoenix Convention Center.

Greenbuild 2009 Job Fair: USGBC Offers Job Seekers a Lifeline

Leslie Guevarra — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 01:05:39 +0000

Job hunters seeking to break into the green building field or looking for new opportunities will have a chance network with destination companies and organizations at the upcoming Greenbuild 2009 conference in Phoenix, where the U.S. Green Building Council will conduct the first job fair at its annual gathering.

The Phoenix Convention Center's Green Pedigree

GreenerBuildings Staff — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 15:15:22 +0000

The city of Phoenix's revamped LEED-Silver certified convention center will serve as an appropriate backdrop next week for Greenbuild 2009, the vast showcase for green building innovations and ideas.

New AIA Contracts Offer Tools for Integrated Design to All Developers

GreenerBuildings Staff — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 12:41:41 +0000

The release this week of a new contract developed by the American Institute of Architects aims to help bring a collaborative effort to building construction and enable integrated design in buildings of all sizes.

YKK Boosts Green Product Line with Window Additions to enerGfacade Line

GreenerBuildings Staff — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 10:59:26 +0000

Just in advance of the Greenbuild conference, YKK AP America this week unveiled a new aluminum window designed to boost energy efficiency by as much as 30 percent over standard windows.

Johnson Controls: The Quiet Company Raises Its Voice and Its Profile

Leslie Guevarra — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 20:51:57 +0000

Though a giant in the buildings and automotive industries, Johnson Controls Inc. was long considered a quiet company — seldom a major presence outside its lines of business. That's changing as the firm increasingly raises its voice and its profile to spread its mantra of "Efficiency Now."

Diversey Ups Emissions Reductions Investments, Earns Bigger ROI

ClimateBiz Staff — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 18:40:33 +0000

One year after setting a goal to cut corporate emissions by 8 percent before 2013, Diversey CEO today announced the company had already surpassed that target, and upped the goal to a 25 percent reduction in the same time frame.

Green Buildings Continue Impressive Growth, New Market Study Finds

GreenerBuildings Staff — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 23:26:01 +0000

The Green Building Market and Impact Report, released this morning by GreenerBuildings.com, measures the beneficial impacts that LEED-certified buildings have on energy, water, worker productivity and more, and charts the growth of the green marketplace in the coming years.

The Green Building Market and Impact Report 2009

GreenerBuildings Staff — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 22:46:12 +0000

This second annual report, by Rob Watson and the GreenBiz.com editorial team, explores the impacts that LEED-certified buildings have already had on energy, water, waste and employee productivity -- and projects those impacts for the next 20 years.

Taiwan Skyscraper TAIPEI 101 Aims to Be World's Tallest Green Building

GreenerBuildings Staff — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 13:25:02 +0000

The owners of Taiwan's landmark skyscraper TAIPEI 101 are teaming up with SL+A International Asia Inc., Siemens and EcoTech International Inc. for an 18-month renovation that project partners say will make the highrise the tallest green building in the world.

Business Owners Beware: Quick Fixes Can Cost More Than Smart Energy Savings Strategies

GreenerBuildings Staff — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 22:53:54 +0000

Looking to save a little money this fall and winter by turning down the thermostats in your offices? Think again before you fiddle with those temperatures settings. Doing that alone could cost you far more than you save, especially if employees take their workplace comfort into their own hands.

SeriousWindows Selected by Largest Weatherization Agency in U.S.

GreenerBuildings Staff — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 07:56:27 +0000

Serious Materials, the California company that specializes in energy efficient, eco-friendly building products, is supplying its super-insulating SeriousWindows to the Community and Economic Development Association of Cook County, the largest weatherization agency in the United States.

Owens Corning Works to Keep Roof Shingles Out of Landfills

GreenBiz Staff — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 21:33:24 +0000

The company's Preferred Roofing Contractors who pledge to recycle their shingle tear-offs will be able to take them to drop-off recycling and processing centers provided by Heritage Environmental Services.

Hotel Guests Need Help Staying Green on the Road, Study Finds

Sookhan So — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 11:19:36 +0000

A study by researchers at Virginia Tech's Pamplkn College of Business finds that even individuals who are resource-efficient at home are much more wasteful when on the road, and stronger education programs are needed to bridge this gap.

Shining a Light on Climate Change Risk Faced by Companies

Shari Shapiro — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 21:12:41 +0000

The SEC has changed its metrics for determining when shareholder resolutions regarding climate change risk must be included in SEC documents. The move is expected to make it easier for shareholders to demand disclosure of such risks to their investments.

Answers to Green Marketers' Questions on Ecolabels

admin — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 17:35:26 +0000

GreenBiz.com’s October 15, 2009 webinar on "The Green Marketing Landscape: Ratings, Labels, and Certifications" yielded far more questions than we had time to answer during the allotted 60 minutes. We've selected questions from among the hundreds asked and submitted them to our three speakers, who graciously provided answers.