Canada Green Building Council® Vancouver office is Canada’s first commercial LEED v4 Platinum certified project
- Rating System/Standard
- LEED
- Theme
- Green Building
New office demonstrates potential impact of green building in fighting climate change, with predicted 25.3 per cent savings in energy costs and emphasis on innovation and wellness in design
February 6, 2017 – OTTAWA, ON – The Canada Green Building Council® (CaGBC) announced today that its new Vancouver office has certified LEED v4 Platinum for Interior Design + Construction (ID+C) – becoming the first commercial project to earn LEED v4 Platinum in the country. As Canada’s leading non-profit supporting the design and construction of green, healthy buildings, CaGBC’s goal with this new office was to provide leadership to the industry and demonstrate how a state-of-the-art, innovative green office can reduce greenhouse gas emissions and improve employee well-being.
Climate change mitigation through green building rests first in improving building performance wherever possible. In order to earn LEED v4 Platinum certification, one of the most rigorous green building standards in the world, CaGBC worked with industry leaders DIALOG, Ledcor Construction Ltd., and Integral Group. Through this collaboration, the CaGBC Vancouver office was able to earn a final predicted energy cost savings of 25.3 per cent compared to ASHRAE 90.1-2010, with a 39 per cent reduction in indoor water use.
The selection of an appropriate location for a project is critical, and was a key contributor in CaGBC earning this LEED Platinum certification. Choosing to lease office space in the newly opened MNP Tower at 1021 W. Hastings St., a LEED Gold certified building owned by Oxford Properties Group, provided many advantages due to its dense downtown location. This includes ample access to amenities and strong bicycle and public transportation networks, which encourages employee wellness and mitigates the environmental impacts of commuting. CaGBC built on the idea of wellness by also incorporating an open-office design, a variety of workspace options, and sit-stand desks to maximize ergonomics.
“Our goal with this office was to set an example by achieving the most rigorous level of certification under LEED v4, and to do so by highlighting the innovation and capabilities that CaGBC has fostered over the past decade,” says Thomas Mueller, President and CEO of the CaGBC. “As the pressure builds to urgently address climate change and other environmental issues, CaGBC and our thousands of members and stakeholders across the country continue to lead by example. This project is demonstrating how we can reduce carbon impact, improve efficiency and eliminate toxicity while stimulating innovation.”
Building materials also play a large role in mitigating carbon emissions, which is why the project team focused on product selections that had life-cycle information available, along with environmentally, economically, and socially preferable impacts. This included sourcing flooring, shades and fabric that are Cradle2Cradle certified or that have Environmental Product Declarations (EPDs); ensuring 80 per cent of workstation furniture was from reused, refurbished or recycled sources; and using VOC-absorbing gypsum and other low-VOC products to maximize indoor air quality.
The innovative office space not only achieved LEED v4 Platinum, but has served as a learning tool for CaGBC staff, visitors and the project team. A new video detailing the design and construction process of the office is available, along with project highlights at: portal.cagbc.org/v4PlatinumOffice.
In total, the CaGBC worked with 40 industry sponsors for this project, who provided in-kind services and support and would like to thank them for contributing to the success of this project.
Special recognition for the CaGBC Vancouver Office is given to
- DIALOG – Designer
- Ledcor Construction Ltd. – Contractor
- Integral Group – Mechanical and Electrical Engineer
- Oxford Properties Group – Building Owner
Additional sponsors are (in alphabetical order)
- Allmar Inc.
- ASSA ABLOY
- Avison Young
- Benjamin Moore & Co. Limited
- Brooks Corning
- Bullfrog Power Inc.
- CASSEN Testing Laboratories
- CertainTeed Gypsum & Insulation
- CES Engineering Ltd.
- Douglas Lighting Controls
- Dudoc Vancouver
- Erv Parent Co. Ltd.
- Forbo Flooring Systems
- Fred Welsh Ltd
- Haworth Inc.
- Heritage Office Furnishings
- Intelligent Living Technologies Inc.
- JFC Solutions
- K.D. Engineering Co.
- Knauf Insulation
- Maharam
- MechoShade Systems, Inc.
- Northwest Sheet Metal LTD.
- Pinchin West Ltd.
- Planters Perfect
- Power Pros Electrical Ltd.
- Shaw Contract Group
- Smart Office Solutions
- Smoothcuts Painting & Finishing
- Steelcase
- SUPERIOR ESSEX
- Teknion
- Upper Canada Forest Products
- Winwood Construction Ltd.
- Woodrose Woodworking Inc.
Media Contact:
media@cagbc.org
Desk: 613-288-8075
About CaGBC
The CaGBC (portal.cagbc.org) is the leading national organization dedicated to advancing green building and sustainable community development practices. As the voice of green building in Canada, we work closely with our national and chapter members in an effort to make every building greener. The CaGBC reduces environmental impacts from the built environment through project certification, advocacy and research, and has helped meet the demand for skilled workers by providing green building education to over 20,000 professionals across the country since 2002. CaGBC is the license holder of the LEED green building rating system in Canada and is developing the country’s first Zero Carbon Building Standard, supports the WELL Building Standard and GRESB in Canada, and oversees the Canada Coalition for Green Schools. We are also a member of the World Green Building Council supporting international efforts to reduce environmental impacts from the built environment.