LEED™ & Green Building Rating Systems
LEED Feasibility
In order to evaluate LEED™ feasibility, The Green Roundtable will:
- Confirm the most appropriate LEED rating system for the project
- Assess prerequisites
- Determine the site boundary in order to optimize credit achievement
- Evaluate whether buildings should be certified individually or grouped in a multiple-building project
- Assess strategies that are easily implemented and involve no added cost (the “low-hanging fruit”) and evaluate the opportunities for including more complex sustainability strategies
- Assign an initial ranking (yes/no/maybe) for each credit to determine what level of certification is possible
- Identify the actions and individuals needed to confirm and execute the credits. This establishes key groundwork for the project going forward.
LEED™ Project Management
As the LEED™ project manager, GRT staff coordinates the LEED™ certification process. We facilitate meetings, develop and manage a workplan, suggest different LEED credit approaches and strategies, assist with required plans and calculations, and coordinate and review LEED documentation for submission to the GBCI. GRT provides the most value when working directly for the owner, but also works with design professionals to provide LEED management as a separate service. GRT project management staff will:
- Assist the client in registering the project with the GBCI
- Establish LEED credit progress and documentation milestones
- Participate in team meetings to track and discuss progress and maintain focus on documentation needs
- Provide LEED on-call assistance to the owner and project team members
- Develop Credit Interpretation Requests (CIR) on relevant project questions
- Provide updates on LEED rating systems changes/revisions
- Assemble and track LEED documentation (digital format)
- Collect and organize documentation for LEED submission (digital format)
- Submit LEED documentation to the GBCI and provide a base level of assistance during the review stage
LEED Kickoff Meeting with Workplan
Successful LEED implementation depends on a highly collaborative, integrative design process. In an integrative process, collaboration begins much earlier than in traditional projects and is continued in a series of carefully mapped out activities that clarify decision-making and cost control.
In order to clarify roles, responsibilities and deliverables early on, GRT recommends that the project team be engaged as a whole in a kickoff meeting that clarifies project goals and how they relate to LEED targets. The kickoff meeting, which ranges anywhere from three hours to a full day, brings the team together to discuss the current status of sustainable design strategies, identify opportunities to optimize building systems integration and assess the feasibility of LEED certification. GRT will map out or confirm responsibilities for developing the relevant information for a two-stage LEED submission. This dialogue results in a better understanding of synergies and a clear workplan that charts direction and timeline for the team moving forward.
In addition to facilitating the kickoff meeting, GRT staff can participate in design meetings to provide coordination, strategic planning input, consensus-building skills, and implementation strategies. Our staff also conducts contractor coordination meetings and trainings to ensure that expectations, responsibilities and opportunities are clarified.
LEED Technical Reviews
GRT technical peer reviews consist of a comprehensive review of current project documentation (drawings, specifications and cost estimate) to ensure that sustainable strategies have been integrated into the project documentation and that anticipated LEED credits will not be jeopardized. GRT staff also reviews calculation baselines and design calculations to assess assumptions and verify if results are on target. The report generated from the technical peer review includes comprehensive recommendations for revisions to project documentation, including GRT’s time-tested tactics for incorporating sustainable requirements into the project specifications.
On-Call Technical Assistance
GRT staff acts as coach and resource by providing on-call technical assistance to the owner and project team members. On-call assistance includes responding to questions, assessing inputs/assumptions for calculations, conducting necessary research and walking through the steps and calculations involved in determining if LEED credits are achievable. On-call technical assistance may also include assistance with LEED-Online credit templates and supporting documentation.
LEED Credit Calculation, Documentation and Strategic Assistance
GRT provides technical assistance services, including strategic planning, performing calculations and developing plans, to optimize your project’s LEED certification rating. Our extensive experience with all of the LEED rating systems, supported by our library of credit calculators, sample documents and teaching tools, brings the experience of scores of LEED projects to our clients’ fingertips. GRT has experience in developing and refining the calculations for all of the credits within the LEED rating systems and has developed methods and approaches to utilize these calculations early in the process to influence design decisions. GRT has also created sample plans and instructional documents for the construction waste management plan and the indoor air quality management plan that can be adapted to individual projects.
A selected list of GRT’s calculators and sample documents includes:
- Sample Owner’s Project Requirements
- Guide to Commissioning Agent scope of work
- Energy efficiency and ventilation compliance guides and calculators
- Strategic materials and resources selection document and calculator
- Lists of typical recycled, regional, rapidly renewable & FSC-certified materials
- Low-VOC material tracking and contractor training guides
- Indoor air quality management plan sample documents
- Construction waste management plan guide and sample
- Controllability of systems guide and calculations
- Innovation credit guides and samples
Beyond providing these tools, GRT provides strategic assistance to the project team and periodic reviews of these calculations and documents to help ensure success.
LEED-Online Submittal Documentation Collection and Final Review
GRT works with clients to track and support proper completion of the LEED-Online submittal documentation. We work with individual team members to help them complete their assigned templates and calculations, and we perform the final review of the documentation (once for design credits, once for construction credits) prior to submission to the USGBC. We identify omissions, errors and other defects and suggest ways to correct them.
Prior to submittal of documentation, GRT crafts Credit Interpretation Requests that clarifies special circumstances and LEED credit compliance paths.
After submitting documentation to the USGBC, we assist the project team in responding to USGBC reviewer questions.
Request information by filling out this online form or contacting Colleen Soden at colleen@greenroundtable.org or 617-374-3740 x102.
