In 2000, the USGBC developed the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) program to help buildings go green. The LEED Green Building Rating System™ is a third-party certification program formatted to recognize and validate environmentally friendly, sustainable building design both inside and out. LEED certification is available to all buildings, regardless of size or function.
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For any business aspiring to go green, LEED is the gold standard to achieve, but the process can be a bit daunting. LEED certification is expensive, and the credits and standards are intentionally made extremely difficult to achieve in order to ensure that the program remains cutting-edge.
The FoodServiceWarehouse.com Going Green Program has numerous pieces of equipment, spanning multiple categories, that can help you come closer to a LEED certification by earning you points in both programs. By participating in our program, you can become a Certified Green Commercial Kitchen™ without paying any fees, and at the same time you can earn credits toward a LEED certification.
About USGBC
With recent advances in technology, it is becoming easier and more affordable for buildings to go green. The U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) is leading the way for green, sustainable construction moving into the future. The USGBC is a membership-based, non-profit company that has influence in the building industry and is constantly forging new alliances with industry and research organizations, as well as working with the federal, state and local governments to create a more sustainable commercial environment.
Did You Know?
In the U.S. alone, commercial buildings account for the following:
70% of electricity consumption
39% of all energy consumption
39% of all CO
2 emissions
Consumption of 5 billion gallons of potable water per day due to toilet flushes
Credits for LEED
LEED certification is based on a performance-based credit system, where green projects earn points for fulfilling certain standards and criteria. The credit system is organized into the following six credit categories:
• Sustainable Sites
• Water Efficiency
• Energy and Atmosphere
• Materials and Resources
• Indoor Environmental Design
• Innovation in Design
Projects must earn a certain number of points in each category to earn LEED certification. The certification is awarded in different levels, depending on the number of points earned. The levels are “Certified,” “Silver,” “Gold” and “Platinum,” with platinum representing the best performance.
While LEED does not certify products, LEED organizers have set standards for energy-efficient products. Environmentally friendly products can help earn you points toward certification. LEED puts great importance on the energy efficiency of commercial appliances and awards credits to buildings that use ENERGY STAR® qualified equipment. So purchasing products that qualify for ENERGY STAR will also help you achieve LEED credits.
The LEED committee has also developed criteria for energy-efficient commercial kitchen equipment that ENERGY STAR does not yet rate, such as ranges, ovens and griddles, so that new buildings can purchase energy-saving cooking equipment as well. FoodServiceWarehouse.com’s Going Green Program has identified products that meet the LEED criteria, and these products will also earn you points in our program.
The FoodServiceWarehouse.com experts can help. We are the only commercial kitchen equipment and supplies dealer to have an accredited LEED specialist on staff specifically to answer any questions or concerns you might have regarding the USGBC and the LEED program.
For answers to your LEED questions, call Ashley Howard at
1-877-877-4379 ext. 1576.
LEED for Commercial Interiors
LEED rates both the exterior and interior of buildings, but for the large majority of companies, who lease space in commercial buildings, LEED for Commercial Interiors is the best path to certification. LEED for Commercial Interiors is a program specifically designed for tenants, who may not have control over the exteriors of their building.
LEED for Retail and New Construction
Upon its formation in 1993, the USGBC began working on some type of rating system for the sustainable building industry. The result in 1998 was LEED v1.0, which was replaced 2 years later with LEED v2.0, commonly called LEED for New Construction. Slated for release in the first quarter of 2009 is the most recent LEED rating system: LEED for Retail: New Construction.
Because new construction projects have the opportunity to use employ even more green practices, LEED for Retail: New Construction has more stringent standards for what equipment qualifies as sufficiently energy-efficient. There are up to 10 points available from Energy and Atmosphere Credit 1 (EAc1) that specifically deal with kitchen equipment efficiency. While other LEED systems currently use ENERGY STAR guidelines, the LEED for Retail: New Construction rating system will also include criteria for equipment that ENERGY STAR does not yet rate, such as ranges, glass-door refrigerators, broilers, and ovens.