The recently completed headquarters facility for the Human Resources Development
Commission of Allegany County has been awarded LEED Gold certification, thanks
in part to its highly energy efficientaccel-E Steel Thermal Efficient
Panel (S.T.E.P.) wall system.
PITTSBURGH,
Pa. – The recently
completed headquarters facility for the Human Resources Development Commission
of Allegany County has been awarded LEED Gold certification, thanks in part to
its highly energy efficientaccel-E Steel Thermal Efficient Panel
(S.T.E.P.) wall system.
The LEED Gold certification was presented in late May at
a ceremony attended by HRDC officials and others involved in the design and
construction of the 20,000-sqauare-foot building, which was completed in
November 2009. Those attending included representatives of the U.S. Green
Building Council, which developed and administers the LEED program; Moshier
Studio of Pittsburgh, the architecture firm that designed the facility; and
SYNTHEON Inc., which manufactures the accel-E wall
system.
“When we began designing our building we decided we would
attempt to build a building that had at least a LEED Gold certification,” said
Dan Lewellen, deputy director of the HRDC. “Theaccel-E wall panel
system was one of the factors that helped us garner LEED points and achieve that
goal.”
The LEED (Leadership in Energy & Environmental
Design) green building rating system was developed by the USGBC to provide
third-party verification that a building was designed and built using strategies
that improve performance and long-term sustainability in several key areas
including energy efficiency, indoor environmental quality and overall
environmental impact.
“The accel-E system was part of a coordinated
approach that included a planted roof, ground source heat pump and other
factors,” Lewellen explained. “The system forms part of an energy conservation
package that has allowed us to realize those savings and achieve LEED Gold
designation.”
In addition to improving long-term sustainability, the
use of energy-saving technology has also produced more immediate and tangible
benefits, he added. Those benefits became apparent when a review of the
building’s performance as part of the LEED commissioning project revealed
significant savings in energy and other utility
costs.
“In a conventionally built building, the mixed-use
utility costs for gas, water and electric in a building such as ours typically
run about $3.15 or $3.16 per square foot, on an annualized basis,” Lewellen
explained. “But after a year of occupancy we found our costs were running at
about $2.15 or $2.16.
“So while there was a little more front-end investment in
some of these systems, there’s a pretty rapid return on that investment,
particularly when you’re saving a third on your utility costs,” he
added.
Theaccel-E wall system achieves its excellent
energy efficiency by fusing cold-formed steel framing components and expandable
polystyrene (EPS) insulating panels together into a single continuous system.
This eliminates air gaps, reduces thermal bridging and heat transference, blocks
air intrusion, and adds thermal resistance. As a result, the accel-E
panel’s offer tested insulating values that far surpass other panel systems and
traditional framing techniques.
“In addition to helping reduce energy costs for heating
and cooling, the accel-E wall system is also very ‘green’ in terms of
it long-term environmental impact,” said Jeff Peskowitz, SYNTHEON’s director of
marketing. He noted that the wall system contributes points to as many as four
LEED categories.
Theaccel-Esteel framing members are made of
recycled steel and are themselves recyclable. In addition, the EPS foam
insulation does not shrink, settle, emit harmful VOC gases, or contribute to
diminished air quality. Moreover, replacing conventional framing and insulation
with pre-engineered accel-E panels virtually eliminates jobsite waste
and disposal issues – all of which further contribute to the system’s LEED
points.
Ultimately, the advantages of any new building system are
measured in how well it meets the needs of its occupants. By that measure, the
new facility with itsaccel-Ewall system is clearly
successful, according to Lewellen.
“LEED Gold means the occupants’ satisfaction with their
surroundings is higher, and you just have a cleaner environment for people to
work in,” he said, pointing out that the 160-employee nonprofit community action
agency administers 19 separate programs aimed at improving the lives of the
young, poor, elderly and disabled throughout Allegany County.
”This building allowed us to consolidate four other
separate sites under one roof, so we could create more of a one-stop shop for
the people we serve,” he added.
Theaccel-E system fully complies with both the
2006 International Building Code (IBC) and the 2006 International Residential
Code (IRC). The panels’ effective R-Value and U-Factor exceed ASHRAE 90.1 2007
and IECC 2009 Energy Code requirements for cavity plus continuous insulation in
steel stud wall assemblies for all climate zones. For more information, please
visitwww.accel-E.com.
accel-E Wall System Helps HRDC Headquarters Earn LEED Gold Certification