Guidebook to the LEED Certification Process: For LEED for New Construction, LEED for Core and Shell, and LEED for Commercial Interiors 1st Edition

Although I am working in a country, which has its own mandatory sustainability program, I found this book gives a clear vision for sustainability procedures as the foundation for any new development; the monthly reports and the appendixes are very simple and can be used among any rating system.As a LEED AP who passed BD+C & ID+C and now preparing to pursue LEED AP O+M, and a professional in Architectural field this book helps me to differentiate among the varies rating system, Well-organized and comprehensive content for minimum program requirement.Any LEED-certified consultant should have this book in his library; a compendium for all of the LEED rating system would be awesome.

Well written, but could have had a few more direct steps for those of us who are beginners. Of course, LEED IV is now out so there needs to be a new revised addition.

By way of background, with three or more decades of working with office buildings and other commercial real estate I'm more than a little leery of the greenies bearing gifts. Efficiency has been a part of our design goals for decades but rule 1 is that this is the home of the tenants' business and its ability to function must not be sacrificed. Among the architectural community we are heathens for often suggesting that $.50/SF of building area be taken out of the lobby and put back into the hvac system where it will add more value.My friend, and endless source of priceless wisdom , Jim Shoop reminds us that an acceptable building design and air conditioning system exists when people are unaware that it exists. From master builder Jim Shelton came the gentle art of integrating all of this stuff into a project in a way that added value at a cost that was predictable from the outset, even if it was just a lump allowance.As mischief makers we are not above resetting the thermostat in the conference room where the LEEDS presentation is going to be made to 78 degrees (from its normal 68 setting) to remind people of what we are planning to inflict on the occupants. Or casually putting a thermometer on the conference table at the city offices that profess to be all green.Thus it was with considerable skepticism that I opened the book. Was very pleasantly surprised at the value of the information and the organization. The authors have done a great job of integrating a lot of information and wisdom in a way that it is easy to find and easy to understand.I think that most people failed to grasp the true genius of Steve Jobs, his ability to envision something that the public would treasure both for what it would do, but also for how the entire customer experience was delivered and controlled. Although he ran a huge company, used thousands of subcontractors and suppliers and needed to fulfill all the corporate roles, he focused on the the critical mission, delivery of value to a customer who bought for value not price.Regardless of our personal attitudes, the results of our analyses or common sense, more and more government and institutional clients want green. If we want to be in business then we need to understand the rules of the game. The author gives a chance to do this along with lots of guidance.Another contribution of the book is the warning given as to the extent of green design influences on the building. It strengthens the need for team driven project planning from the earliest stages. One one of the most difficult roles during the process is to keep tenant value, economic impacts , operations/maintenance and long term value at the forefront of the decision process especially with relation to green objectives.Looking back, the teams that built the most successful buildings 30 years ago typically had a strong development competence that also integrated marketing and operations. The best started with the market opportunity and wrapped a great building around that. The architectural team played an important role in the process as a team member, Wise developers vetted critical team members (both companies and people to be assigned to the job) such as structural, mechanical/controls, electrical curtainwall and landscaping.Today the developer is far more likely to come from the financial or governmental affairs side of the business. Perhaps more tragically the new people belong to the Church of Argus and Excel where numbers and formulas are more manipulated with little reflection of reality. Far too often decisions are made on the basis of bad numbers generated early in the project.Today the developer must be able to work with a green empowered team in a way that preserves and protects the project's magic. Far too often that role gets washed away through inattention to the program documents and team building efforts.The author, by illustrating many of the engagement points prepares the developer for the difficult task of managing the process. For some of the Green professionals its a struggle to shift from a budding dictator to a presenter of ideas. However the outcomes are often better for everyone.One of the constant struggles is with minimum HVAC capacities and quality under a wide range of conditions. Equipment does not always perform at its book capacity, equipment must be taken out of service for unscheduled maintenance, stuff breaks etc. HVAC is the most critical service the building provides to its tenants and part of the big four (parking, elevators, restrooms and hvac) The cost to the tenant to occupy the space will be perhaps 10 x the rent with the direct people cost 5-10 x the rent. If the tenant or user group is not working effectively due to the conditions in the building the developer/operator has failed. In the green world we need to insure that we are not building failure into the project. Rather the customer should experience a higher value product as the result.The above is a far distance from the content of the book but also illustrates why both the leaders and the practitioners need to understand this stuff early in the process, from the first two page Development Outline and conceptual economic feasibility of just budget in the case of public projects.Great read and reference book Highly recommended

LEED is a trend that has arisen in recent years in the design of buildings in the US. Perhaps for readers who are architects or students of architecture, and who want a substantial description of LEED, you can turn to this text. It is directed at practitioners with an existing background in architecture or civil engineering, rather than a general reader.You learn about various processes that bring together stakeholders, like the owner of a building, and professionals like you. Of course, it is not just the building that LEED is about. Landscaping is covered in several places in the book, for aesthetic and practical reasons.The cost of conforming to LEED certification is also directly tackled. The author suggests that if properly done, a LEED class building need not be more expensive to design and build than a conventional non-LEED building. In part, this might be brought up to possibly disabuse the notion that LEED can be an expensive frill for eco-conscious owners.What the book attempts to show is that LEED can be a practical mainstream process.

LEED stands for Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design. LEED certification of a building has four levels that denote increasing degree of "greenness": Certified, Silver, Gold, and Platinum. I live in a LEED-certified Silver building, and I have always wondered about the process in which it was certified. After reading this book, I can appreciate much more the builder's efforts in the planning, design, and construction of a LEED-certified building.The 330-page book is divided into three parts: Key Concepts, Design Phase, and Construction Phase. In each part, there are extensive coverage of various aspects of LEED certification process as seen by owners, general contractors, engineers, LEED coordinators, etc. This is not a technical step-by-step how-to book; it is a collection of experiences by the people who were involved.To be in compliance with LEED certification requirements, this book stresses the importance of early planning and assembly of the project team.For maximum understanding and effectiveness, I recommend glancing through the tablet of contents first, then read the book from cover to cover. By reading the viewpoints of those who were actually involved in the process, you can gain many insights that you can't get from a strictly step-by-step how-to book.Having said that, it is still necessary to have a how-to book to complement this book. They serve different purposes.