Balfour Beatty wins LEED for its two offices
Balfour Beatty Construction has bagged LEED certifications for its two offices on the East Coast.
One of these facilities include the new headquarters of the company's North Region at the Bridgewater Corporate Centre in Fairfax, Virginia, US. The office has secured LEED Gold from the US Green Building Council. Balfour Beatty has collaborated with design partners Fox Architects and Engineered Systems Alliance to design and build the facility.
The design of the building is indicative of the company's collaborative environment. The building has used an Integrated Project Delivery method for its design and construction. It has been equipped with systems which help track its carbon footprint and electricity consumption.
The new headquarters of the firm's Carolinas Division in Charlotte's South End, North Carolina, US has achieved LEED Silver certification. The new 30,000 square feet facility is housed in a site formerly occupied by a 1920s knitting mill and adjacent office area. A collaboration of Balfour Beatty, architecture firm Gensler, and Charlotte-based Optima Engineering created the new facility.
Both the office locations imbibe green features such as energy-saving systems, and Energy Star-certified appliances. The buildings have been fitted with occupancy sensor-controlled lighting fixtures which lead to a reduction in energy usage. They also comprise high-performance plumbing fixtures and fittings to reap water cost cuts.
The facilities utilise low-VOC paint which upgrade indoor air quality by cutting down the amount of toxins and contaminants. Extensive use of reclaimed as well as local/regionally-sourced materials adds to the sustainability. Other green features of the offices include use of FSC-eligible wood, reclaiming 77% of furniture pieces procured from former office areas, and recycling 98% of construction debris.
