Green Building Design
Green building design strives to balance environmental responsibility, resource efficiency, occupant comfort and wellbeing, community development and the economics of building construction and operation. Over their lifecycles, green buildings cost less to operate, generate less greenhouse gases and other pollutants, use materials wisely and produce less waste. A growing body of research links the high quality indoor environments of green buildings to gains in productivity, decreased absenteeism and improved employee morale. G&P Millwork is vitally interested in meeting the needs of our clients to reduce the negative impact of buildings on their occupants and the environment, while providing a high quality product at a competitive price.
LEED® Green Building Rating System
LEADERSHIP IN ENERGY AND ENVIRONMENTAL DESIGN (LEED)
LEED is an internationally recognized certification program and a benchmark for the design, construction and operation of high performance green buildings. It measures how well a building performs using five key LEED® categories:
- Sustainable Sites
- Water Efficiency
- Energy & Atmosphere
- Materials & Resources
- Indoor Environmental Quality
An additional category, Innovation & Design Process, addresses expertise in green design not covered under the other categories. There are four possible levels of LEED® certification awarded by the Canada Green Building Council (CaGBC).
| Certification Level | Points |
|---|---|
| Certified | 26 to 32 |
| Silver | 33 to 38 |
| Gold | 39 to 51 |
| Platinum | 52 or more |
BENEFITS OF LEED® CERTIFICATION
- Gain recognition for green building efforts
- Validate achievement through third party review
- Qualify for a growing array of government incentives
- Contribute to a growing green building knowledge base
- Receive marketing exposure through CaGBC website, case studies, and media announcements
G&P Millwork and LEED®
Based on LEED® Canada for Commercial Interiors (CI)
| Materials & Resources | Requirements | Application | |
|---|---|---|---|
| MR Credit 4.1 | Recycled Content: 10%,(post-consumer + ½ post-industrial) | Use materials inc. furniture and furnishings with recycled content such that the sum of post-consumer recycled content plus one-half of the post-industrial (or pre-consumer) content constitutes at least 10% of the total value of the materials in the project. | Most composite wood materials used have 100% post-industrial/pre-consumer recycled content. |
| MR Credit 4.2 | Recycled Content: 20%,(post-consumer + ½ post-industrial) | Use materials inc. furniture and furnishings with recycled content such that the sum of post-consumer recycled content plus one-half of the post-industrial (pre-consumer) content constitutes at least 20% of the total value of the materials in the project. | Most composite wood materials used have 100% post-industrial/pre-consumer recycled content. |
| MR Credit 5.1 | 20% Manufactured Regionally | Use a min. of 20% of the combined value of construction and furniture materials and products that are manufactured regionally within a radius of 800 Km (500 miles) of the project. Manufacturing refers to the final assembly of components into the building product that is furnished and installed by the tradesmen. | Dependent on jobsite location. G&P Millwork’s facilities are approx. 30km from Toronto’s, Financial District |
| MR Credit 5.2 | 10% Extracted and Manufactured Regionally | In addition to MR 5.1, use a minimum of 10% of the combined value of construction and furniture materials and products extracted, harvested or recovered, as well as manufactured, within 800km (500 miles of the project). | Dependent on jobsite location and project material specifications. G&P Millwork facilities are approx. 30km from Toronto’s Financial District. |
| MR Credit 6 | Rapidly Renewable Materials | Use rapidly renewable construction and furniture and furnishings materials and products, made from plants that are typically harvested within a 10 yr or shorter cycle, for 5% of the total value of all new materials and products used in the project. | Materials used as per project specifications.E.g. of rapidly renewable material: Bamboo Veneer |
| MR Credit 7 | Certified Wood | Use a min. of 50% of new wood-based materials and products, certified in accordance with the Forest Stewardship Council’s Principals and Criteria. | |
| Indoor Environmental Quality | Requirements | Application | |
| EQ Credit 4.1 | Low-Emitting Materials: Adhesives & Sealants | The VOC content of adhesives, sealants and sealant priers used must be less than the VOC content limits of the SCAQMD Rule#1168 (only applies to adhesives and sealants used inside on the construction site) | SCAQMD Rule#1168: Drywall and Panel Adhesives VOC Limit (less water) of 50g/L G&P uses a Panel Adhesive with VOC’s (less water) of 6.6 g/L |
| EQ Credit 4.4 | Low Emitting Materials: Composite Wood and Laminate Adhesives | Composite wood and agrifiber products, including core materials, must contain no added urea-formaldehyde resins (NAUF). Adhesives used to fabricate laminated assemblies containing these products must contain no urea-formaldehyde(NAUF). | G&P product components of Particleboard, medium density fiberboard (MDF), plywood, panel substrates and door cores can all be ordered containing no-added urea formaldehyde. As a standard all of G&P’s laminate adhesives have no added-urea formaldehyde. |
| MR Credit 4.1 |
|---|
| Materials & Resources Recycled Content: 10%(post-consumer + ½ post-industrial) Requirements Use materials inc. furniture and furnishings with recycled content such that the sum of post-consumer recycled content plus one-half of the post-industrial (or pre-consumer) content constitutes at least 10% of the total value of the materials in the project. Application Most composite wood materials used have 100% post-industrial/pre-consumerrecycled content. |
| MR Credit 4.2 |
| Materials & Resources Recycled Content: 20%, (post-consumer + ½ post-industrial) Requirements Use materials inc. furniture and furnishings with recycled content such that the sum of post-consumer recycled content plus one-half of the post-industrial (pre-consumer) content constitutes at least 20% of the total value of the materials in the project. Application Most composite wood materials used have 100% post-industrial/pre-consumer recycled content. |
| MR Credit 5.1 |
| Materials & Resources 20% Manufactured Regionally Requirements Use a min. of 20% of the combined value of construction and furniture materials and products that are manufactured regionally within a radius of 800 Km (500 miles) of the project. Manufacturing refers to the final assembly of components into the building product that is furnished and installed by the tradesmen. Application Dependant on jobsite locationG&P Millwork’s facilities are approx. 30km from Toronto’s, Financial District |
| MR Credit 5.2 |
| Materials & Resources 10% Extracted and Manufactured Regionally Requirements In addition to MR 5.1, use a minimum of 10% of the combined value of construction and furniture materials and products extracted, harvested or recovered, as well as manufactured, within 800km (500 miles of the project. Application Dependant on jobsite location and project material specifications.G&P Millwork facilities are approx. 30km from Toronto’s Financial District |
| MR Credit 6 |
| Materials & Resources Rapidly Renewable Materials Requirements Use rapidly renewable construction and furniture and furnishings materials and products, made from plants that are typically harvested within a 10 yr or shorter cycle, for 5% of the total value of all new materials and products used in the project. Application Materials used as per project specifications. E.g. of rapidly renewable material: Bamboo Veneer |
| MR Credit 7 |
| Materials & Resources Certified Wood Requirements Use a min. of 50% of new wood-based materials and products, certified in accordance with the Forest Stewardship Council’s Principals and Criteria. |
| EQ Credit 4.1 |
| Indoor Environmental Quality Low-Emitting Materials: Adhesives & Sealants Requirements The VOC content of adhesives, sealants and sealant priers used must be less than the VOC content limits of the SCAQMD Rule#1168 (only applies to adhesives and sealants used inside on the construction site) Application SCAQMD Rule#1168: Drywall and Panel Adhesives VOC Limit (less water) of,50g/L G&P uses a Panel Adhesive with VOC’s (less water) of 6.6 g/L |
| EQ Credit 4.4 |
| Indoor Environmental Quality Low Emitting Materials: Composite Wood and Laminate Adhesives Requirements Composite wood and agrifiber products, including core materials, must contain no added urea-formaldehyde resins (NAUF). Adhesives used to fabricate laminated assemblies containing these products must contain no urea-formaldehyde(NAUF). Application G&P product components of Particleboard, medium density fiberboard (MDF), plywood, panel substrates and door cores can all be ordered containing no-added urea formaldehyde. As a standard all of G&P’s laminate adhesives have no added-urea formaldehyde |
FORMALDEHYDE FACT
When considering formaldehyde emissions, it is important to understand that there are two types of formaldehyde resins.
- Urea Formaldehyde (UF)
- Phenol Formaldehyde (PF)
Formaldehyde is a colourless, strong smelling gas widely used as an adhesive to manufacture building materials and numerous composite board products. Products made of urea formaldehyde release formaldehyde gas; products made of phenol formaldehyde generally emit lower levels of the gas. Formaldehyde-related problems have been associated with certain urea formaldehyde adhesives but not with the phenol formaldehyde adhesives.
No-Added Formaldehyde is a bit of a misnomer. The requirement refers correctly to no added urea formaldehyde. To achieve this performance level composite board manufacturers use resins with phenol formaldehydes.
