LEED Score

LEED is an internationally recognized green building certification system

Spartan General Contractors will take charge of your LEED Applications, 3D Walk Thru Architectural Plans, Structured Insulated Panel Building Envelope, and most all Green Building Accessories you wish to add to your project for achieving the best living comfort and maximize your LEED Ranking

Spartan Enhanced Commissioning and LEED Certification

Spartan Collaboration Team Roles and Practices

Spartan General Contractors will take charge of your LEED Applications, 3D Walk Thru Architectural Plans, Structured Insulated Panel Building Envelope, and most all Green Building Accessories you wish to add to your project for achieving the best comfort and LEED Ranking

Spartan Buildings consider actual energy prices and prevent the homes’ design with more insulation than designers who assume that energy prices will stay steady. The Spartan design analysis method involves searching all categories such as wall type, ceiling type, window glass type, HVAC type, etc. to find the most cost-effective combination at each sequential point along the path to zero net energy. Improvements in the building envelope and equipment are achieved when simulations are performed. The most cost-effective combination is selected as part of the final design description based on the results.

Spartans

He Who Has the Most Points WINS The LEED Shield Battle

LEED Shield Categories

LEED POINTS

What is LEED?

LEED is an internationally recognized green building certification system, providing third-party verification that a building or community was designed and built using strategies aimed at improving performance across all the metrics that matter most: energy savings, water efficiency, CO2 emissions reduction, improved indoor environmental quality, and stewardship of resources and sensitivity to their impacts. Developed by the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC), LEED provides building owners and operators a concise framework for identifying and implementing practical and measurable green building design, construction, operations and maintenance solutions. LEED is flexible enough to apply to all building types – commercial as well as residential. It works throughout the building lifecycle – design and construction, operations and maintenance, tenant outfit, and significant retrofit.

LEED For Homes: A LEED-certified home is designed and constructed in accordance with the rigorous guidelines of the LEED for Homes green building certification program. LEED for Homes is a consensus-developed, third party-verified, voluntary rating system which promotes the design and construction of high-performance green homes. SIP Panel Buildings can help you receive up to 46 points in the LEED for Homes category, making your project instantly certified. No other building product can offer you as many points as SIP Panel Buildings can.

LEED EXPLAINED

Via Point Categories

EA1 - Optimize Energy Performance

Spartan LEED Contractors will focus on this credit for earning higher points. There are several strategies that can be adopted by project owners and developers to earn points.

For example to achieve 19 points in this category:

Spartan will utilize energy and cost-saving features can be integrated into the building and roof design. This will be achieved by several strategies such as strategic location of windows, solar light tubes, exterior sunscreens, and use of high-efficiency LED Lights.

Spartan will install tile drains for storm water on site and show that we are preparing for extreme weather conditions. Use of Sun, Wind, and Generators will be effectively managed.

Spartan offers highly efficient HVAC and lighting system, that reduce the buildings electricity consumption of energy by 32%

This implementation will provide cost savings through energy efficiency and will bring approximately 10 points to the project.

Spartan supplies LED fixtures for all or selected internal and external lighting. The control of lighting was further enhanced by an advanced automation system. These items earn LEED Points.

Spartan evaluates plans for energy efficiency include improving equipment efficiency, such as increased duct size leading to reduced fan power requirements, and HVAC variable frequency drives for motors.

Earning higher points in this category mostly depends on targeted energy efficiency in the project. Therefore, it would be useful for project owners, managers, and LEED consultants to calculate the costs and benefits of implementing different alternatives, and then make a decision about the implementation that promote sustainability goals in the most cost effective way.

EA2—On-Site Renewable Energy

Energy consumption creates one of the most significant environmental impacts during a building’s life cycle. Use of renewable energy is an option to overcome the adverse impacts. This credit’s objective is to promote the use of energy sources that are not depleted and to avoid the use of sources such as fossil fuels that can be depleted. The LEED system encourages the implementation of strategies that address on-site renewable energy policies that reduce the environmental and economic impacts related to the use of energy generated by fossil fuels.

The maximum number of points that a building can achieve is seven. EA2 specifies the percentage of on-site renewable energy for each point threshold. Several technologies and strategies can be used such as solar, wind, geothermal, low-impact hydro, biomass, and bio-gas

Using on-site renewable energy in a project that aims to achieve LEED certification enhances the project’s green image and decreases the consumption of grid-purchased electricity

Different cases exist where efforts were spent to produce on-site renewable energy with varying degrees of success.

For example:

Spartan will supply the most efficient building 70 % Thermal Efficiency, included a photovoltaic array to produce approximately 40% of the energy necessary to operate the building will Earn the maximum seven points in this credit.
Spartan will achieve maximum seven points by designing a combined heat and power plant to produce 60% of heating needs and 20% of its electricity requirements using natural photovoltaic, and solar thermal systems
Spartan will secure photovoltaic arrays and all power consumed that was not produced by the photovoltaic system was offset by renewable energy purchased through the local power sources.

Spartan will deliver passive solar energy methods that take better advantage of local climate conditions (design of building, windows, walls and floors to keep heat in the winter and reject heat in the summer), and the use of wind and geothermal energy can contribute to lowering energy consumption costs.

EA3 - Enhanced Commissioning

Commissioning is a verification process that a building undergoes to make sure that the design objectives and the owner’s requirements are in agreement.
The LEED intention is that the commissioning process be initiated early in the design phase and that additional activities be executed after the systems’ performance verification is completed.

Spartan LEED v4 Collaborative Team Efforts, expands on this intent by further supporting the design, construction, and eventual operation of a building such that the owner’s project requirements for energy, water, indoor environmental quality, and durability are designed upfront and included as budget develops.
Spartan energy, water, and indoor air quality systems and the exterior envelope assemblies and systems are designed, installed, and calibrated to perform according to the owner’s requirements, basis of design, and construction documents.

The operation of key systems in the building is checked systematically to close the gap between the design team and subcontractors. An independent commissioning agency is required for better objectivity. The scope of the commissioning process involves verification of heating, cooling, refrigeration, ventilation systems, Building and controls, lighting and day-lighting controls, domestic hot water systems, and renewable energy systems.

The Online Digital Plans allows the commissioning of systems in buildings and handles complexity of the systems used in the building.

For example:

Spartan Earth Scientists are knowledgeable using Geothermal uses in the flooring – hot water pipes and cool water pipes circulated to save energy. Use of air cooled chillers, chilled water wells/pumps, energy recovery units, and use of whole house exhaust/supply fans, and a water heater.
Spartan supplies a wide array of recommended energy-efficient HVAC system possible with Heat Pumps. Spartan challenging design strategies, such as integration of various control technologies, will be implemented in early stages of the project so that by the review of LEED commissioning agents, the project will receive points in this credit.
Spartan Enhanced Commissioning with Online Digital Plans, involved efficient mechanical, plumbing, and hurricane, and fire safety designs.
Fundamental commissioning is a prerequisite and is mandatory for LEED certification.

EA3—Enhanced commissioning, contributes additionally to the energy performance of the building. The possible benefits of enhanced commissioning include improved building system control and performance, improved efficiency and maintainability, early detection of potential problems, and improved occupant comfort and productivity.

Spartan Subject Matter Experts can provide quick efficient guidance as to the worth of the extra services because commissioning can be a costly process, if not managed 100%.

EA4 - Enhanced Refrigerant Management

This credit accounts for two points. It intends to reduce ozone depletion. The credit basically aims at designing and operating heating, ventilation, air conditioning, and refrigerating (HVAC&R) systems for the refrigeration cycle, selecting equipment with reduced refrigerant charge and increased equipment life, maintaining equipment to prevent leakage of refrigerant to the atmosphere.

Compliance with this credit requires either avoiding refrigerants altogether or using HVAC systems that have low impact on ozone depletion and global warming.

EA5 - Measurement and Verification

This credit intends to provide ongoing accountability for building energy consumption over time. The difference between the intended and actual energy consumption should be tracked to evaluate the energy efficiency of the building. The accurate quantification of energy use is measured by installing metering equipment. According to LEED-NC 2009, the measurement and verification period should cover at least one year of post-construction occupancy. This credit was revamped in LEED v4 and was renamed “advanced energy metering”.

Spartan delivers advanced meters and processes to confirm the measurement and verification process needed to earn points. In order to earn points, a measurement and verification plan should be introduced to monitor the end uses in the building. Any discrepancies between actual energy use and the original model should be detected.

For example:

Spartan will create a baseline of heating and cooling of the building or home. After one year, HVAC/control issues were found, and allows contractors to made corrections. It is argued in this case that if full measurement and verification had been performed, the discrepancy and its causes might have been detected earlier.
These measures are collected and reported monthly to determine total thermal efficiency and electrical uses of the building and compare actual energy use and other buildings in the area.

EA6 - Green Power

This credit aims to encourage the development and use of grid-source, renewable energy technologies on a net zero pollution basis. It requires engagement in at least a two-year renewable energy contract to provide at least 35% of the building’s electricity from renewable sources.

It corresponds to two points. The intent has been described similarly in LEED-NC 2009 and in LEED v4, but the term of the energy contract has been increased to five years in LEED v4 with the provision of at least 50% (earns one point) or 100% (earns two points) of the project’s energy from green power, carbon offsets, or renewable energy certificates. The newer version increases support for growth in clean energy.

Platinum-certified buildings achieved an average of 1.6 out of the maximum points, whereas gold and silver-certified buildings attained only 1.0 and 0.9 points, respectively.

This credit encourages the use of off-site renewable energy, which can be administered by several options such as enrolling in local Green Power Programs, selecting a Green-e-certified power provider, or purchasing Green-e-certified Renewable Energy Certificates (RECs) A REC represents the environmental attributes of the electricity produced from a renewable energy source and is a separate commodity from the electricity. Each of these options has its own advantages and disadvantages.

Enrolling in the Green Power Program is simple and monthly payment of bills is possible. Purchasing a REC can be often the least expensive option as it involves simple contracting procedures, but may not be regionally available.

Spartan Buildings

Spartan Buildings is a systems integration and technology consulting company that aims to help solve sustainability challenges. We deliver smart building technologies, with the objective to apply the most modern smart building concepts and net zero energy innovations towards LEED Certification. read more..