Building Science Consultants

Contact: Charles Popeck President, Green Ideas 480-220-4330 Charlie@Egreenideas.com FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Green Ideas Achieves 100th LEED Certification   Download Press Release Phoenix, AZ–(December 1, 2020)–Green Ideas Building Science Consultants recently completed their 100th LEED Certified project for CVS/Aetna’s building located in the Cotton Center Business Park in Phoenix, Arizona. The newly constructed 80,000 square foot business center owned by Workspace Property Trust and occupied by Aetna Insurance achieved 50 LEED points and was awarded LEED Silver level certification by Green Business Certification, Inc. The certification was the 3rd facility certified by Aetna within Cotton Center. Developed by Workspace Property Trust, Vice President of Construction and Development Eric McHugh stated “Achieving LEED Certification for the new Cotton Center project is a high mark of building excellence for Workspace and our tenant, CVS/Aetna. We are laser-focused on efficient building operations and achievement of LEED certification for this project confirms that focus. Working with Green Ideas enabled us to achieve our intended results for this impressive project and we are honored to be Green Ideas’ 100th LEED certified project.” The project implemented a wide variety of sustainable strategies to achieve high percentages of energy savings. The building features energy efficient elements including occupancy sensors and lighting controls, as well as highly efficient HVAC systems that contribute towards the facility’s 45% energy savings as compared to a typical new building. All workspaces utilize daylighting to reduce the need for artificial lighting, while providing employees with excellent views to the outdoors and creating a pleasant indoor environment. Employee productivity was also a focus for the project. The space has been designed with several multi-function areas including a new concept called “collaboration stairs” which descend from the second floor to the café area, allowing approximately 75 people to gather for quick, informal meetings and also serves as a large gathering place for larger, “all-staff” events.  All workstations were ergonomically designed to include sit/stand workstations to reduce employee fatigue, but employees can work from various locations throughout the building in order to improve productivity and enhance well-being.  An outdoor patio seating area covered by sail shades encourages employees to enjoy the outdoors. CVS/Aetna’s overall sustainability mantra was a focus of the facility design. Water efficiency was maximized through specification of low-flow plumbing fixtures and limited landscaping, which resulted in more than a 78% reduction of potable water use. Additionally, the project strategy focused on the use of sustainable and low-emitting materials, including low VOC paints, adhesives, flooring, composite wood products and furniture systems to further improve the indoor environment. The project was a collaborative effort led by Workspace Property Trust, CVS/Aetna, Wespac Construction, Shive Hattery Architecture, Balmer Architecture, and Green Ideas Building Science Consultants. Green Ideas served as the High-Performance Building Strategist, Energy/Daylight Modeler, and LEED Consultant.  Green Ideas’ President Charlie Popeck has worked closely with many building owners and developers since founding the Arizona Chapter of the U.S. Green Building Council in 2002 and has been the consultant for 100 LEED certified facilities throughout the United States.

What is Energy Modeling? Energy Modeling is a necessary tool that progressive design teams utilize to implement a building science approach to the design, construction and operation of high-performance buildings.  However, Energy Modeling is often used incorrectly or at the wrong time, hindering the overall value of the tool. Our Approach Differentiates Design Teams! At Green Ideas, we utilize an Energy Model to better equip design teams with data for more informed decision making throughout the design process.  We engage an iterative methodology to Energy Modeling for comparative analysis, which provides a true building science design approach for project teams. Our process engages advanced visualization workflows so we can keep pace with stringent design timelines and budgets. Ultimately, Green Ideas will positively enhance the lifecycle operating costs for building owners (refer to Image 1 for sample energy cost data). Bringing Value to Design Teams through Advanced Energy Modeling. We utilize our proprietary Energy Modeling software and process to create Energy Models that work! Our experience with Energy Modeling and high-performance building design allows us to interact with design professionals and offer value-added recommendations that will improve the energy performance of your building.   Typical Energy Modeling Questions from Design Teams: Question 1: When should I perform an Energy Model? Answer: Our proprietary approach allows you to engage Energy Modeling and Building Science analysis from day one. While all projects differ, the earlier you engage energy conversations in the design process the better. We have provided value to design teams as early as the programming phase. Iterative peak load analysis during programming and space layout can often times reap great benefits down the line! In short, the earlier and more often you perform Energy Modeling, the better! Question 2: Can Green Ideas Energy Modeling software share information with my Revit model? Answer: Yes! Our approach to Energy Modeling integrates with existing Building Information Modeling (BIM) workflows to enable expedited analysis and decision making. We can work with anything from a bar napkin sketch to a complex federated model (refer to Image 2 to see how an imported analysis model looks)! Question 3: How long does it take to get answers? What type of reporting can we expect? Answer: Our process for modeling and analysis has been created specifically to match the stringent nature and requirements of your design timeline. We aim to sync our deliverables with your project requirements in order to provide the most value. Our standard reporting method has been designed to help “tell the story” of design progression. We provide graphical results along with robust data reports so anyone on the team can understand the results (Image 3 is a sample of a schematic level summary report). Our goal is to seamlessly integrate with your project delivery approach to enhance your design services. Contact us to learn more! We always want to work with innovative and progressive design teams! Let’s transform the built environment together!