Medical buildings are known to have at least double the energy requirements of standard buildings due to their 24/7 operations, high water usage and strict regulation over air quality. Yet, the WakeMed Brier Creek Healthplex achieved LEED certification with a 12 percent improvement in energy efficiency over standard buildings. Some of the building’s exceptional green features include:
■ Improved insulation in the walls, roof and windows
■ Energy-conserving interior and exterior light fixtures
■ A condensing heater that uses 96 percent of its fuel energy to heat domestic water
■ An adjustable, sub-metering monitoring system to hold each tenant accountable for appropriate electricity consumption
■ The building was constructed with 10 percent recycled materials from regional and local sources
■ Half of the wood used in the building is from certified, responsibly managed forests
■ Between 80 percent and 90 percent of construction waste was recycled
■ Water efficient systems have reduced interior water use by 22 percent and exterior use by 50 percent
■ A combination of regionally appropriate landscaping and drip irrigation significantly conserves water
The building was evaluated using the LEED Core and Shell (LEED-CS v2009) scorecard, which is a building rating system developed by the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) that evaluates six different areas of environmental and energy significance: sustainable sites; water efficiency; energy and atmosphere; materials and resources; indoor environmental quality; and innovation in design. The WakeMed Brier Creek Healthplex is a 48,314-square-foot medical facility that is developed, financed, leased, managed and owned by Indianapolis-based Duke Realty.
Awesome achievement! Congratulations, Wake Med.