FM newsroom – sustainability, LEED. Legislative obligations and employee demand motivate organizations to build or rent green buildings. However, not every property with a green roof or modern design is truly sustainable. The LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) certificate is used for their assessment worldwide.
The LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) certificate from the U.S. Green Building Council, a non-profit organization, provides a framework for healthy, highly energy-efficient, and economical green buildings. Buildings can achieve certifications on four basic levels: certified, silver, gold, and platinum.
Officerentinfo.sk collected the top green buildings from around the world. One of these future-shaping properties is from Slovakia.
Tokyo Toranomon Global Square, Tokyo, Japan – LEED Gold
This high-rise building brings serious cost savings for many companies, as its designs help reduce energy costs by a third. This is partially due to features such as the installation of separate air conditioning systems on each floor. The natural ventilation system, energy-efficient LED lighting, and automatic dimming and motion sensor control systems also contribute to saving. The building also earned the gold certificate thanks to an effective rainwater reuse system.
The Crystal, London, Great Britain – LEED Platinum
The building’s glass structure uses six different types of high-quality insulated glazing with different transparencies to control solar thermal gains and minimize energy consumption. The automatic weather monitoring system also ensures that LED lighting is used efficiently. In addition, the building uses only renewable energy sources for heating, which minimizes its heat costs.
Bank of America, New York, USA – LEED Platinum
This was the first building in New York to receive LEED certification thanks to its highly sustainable energy system. The building provides up to 70 percent of its annual electricity consumption through its own power plant, thus ensuring not only heating but also air conditioning. In addition, the designers used low-emission glass and curtain walls made of ceramic frits, which help reflect heat and thus minimize heat loss in the building.
Einpark, Bratislava Slovakia – LEED Platinum
This office building received LEED certification in 2020. Its green roof not only cools the building but also collects rainwater. Innovative cooling beams, external shading and intelligent air conditioning contribute to energy sustainability. As one of the few in Europe, the building can also boast a LEED Zero Carbon certificate, which confirms its carbon neutrality. This way, it can save more than a million kilograms of carbon dioxide emissions annually. That’s the amount of emissions a car would produce if it circled the globe 182 times.
Taipei 101, Taipei, Taiwan – LEED Platinum
This financial centre reaches a height of 508 meters with its 101 above-ground floors, making it one of the tallest ecological buildings in the world. Obtaining the LEED certificate was not enough for its creators, and they are still working on reducing energy consumption. For example, they introduced low-flow water fittings with unique control systems. They managed to reduce water consumption without affecting the comfort of the tenants.
Shanghai Tower, Shanghai, China – LEED Platinum
This 128-story tower was built in 2008 in the city’s financial district. Despite its height, it manages to reduce its carbon footprint by 34,000 tons annually. With its intelligent control systems that monitor electricity consumption, the facility can save energy costs exceeding $500,000 per year. The building is designed to capture rainwater, be earthquake-resistant, and use wind energy. Wind turbines are located on it, which produce more than 350,000 kilowatt-hours of electricity annually.
Olympic House, Lausanne, Switzerland – LEED Platinum
Experts consider the new Olympic House in Switzerland to be one of the most sustainable buildings in the world. Solar panels and heat pumps, which use water from Lake Geneva to obtain renewable energy, contribute to this title. In addition, the building’s creators set themselves the goal of consuming 35 percent less energy than similar buildings while optimizing the health and well-being of its users.
Torre Reforma, Mexico City, Mexico – LEED Platinum
Torre Reforma is currently the fourth tallest building in Mexico, reaching a height of 246 meters. Despite this, it also obtained a sustainability certificate, for example, thanks to the concrete foundations that cool the building and thus save up to 20 percent of air conditioning costs. Up to 94 percent of the spaces have natural lighting, and the building also cleans and reuses 100 percent of wastewater.
