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Applied and Health Sciences

Vol. 3 No. 1 (2020)

LEED Process Assessments and Efficiency Improvements for Renovated Buildings

Submitted
January 11, 2020
Published
2020-07-23

Abstract

The Library and Academic Resources Center (LARC) at Colorado State University-Pueblo (CSU-P) was renovated in 2011. During this time, the building was awarded Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Platinum. This is the highest award for a sustainable building granted by the United States Green Building Council (USGBC). This building was evaluated under the LEED version 2.2 Building and New Construction standard. LARC building is studied and evaluated in this research as a case study. All three LEED phases were evaluated during this case study: discovery, implementation, and occupancy. The purpose of this case study is to assess the LEED process used during the first evaluation and propose any necessary improvements to increase the efficiency of the building. The secondary purpose was to determine if the building could achieve a lower LEED award without compromising efficiency. This study was conducted by interviewing campus LEED professionals, observing LEED literature in the LARC building, and utilizing publicly available information. Our analysis results in a proposal that increases the LEED score to 57 out of 69 points for an award of LEED Platinum. The infrastructure proposed in this paper could lead to an increased LEED score for all buildings on campus.

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