|
|
|
The CostProGram NEWS FROM COST PRO, THE COST PROFESSIONALS
ISSUE 2 - MAY 9, 2008
CostPro, Inc., Cambridge MA
Christopher Caligari, President
Diana Rubino, Vice President/Director of Marketing |
|
| Featured Article |
|
Trading Green for Green
In the last several years things have certainly gone "Green" and building design is no exception. With scientific opinion unified around climate change, and growing concern for economic and national security, green design in principle has few detractors. In the planning of construction there is universal desire for high performance, green buildings but still a good deal of wariness as to its additional cost.
Because green attributes of buildings vary widely and because each is interrelated to other building systems, establishing costs can be complex and often some cost ramifications are missed. When many consider green construction they assume the green features will be "add-ons" which have additional cost. For example, if one adds a photovoltaic solar array to the roof of a conventional building, the initial cost of the building will rise. Most people also realize the PV system will reduce utility costs over time and may pay for itself in the future, but the initial construction cost is still increased by the cost of the system.
But what if the PV array is "integrated" into the design of the building? What if the solar panels replace the sheltering canopy at the entry to the building? Or what if they are mounted above the windows to replace the sunscreens? Now the saved cost of the canopy and sunscreens can be deducted from the cost of the PV array. This is no longer a simple additional purchase offset by operating saving in the future but an analysis of the cost impact of one system on all other building systems.
(Continued in next column)
|
|
|
|
|
Greetings!
Our guest author this issue is Samuel Bird, AIA, LEED AP. This month, we want to share Sam's insights about the cost of going green in design. |
 |
Book Review: Loving Frank, a biographical novel about Frank Lloyd Wright by Nancy Horan |
 Architects familiar with the great Frank Lloyd Wright will enjoy this novel about his illicit affair with Martha Borthwick Cheney; illicit because they were both married with children, refused divorces from their spouses. Frank met Martha when her husband Edwin commissioned Frank to design a house near his own home in Oak Park. Their friendship developed into a passionate affair, and they left their respective families to travel together. Their wanderlust brought them to Germany, where Martha worked as a translator for Swedish author Ellen Key. They eventually made their way back to Wisconsin, where Martha and two of her children met a horribly tragic end. For those of you who don't know the details I won't spoil it for you, but it's more unspeakably horrible than any novelist can dream up. But the story, told through Martha's eyes, gives a sensitive and poignant view of a woman forced into a loveless marriage in accordance with the mores of the times, and her attempt to find happiness while suffering separation from her children and forced to live this illicit affair with the love of her life, denied the freedoms today's women take for granted. |
|
CostPro Welcomes New Client
Drummey Rosane Anderson Architects |
| We are happy to announce our newest client, Drummey Rosane Anderson Architecs of Newton Centre. We have just completed the Design Development estimate for the Paul Revere Elementary School. Visit DRA at www.draarchitects.com.
|
|
Featured Article (continued) |
| Other green design features have little cost impact, or when "integrated", may have a cost savings. Building orientation is a good example. Correct solar orientation and careful sizing and placement of glazed areas can be done at little or no additional cost and elimination of some glazing in high heat gain or loss areas may effect a savings. With the orientation optimized, the HVAC system can often be downsized creating another initial savings. In turn, a smaller cooling tower may need less structure to support it and a smaller electrical service to power it - more savings.
If one is applying the LEED rating system, "points" may be awarded for items with no cost impact at all. Siting the project near public transportation, for example, renovating all or part of a building instead of demolition, water saving/waterless plumbing fixtures, eliminating hung ceilings, using exposed concrete floors may all achieve LEED points while saving cost or at no cost.
So the somewhat frustrating answer to the question "Does Green cost more?" is "It depends." Of course, this is based upon only the initial construction cost. Once life cycle operating and maintenance costs are considered, Green design is typically the least expensive. Added benefits may come in the form of government tax incentives, energy efficiency rebates and the positive public relations a Green building provides.
Before the glitzy green stuff goes on (solar panels, green roofs, wind turbines), building owners should do all the mundane green work they can. Design an efficient building envelope, orient the building well, choose durable materials, design efficient building spaces. These are the less-than-glamorous core of Green Design.
To analyze the cost ramifications of Green Design, both plus and minus, requires cost estimating professionals with a full understanding of the integrated effects of Green Design and the ability to perform life cycle costing projections. Although with oil topping $120 per barrel recently, no one can predict exact life cycle costs of Green Design, but one thing is certain; it will be hard to underestimate its importance in the future.
|
 |
|
|
| |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
