Introduction to Certification of Green Buildings

This course provides information on the range of tools available for certification of Green Buildings.  This course begins with an introduction to certification tools globally and in Europe, as well as an overview of the use of these tools in Ireland. This is followed by discussion and an eco-charette on a sample building using Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) and Building Research Establishment’s Environmental Assessment Method (BREEAM) certification systems.

Costs:

IGBC Members log in for special IGBC member rates

€295 Engineers Ireland Member Rate

€345 for Non Members

• Know what certification involves
• Be able to choose the appropriate certification for their project
• Know how building certification can impact your business, and the use of certifications in maintaining a competitive property portfolio
• Know where to find the information to ensure that systems and services comply with certification requirements

Research clearly shows that there are a large number of compelling benefits from building green. For example, a report carried out by the University of Maastricht for RICS showed that there could be a rental premium of up to 29% for BREEAM Excellent buildings as measured against code compliant buildings in a similar location. According to a recent study of LEED certified buildings, energy, carbon, water, and waste can be reduced, resulting in savings of 30 to 97% respectively. Operating costs of green buildings can also be reduced by 8-9% while increasing in value up to 7.5%. Many sustainable buildings have also seen increases of up to 6.6% on return on investment and 3.5% increases in occupancy. Further information can be found on the World Green Building Council’s recent report, the Business Case for Green Buildings (http://worldgbc.org/activities/business-case/)