Environmentally-sustainable, or “Green,” buildings continue to be firmly on the agenda for real estate owners, developers and corporate owner-occupants. Almost all respondents to the Turner 2010 Green Building Market Barometer expect to incorporate at least some Green features in their next construction project. The potential to reduce energy and operating expenses are the most common drivers for building Green, although many companies are also focused on a broader set of benefits such as increased health and well-being of occupants and the positive impact on brand and corporate reputation. Yet, concerns persist over perceived higher construction costs and the length of the payback period. In addition, respondents continue to look closely at the cost and perceived difficulty of LEED certification.
These are some of the key findings from The Turner Construction Company 2010 Green Building Market Barometer, which is the fifth assessment since 2004 of perceptions about sustainable construction. The 2010 survey gathered the views on Green buildings of 681 executives from a broad range of organizations involved with real estate, including real estate owners, developers and corporate space users, as well as architectural, engineering and construction firms.
The survey polled the participants on the likelihood of undertaking construction or renovation projects; the degree to which companies incorporate Green building features; how companies decide whether to incorporate Green features; and the role of the LEED Green Building Rating system. In addition, for the first time, the survey asked about the extent of commitment to sustainable practices, in general, across organizations.
Key Findings:
Many Companies Expect to Undertake Construction or Renovation Projects
- Among real estate owners, developers, and corporate owner-occupants, 46% of executives said it was extremely or very likely that they would undertake new construction over the next 12 months, while 58% anticipated undertaking a renovation project.
Most Anticipate Incorporating Green Features
- Almost 90% of those executives said it was extremely or very likely that they would incorporate energy efficiency improvements in their new construction or renovation project, while roughly 60% expected to incorporate improvements to water efficiency, indoor environmental quality, and Green materials.
Financial Considerations Most important
- The factors most often rated as extremely or very important when companies decide whether to incorporate Green features were energy efficiency (88%) and ongoing operations and maintenance costs (86%).
- Many companies also considered non-financial factors to be extremely or very important in their decisions to incorporate Green features such as indoor air quality (72%), health and well-being of occupants (72%), and the impact on brand/reputation (67%).
- A payback period of longer than five years for Green features was considered acceptable by 45% % of executives.
Long Payback Period and Higher Construction Costs Pose Obstacles
- Despite the fact that almost half the executives were willing to accept a payback period of longer than five years, roughly two thirds of executives considered the perceived length of the payback period to be an extremely or very significant obstacle to incorporating Green features.
- Roughly two thirds of executives also considered higher construction costs to be an important obstacle to the development of additional Green buildings.
- Half of the executives believed that Green buildings have higher operating and maintenance costs, which they identified as another extremely or very significant obstacle to Green construction.
Views of LEED Certification
- Fifty-three percent of the executives thought it was extremely or very likely that their companies would seek LEED certification if constructing a Green building.
- Executives from real estate owners and corporations with portfolios of one million square feet or more were more likely to seek LEED certification, with 64% saying it was extremely or very likely.
Broad Commitment to Sustainable Practices
- Ninety percent of executives said their companies were at least somewhat committed to following environmentally sustainable practices in areas beyond their real estate portfolios, including 56% of executives who said they were extremely or very committed.
- The reasons most often cited as extremely or very important for companies to commit to following sustainable practices were two financial factors—cost savings (64%) and customer requirements (59%)—and two non-financial factors—impact on brand/reputation (64%) and the belief that “it’s the right thing to do” (63%).
Almost all executives continue to consider incorporating Green features when they undertake a construction or renovation project. Energy efficiency measures were the features that executives would most frequently incorporate in their projects. Investments in improving energy efficiency in their buildings result in substantial savings through lower energy costs and reduced operations and maintenance costs. In addition, most executives would also include Green building features to improve water efficiency and indoor air quality and would employ the use of green materials in their projects. These Green building features provide a wide array of additional benefits that include more satisfied employees, improved health and well-being of occupants, and the positive impact on a company’s corporate brand and reputation.
Despite Economic Conditions, Many Owners Planning to Build
Turner’s 2010 Green Building Survey was conducted in an environment of continuing weakness in the economy, following the financial crisis and economic downturn that began in 2008. Despite these market conditions, when asked about their likelihood to undertake new construction or renovation projects over the next 12 months, many executives who worked for real estate owners, developers, or corporate owner-occupants indicated that they expected to do so. Among these executives, 46% thought it was extremely or very likely that their company would undertake new construction over the coming year, while 58% thought it was likely they would undertake a renovation project. Real estate owners and corporate owner-occupants with real estate portfolios of one million square feet or more were even more likely to anticipate undertaking projects over the next 12 months, with 52% saying they were extremely or very likely to undertake new construction and 73% saying the same about renovation projects.
Related Stories
| Feb 11, 2011
Four Products That Stand Up to Hurricanes
What do a panelized wall system, a newly developed roof hatch, spray polyurethane foam, and a custom-made curtain wall have in common? They’ve been extensively researched and tested for their ability to take abuse from the likes of Hurricane Katrina.
| Feb 11, 2011
RS Means Cost Comparison Chart: Office Buildings
This month's RS Means Cost Comparison Chart focuses on office building construction.
| Feb 11, 2011
Sustainable features on the bill for dual-building performing arts center at Soka University of America
The $73 million Soka University of America’s new performing arts center and academic complex recently opened on the school’s Aliso Viejo, Calif., campus. McCarthy Building Companies and Zimmer Gunsul Frasca Architects collaborated on the two-building project. One is a three-story, 47,836-sf facility with a grand reception lobby, a 1,200-seat auditorium, and supports spaces. The other is a four-story, 48,974-sf facility with 11 classrooms, 29 faculty offices, a 150-seat black box theater, rehearsal/dance studio, and support spaces. The project, which has a green roof, solar panels, operable windows, and sun-shading devices, is going for LEED Silver.
| Feb 11, 2011
BIM-enabled Texas church complex can broadcast services in high-def
After two years of design and construction, members of the Gateway Church in Southland, Texas, were able to attend services in their new 4,000-seat facility in late 2010. Located on a 180-acre site, the 205,000-sf complex has six auditoriums, including a massive 200,000-sf Worship Center, complete with catwalks, top-end audio and video system, and high-definition broadcast capabilities. BIM played a significant role in the building’s design and construction. Balfour Beatty Construction and Beck Architecture formed the nucleus of the Building Team.
| Feb 11, 2011
Kentucky’s first green adaptive reuse project earns Platinum
(FER) studio, Inglewood, Calif., converted a 115-year-old former dry goods store in Louisville, Ky., into a 10,175-sf mixed-use commercial building earned LEED Platinum and holds the distinction of being the state’s first adaptive reuse project to earn any LEED rating. The facility, located in the East Market District, houses a gallery, event space, offices, conference space, and a restaurant. Sustainable elements that helped the building reach its top LEED rating include xeriscaping, a green roof, rainwater collection and reuse, 12 geothermal wells, 81 solar panels, a 1,100-gallon ice storage system (off-grid energy efficiency is 68%) and the reuse and recycling of construction materials. Local firm Peters Construction served as GC.
| Feb 11, 2011
Former Richardson Romanesque hotel now houses books, not beds
The Piqua (Ohio) Public Library was once a late 19th-century hotel that sat vacant and deteriorating for years before a $12.3 million adaptive reuse project revitalized the 1891 building. The design team of PSA-Dewberry, MKC Associates, and historic preservation specialist Jeff Wray Associates collaborated on the restoration of the 80,000-sf Richardson Romanesque building, once known as the Fort Piqua Hotel. The team restored a mezzanine above the lobby and repaired historic windows, skylight, massive fireplace, and other historic details. The basement, with its low ceiling and stacked stone walls, was turned into a castle-like children’s center. The Piqua Historical Museum is also located within the building.
| Feb 11, 2011
Justice center on Fall River harbor serves up daylight, sustainable elements, including eucalyptus millwork
Located on historic South Main Street in Fall River, Mass., the Fall River Justice Center opened last fall to serve as the city’s Superior and District Courts building. The $85 million facility was designed by Boston-based Finegold Alexander + Associates Inc., with Dimeo Construction as CM and Arup as MEP. The 154,000-sf courthouse contains nine courtrooms, a law library, and a detention area. Most of the floors have the same ceiling height, which will makes them easier to reconfigure in the future as space needs change. Designed to achieve LEED Silver, the facility’s elliptical design offers abundant natural daylight and views of the harbor. Renewable eucalyptus millwork is one of the sustainable features.
| Feb 11, 2011
Research facility separates but also connects lab spaces
California State University, Northridge, consolidated its graduate and undergraduate biology and mathematics programs into one 90,000-sf research facility. Architect of record Cannon Design worked on the new Chaparral Hall, creating a four-story facility with two distinct spaces that separate research and teaching areas; these are linked by faculty offices to create collaborative spaces. The building houses wet research, teaching, and computational research labs, a 5,000-sf vivarium, classrooms, and administrative offices. A four-story outdoor lobby and plaza and an outdoor staircase provide orientation. A covered walkway links the new facility with the existing science complex. Saiful/Bouquet served as structural engineer, Bard, Rao + Athanas Consulting Engineers served as MEP, and Research Facilities Design was laboratory consultant.
| Feb 11, 2011
A feast of dining options at University of Colorado community center, but hold the buffalo stew
The University of Colorado, Boulder, cooked up something different with its new $84.4 million Center for Community building, whose 900-seat foodservice area consists of 12 micro-restaurants, each with its own food options and décor. Centerbrook Architects of Connecticut collaborated with Denver’s Davis Partnership Architects and foodservice designer Baker Group of Grand Rapids, Mich., on the 323,000-sf facility, which also includes space for a career center, international education, and counseling and psychological services. Exterior walls of rough-hewn, variegated sandstone and a terra cotta roof help the new facility blend with existing campus buildings. Target: LEED Gold.
| Feb 11, 2011
Chicago high-rise mixes condos with classrooms for Art Institute students
The Legacy at Millennium Park is a 72-story, mixed-use complex that rises high above Chicago’s Michigan Avenue. The glass tower, designed by Solomon Cordwell Buenz, is mostly residential, but also includes 41,000 sf of classroom space for the School of the Art Institute of Chicago and another 7,400 sf of retail space. The building’s 355 one-, two-, three-, and four-bedroom condominiums range from 875 sf to 9,300 sf, and there are seven levels of parking. Sky patios on the 15th, 42nd, and 60th floors give owners outdoor access and views of Lake Michigan.
