Green Trends in 2011

As we prepare to ring in the new year, the Green Building Pro team has created its second annual list of green building trends for 2011. The green building industry is growing by leaps and bounds, despite the recent downturn in the economy. This next year promises to be no different, with a purported rise in construction starts and in construction values.  We would like to take a moment to outline some trends we predict for the new year, and in the end would love to hear from you.

Improved Air Quality
Each year we have seen a rise in indoor air quality due to a push for low-VOC paints and natural finishes. We believe this next year will be no different, with big pushes in the IAQ department. In passing the LEED for Healthcare rating system earlier this year, USGBC members have shown their support for aggressive indoor environmental quality measures. Expect those to transfer over to general construction practices next year.

Green Building Information Modeling
A major player to continue its growth next year is the use of Building Information Modeling (BIM) and its partnership with green building. We are still at a point where many are grasping how to use it effectively, however, with strong numbers predicted in 2011 we can look forward to this becoming a standard in construction. The use of BIM has provided designs for more sustainable buildings, and has contributed greatly to our next prediction, lean construction practices.

Lean Construction Practices
This next topic is nothing new, but is a method that is becoming more widely used within the construction industry. Lean construction seeks to generate the maximum amount of value within a project, while minimizing the waste of materials, time, and effort. As we’ve seen over the past few years, the facility and delivery processes are better designed in projects to improve the overall performance of a facility. The new year will be no different combined with the increase in project starts.

Aggressive Energy Codes
Ever since the advent of LEED, the International Code Council, and the work of entities like ASHRAE, there has been a continual push for more stringent building and energy codes. Just this past October the ICC approved changes to their code, resulting in a predicted 30% increase in energy efficiency of homes and commercial buildings! Where one moves forward, so will the rest. We expect to see some big changes next year from not only third party verification systems, but also states and local jurisdictions themselves.

Green Financing Options
A major impediment to most projects seeking to go green is the lack of financing available, especially for costly energy efficiency improvements. With the slight upturn in construction activity, we are starting to see more options for the professional builder. From Federal tax credits to utility rebates and state grants, it’s starting to look a bit brighter for those looking to build green. We can’t stress enough, if you are looking to build in a sustainable manner, is to research not only local incentives and credits, but also Federal options.

Smart Connected Buildings
Back in February of this year we had a month dedicated to ‘Smart Buildings.’ We’ve been following the development of these types of facilities, and predict a big push for the integration of software with building design, construction, and management. It’s not enough these days to design and build in a sustainable manner as we now need continual positive performance. New systems allow tenants to interact with facility managers directly, and building energy metrics can now be understood real-time. The future for this industry is vast as we explore new ways of harvesting and delivering reliable building data.

Fuel Cells
One renewable energy source that gained widespread attention this past year was the fuel cell. While this technology has been promoted greatly in the automotive world, it is also being used in commercial and residential building projects. With that said, it will require time before it becomes more affordable for residential use, Bloom Energy, arguably the public face of this technology, predicts that we will see fuel cells become widespread by around 2015. At the moment, rating systems such as LEED don’t take into account fuel cell energy generation directly, however we expect it to be addressed in future versions. We’ll be keeping a close eye on this industry, and look forward to its continued innovation.