MD: Knorr Brake Company Awarded Prestigious LEED Green Building Certification
Knorr Brake Co. has been awarded LEED Gold for the construction of its new 235,000 square foot manufacturing facility.
The LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) rating system was developed by the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) and is the foremost program for buildings, homes and communities that are designed, constructed, maintained and operated for improved environmental performance.
“Knorr Brake is proud of this achievement in earning LEED Gold for the construction of the manufacturing facility in Westminster. Knorr world-wide makes it a point to act as a steward for the environment in all aspects of business operations”, said Richard T. Bowie, president, Knorr Brake Company. Bowie also commented, “From the onset of this project, LEED Gold was a clear target. The building was designed and constructed with the goal of achieving the maximum possible energy savings within the project’s budget”.
The Knorr Brake new facility achieved LEED Gold certification on March 7, for implementing practical and measurable strategies and solutions aimed at achieving high performance in the areas of sustainable site development, water savings, energy conservation, materials selection and indoor environmental quality.
The LEED rating system is recognized as the worldwide leader for the design, construction and operation of green buildings. Over 44,000 projects are participating in the commercial and institutional LEED rating systems, comprising over 8 billion square feet of construction space in all 50 states and 120 countries.
Major sustainability highlights include; over 50 percent of the electric energy on-site is renewable energy (2,882 roof mounted solar panels), 20 percent recycled content, 90 percent lighting controllable automatically and 80 percent of rainwater removal of total suspended solids from average annual rainfall with on-site water control methods.
“Knorr Brake’s LEED Gold certification demonstrates tremendous green building leadership,” said Rick Fredrizzi, president, CEO and founding chair, U.S. Green Building Council. "The urgency of USGBC’s mission has challenged the industry to move faster and reach further than ever before, and the Knorr Brake project serves as a prime example of just how much we can accomplish.”
Another accomplishment was the 2014 Awards of Excellence recently presented to Knorr Brake Company by the Maryland Chapter of the Commercial Real Estate Development Association (NAIOP) for “Best Industrial Build-to Suit”. The building architects were Banta Campbell Architects with civil design by Development Design Consultants.
