ShareThisAiming for the Innovation Measures
Over the years green building certification programs like Earth Advantage, ENERGY STAR, LEED for Homes and EarthCraft have evolved with the building trade. As builders incorporate more green building practices as standard, green building programs have always had to evolve to stay one step ahead of the curve (and/or the code).
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I like to think that green building programs influence code. If that is the case then what influences green building programs? The answer is simple: Green builders. The innovation of one builder today could influence a green building program tomorrow. It’s for this reason that we here at Earth Advantage Insistute highly encourage builders to achieve points for innovative measures on top of the existing menu list of optional and required measures.
A great example of an innovative measure is the waste management plan implemented by Willamette West Habitat for Humanity. Through a careful engineering/design process site supervisor and designer/engineer Bill Huntting has managed to use over 99% of the dimensional lumber they buy as well over 95% of the drywall. At the end of the job Willamette West Habitat for Humanity has one single trash barrel of wood scraps to send to recycling. This is not an easy task. How do they do it?
Planning/Design:
Bill Huntting starts with an available materials list of dimensional lumber. For each stud length he lists the quantity available with costs for each. He also creates a required materials list. With the plans laid out he can then optimize the lumber available on a cost per inch basis. Once he is done running all of the possible scenarios he has his final cut list prepared. And for the true geeks out there: Yes, the blade width (1/8”) is factored into the math.
Implementation/Building :
The Willamette West Habitat for Humanity typically works with a five- person team with one person as the leader to implement the framing cut list into a built frame. The leader will cut the lumber into the correct sizes while another labels the boards by length at the end cut (important to be readable in stack form) and others separate the pieces into neat stacks separated by length.
A typical homebuilder’s lumber package is derived from the plans with 5% extra lumber supplied to allow for bracing, temporary framing, and mistake cuts. Imagine how many houses an optimal value engineering builder could build with all of that “extra” lumber that is typically recycled.
Bill Huntting told me that he worked on large frame computers for IBM until January of 2001. 2 weeks later he was volunteering on a job site for Habitat for Humanity. Who knows how much more building innovation and ideas exist outside of the building trade? Do you have one that we can share? Keep your ideas coming!
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