LEED CERTIFICATION
 

While LEED certification in recent years was simply a noteworthy goal, the green building designation showing Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design has fast become a building standard. HTS Ontario has tackled numerous projects in recent years to help buildings achieve LEED-certification and can help you design water and air systems to reach your LEED goals, too.

Among our Ontario LEED projects:

• Duffin Creek Water Pollution Control Plant – LEED Silver (upon completion);
• Telus Building – Ottawa – LEED Silver;
• Cambridge Civic Admin Building – LEED Gold;
• Waterloo History Museum – LEED Silver (upon completion);
• Blue Water Health Centre – LEED Certified;
• University of Waterloo – Engineering V - LEED Silver (upon completion);
• CANMET Materials Technology Laboratory (designed to meet LEED Platinum);
• GTA Youth Centre (LEED Certified upon completion);
• Dr. David Suzuki Public School (designed to meet LEED Platinum); and
• Bluewater Health Centre – LEED Certified.

LEED points that HTS Ontario can help your project team achieve include:
 

• Development Density and Community Connectivity. The intent is to channel development to urban areas with existing infrastructure, protect greenfields and preserve habitat and natural resources. We can help in a renovation project by providing equipment with minimum mechanical space requirements that will allow for more flexibility in the new building floor plan (Sustainable Sites Credit 2, up to 5 points).
   
• Process Water Use Reduction. The intent is to maximize water efficiency within buildings to reduce the burden on municipal water supply and wastewater systems. You don’t have to have refrigeration using once-through cooling with potable water. We can help by providing air cooled chillers, which don’t require as much make-up water as a standard cooling tower (Water Efficiency Credit 4, one point, school only).
   
• Optimize Energy Performance. The intent is to achieve increasing levels of energy performance beyond the prerequisite standard to reduce environmental and economic impacts associated with excessive energy use. We can help by providing premium efficiency chillers and energy recovery units. Your project could achieve as many as six points without changing anything else (Energy and Atmosphere Credit 1, 1-21 points).
   
• Enhanced Refrigerant Management. The intent is to reduce ozone depletion and support early compliance with the Montreal Protocol while minimizing direct contributions to climate change. We can help by providing refrigerants, none of which have ozone depletion potential (Energy and Atmosphere Credit 4, 2 points).
   
• Building Reuse - Maintain Existing Walls, Floor and Roof. The intent is to extend the life cycle of existing building stock, conserve resources, retain cultural resources, reduce waste and reduce environmental impacts of new buildings as they relate to materials manufacturing and transport. We can help in a renovation project by providing equipment with minimum mechanical space requirements, allowing for more flexibility in the new building floor plan (Materials and Resources Credit 1.1, 1-3 points).
   
• Outdoor Air Delivery Monitoring. The intent is to provide capacity for ventilation system monitoring to help promote occupant comfort and well-being. We can help by providing equipment to monitor carbon dioxide concentrations and measure the outdoor air flow to comply with this requirement. Also, HTS can provide Outdoor Air fan measuring stations (Indoor Environmental Quality Credit 1, 1 point).
   
• Increased Ventilation. The intent is to provide additional outdoor air ventilation to improve indoor air quality and promote comfort, well-being and productivity for the occupants. We can help by providing energy recovery and dehumidification products, which make this credit easily attainable (Indoor Environmental Quality Credit 2, 1 point).
   
• Indoor Air Quality Management Plan - During Construction. The intent is to reduce indoor air quality problems resulting from construction or renovation and promote the comfort and well-being of construction workers and building occupants. We can help by providing MERV 8 filters, which are available for all our airside equipment (Indoor Environmental Quality Credit 3.1, 1 point).
   
• Indoor Chemical and Pollutant Source Control. The intent is to minimize building occupant exposure to potentially hazardous particulates and chemical pollutants. We can help by providing MERV 13 filters, which are available for our airside equipment (Indoor Environmental Quality Credit 5, 1 point).
   
• Controllability of Systems - Thermal Comfort. The intent is to provide a high level of thermal comfort system control by individual occupants or groups in multi-occupant spaces (e.g., classrooms or conference areas) and promote their productivity, comfort and well-being. We can help by providing VAV boxes, Daikin VRV systems and individual fan coil units, which allows for individual control (Indoor Environmental Quality 6.2, 1 point).
   
• Thermal Comfort – Design. The intent is to provide a comfortable thermal environment that promotes occupant productivity and well-being. HTS can help by assisting the engineer and owner with achieving this credit (Indoor Environmental Quality Credit 7.1, 1 point).
   
• Thermal Comfort – Verification. The intent is to provide for the assessment of building occupants' thermal comfort over time. We can help because HTS offers a controls system interface for our equipment. We can also provide the BAS system that can log the data required for the LEED designation. Additionally, we can provide a permanent monitoring system to ensure that building performance meets the desired comfort criteria (Indoor Environmental Quality Credit 7.2, 1 point).
   
• Enhanced Acoustical Performance. The intent is to provide classrooms that facilitate better teacher-to-student and student-to-student communication through effective acoustical design. We can help by assisting the owner with the most effective design possible (Indoor Environmental Quality, Credit 9, 1 point, school only).
   
• Mold Prevention. The intent is to reduce the potential presence of mold in schools though preventive design and construction measures. We can help by providing equipment that can keep the space’s relative humidity below 60 percent during all load conditions (Indoor Environmental Quality, Credit 10, 1 point, school only).