The North American Corporate Headquarters of Saint-Gobain, one of the world’s largest building materials companies, announced today that it has received LEED Platinum certification for both commercial interiors and core and shell, as established by the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) and verified by the Green Building Certification Institute (GBCI). The headquarters’ sustainable design places equal value on environmental sustainability, employee wellbeing and comfort. In doing so, the building is now a dynamic showcase for Saint-Gobain and its largest construction brand CertainTeed Corporation.
“With each new LEED-certified building, we get one step closer to USGBC’s vision of a sustainable built environment within a generation,” said John Crowe, President and CEO of Saint-Gobain and CertainTeed Corporations. “That vision connects deeply with our values at Saint-Gobain and reinforces the purpose of our new headquarters, which is to honor the past accomplishments of 14 generations of employees, and invigorate today’s employees who uphold Saint-Gobain’s rich heritage of improving the built environment and driving the green building movement.”
After an 18-month renovation to transform the long-dormant site, located at 20 Moores Road in Malvern, Pa., the 277,000 square foot building opened on October 15, 2015 – the exact day Saint-Gobain was founded 350 years ago by King Louis XIV of France to manufacture glass for the Hall of Mirrors at the Palace of Versailles in Paris.
Saint-Gobain and CertainTeed’s Headquarters is a sustainable workplace that maximizes the comfort and health of employees through the use of a wide range of the company’s building materials that improve air quality, moisture management, acoustics, energy efficiency, thermal management and ergonomics. The usage of more than 50 products from its portfolio has created a “living laboratory,” where the company’s research team can measure the benefits that its products provide to the real workplace.
The design of the North American headquarters has also changed how employees collaborate, in that the interior design minimizes barriers between newly co-located groups with flexible configurations, to encourage collaboration and inspire creativity. With open-concept office spaces, 116 collaborative spaces, gourmet cafeteria along with other food and beverage spaces, state-of-the-art fitness facility, a natural pond, fountain installation and 1.3 miles of walking trails, the headquarters is raising the bar for workplaces and the green building movement.
“Saint-Gobain’s LEED Platinum certification demonstrates tremendous green building leadership,” said Rick Fedrizzi, CEO and founding chair, USGBC. “The urgency of USGBC’s mission has challenged the industry to move faster and reach further than ever before, and Saint-Gobain and CertainTeed serve as a prime example of just how much we can accomplish.”
LEED certification of the Saint-Gobain & CertainTeed North American Headquarters was based on a number of green design and construction features that positively impact the surrounding environment and building complex itself that employees now call home. These features include:
Sustainable Sites
Water Efficiency
Energy & Atmosphere
Materials & Resources
Indoor Environmental Quality
Innovation in Design
Although the latest LEED v4 was not available at the time of planning the headquarters, Saint-Gobain recognized that many aspects of v4 are applied in the building through the work of its Environmental Health & Safety teams. Specifically, Saint-Gobain pursued select credits under the Innovation in Design category by providing details on environmental product declarations, health product declarations and a corporate sustainability report, all of which demonstrate the company’s commitment to product transparency and contribute to LEED v4.
The E. Kahn Development Corp. and J. Loew & Associates Inc., in collaboration with AEGON USA Realty Advisors LLC, led the headquarters’ redesign with a talented design team, including: Bernardon, exterior and lobby architect; Jacobs, interior designer; and D. Fickler Construction LLC, general contractor. The Saint-Gobain and CertainTeed Headquarters was designed in close consultation with a number of local sustainability consulting firms, including The Sheward Partnership, Jacobs and Sustainable Solutions Corp.
Originally published by Saint-Gobain, July 12, 2016
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