PROVIDENCE – Textron Inc.’s headquarters, a 24-story building at 40 Westminster St., achieved Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design certification, the company announced Tuesday.
It is the first project in Rhode Island to be certified under the LEED for Existing Buildings: Operations & Maintenance rating system for reducing its environmental impact, which is a newer version of the LEED for Existing Buildings rating system, said Ashley Katz of the U.S. Green Building Council. The new system, launched in 2004, identifies and rewards current best practices and provides an outline for buildings to use less energy, water and natural resources.
“The goal of the rating system is to institutionalize a process of reporting, inspection and review over the lifespan of a building,” Katz explained.
“Over the past few years, we’ve worked toward a goal of creating a comfortable, productive work environment for our employees and tenants that is also energy efficient and economically smart,” said Joseph Winarski, president of Textron Realty Corp.
“By improving our heating, ventilation and air conditioning system, plumbing and lighting systems, installing more energy efficient roofing and making it easier to recycle, we’re taking a proactive approach to reducing energy consumption,” he added.
The Textron building’s qualifications for LEED certification included: 10 percent less water use than a standard office building, 73 percent less energy use than comparable buildings, reduced carbon dioxide gas emissions thanks to green building practices, more than 50 percent of waste recycled and diverted from landfills, 70 percent of regularly-occupied work stations have a window view, nearly two-thirds of the occupants use non-conventional transportation and all of the building’s parking spaces are underground.
Two other existing building projects in Rhode Island have received LEED certification, the Stop & Shop stores at 2470 Warwick Ave in Warwick and 368-398 Cottage St. in Pawtucket.
