RIT's Golisano Institute for Sustainability Achieves LEED Platinum Certification

The Golisano Institute for Sustainability, a world-class “living lab” that represents Rochester Institute of Technology's ongoing commitment to the environment, has been certified Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design Platinum by the U.S. Green Building Council—the highest standard that can be achieved in the rating system.

With a score of 80 required to achieve Platinum level, the GIS building earned 89 out of a possible 110 points from the USGBC, which named the RIT facility “exceptional” and rated it among the top 1 percent of all green buildings in the United States today.

The LEED Platinum certification was recognized during a 10 a.m. ceremony March 26 at GIS featuring Rick Fedrizzi, president of the Washington, D.C.-based USGBC, New York state and federal government officials, as well as local business leaders.

“LEED Platinum is a significant accomplishment for our multi-story research building, particularly given that it is such an energy-intensive facility combined with our challenging climate here in Western New York,” said Nabil Nasr, associate provost and director of GIS. “We are especially proud that our building dedicated to sustainability has earned such a rare accomplishment, which required tremendous teamwork. I salute our building partners.”

The GIS building was designed by FXFOWLE in collaboration with SWBR Architects. LeChase Construction Co. served as the design-build team leader, Stantec as civil engineering consultants and M/E Engineering for mechanical/electrical/plumbing systems design.

As a result of the building's energy-efficient systems and high-performance facades, 400kW fuel cell and the 40kW solar array, GIS is designed to be 56 percent more efficient than a standard building—exceeding the points in the LEED rating system's “optimize energy” credit. Designed with the capacity to optimize daylight and energy savings, the facility has extensive data sensors and feedback loops where RIT will monitor and inform building operations.

Nasr added that “our faculty is utilizing the building as a teaching tool, which is central to our mission as a living laboratory for sustainability.”

The building has only consumed about a third of the electricity it has generated over the past year. The rest of the electricity is fed into the campus grid for use in other campus facilities. In addition, more than half of the building's water needs have been met using recaptured rainwater stored in a 1,700-gallon tank in the building's basement.

Cutting-edge “green” technology has been incorporated into every inch of the 84,000-square-foot building—from the solar panels on the soaring canopy to its vertical wind turbines.

According to Enid Cardinal, RIT's senior sustainability advisor to the president, the facility's construction was environmentally benevolent as well.

“Eighty percent of building waste generated during the GIS facility's construction was diverted from the landfill,” Cardinal said. “As part of this project, the university's first electric vehicle charging stations were installed and they have proven very popular on campus.”

The New York State Association of General Contractors granted the project its Jeffery J. Zogg Build New York Award, which highlights the construction industry's positive impact on building and heavy construction in New York.

The GIS facility, RIT's fourth LEED-certified building on campus, marks RIT's second LEED Platinum project after the University Services Center earned the designation in 2010. RIT has two other LEED projects pending with Sebastian and Lenore Rosica Hall and Institute Hall.