In the world of construction, MEP systems are highly valuable and important. Their presence is nothing short of an extraordinary setup in any building, providing great outputs and benefits. When you consider modern and futuristic constructions, nothing compares to MEP and HVAC as a result. It is because their mechanism involves various elements of a system that help you achieve a quality lifestyle, ambient atmosphere, and a vibrant outlook. The construction system of MEP is itself sublime and splendid, and you will feel a true system of marvels.
Like every study, the study of construction is important enough to understand and learn. Many certifications are present for one to learn through and exercise their potential. Each of the following certifications that we highlight focuses on a dedicated set of goals and requirements and they will help you succeed in the world of MEP. Green Building Certifications are a thing of the present and something that will help you in future endeavors. Companies like Wafaiyah prefer a perfectionist MEP engineer or certificate holder and you can be the next big name in the world of construction for inspection and rating out a building.
A construction building has a lot to offer when it comes to sustainability. Its presence on the map is enough to suggest that it has to fulfill certain requirements when it comes to the environment and its sustainability at best. However, any system can benefit alone if there are positives attached to it. Green buildings are those that pass a certification or test known as the Green Building Certification. Green Building Certifications refer to rating systems that are designed and implemented to assess a building’s performance concerning the environment and sustainability. There are various types of certifications available and below, we will discuss all.
Active House
Quality and sustainability are of the highest regard in today’s construction services. Thus, it is evident that quality certifications regarding sustainability are important. But what does such a certification offer to someone regarding a construction project or building? Active House is a quality certification that signifies the use of appropriate and necessary elements of residential homes and daily living. Not only this, but Active House certification also focuses on and prioritizes reducing the resources during construction.
It is also a basic study that most of the resources involved during the construction complex of any project and model. More resources mean more funds which causes losses to incur. In contrast, when anything is planned, there are fewer chances of having more input such as resources and more focus is done on sustainability alongside visual, thermal, and acoustic comfort elements. It is also to note that the Active House system can be only applied to buildings up to around 2000 square meters.
Country of Origin: Denmark
Applications: New buildings, existing buildings, and remodeling
BREEAM
Pioneers are always good and excellent in offering reliable services. When it comes to a construction project, model, and building, there must be most items being judged and looked upon. BREEAM or Building Research Establishment Environmental Assessment Method is a certification that belongs to the United Kingdom and is one of the earliest certification systems in the world to assess, classify, and certify any building’s sustainability.
Its popularity is extremely high when it comes to inspecting a building for sustainability since it helps in projecting results across various checkpoints and elements. Every certification focuses on some primary elements that it finds useful to judge. BREEAM focuses on energy, health, wellness, innovation, soil usage, materials, pollution, management, waste, transport, etc. When you idealize all these elements singularly, you will find the reason BREEAM is popular since it covers the core of the project to the maximum.
Country of Origin: United Kingdom
Applications: New construction, existing buildings, commercial buildings, interiors, renovations, and urban areas
NABERS
Another common building sustainability certification system that exists is known as NABERS which is a popular tool for various reasons. At first, it does not operate on a standard system with common checkpoints rather it focuses on some key areas of building and construction management. These include energy efficiency, carbon emissions, waste production, water consumption, and their comparison with similar buildings.
What one gets from such a system is that they analyze their project and existing building against some checkpoints and decide whether their building is up to the mark when it comes to energy efficiency, emissions, waste production, etc. Also, users can identify how their construction project stacks up in comparison to similar buildings and what they need to improve. Some of the elements that are analyzed are energy use and greenhouse gas emissions, water use, permeable area, rainwater pollution control, and volume of sewage expelled. All these things account for NABERS or the National Australian Built Environment Rating System.
Country of Origin: Australia
Applications: Existing buildings
CASBEE
CASBEE or Comprehensive Assessment System for Built Environment Efficiency is a Japanese certification process and certification system designed to assess and classify any building’s environmental performance. A building’s environmental performance is the measure or estimation of how it performs for the atmosphere and environment when a system runs through it. This involves the emissions of a building’s system such as MEP and HVAC that dampens the environment to a certain extent and vice versa.
CASBEE is a useful tool that was originally established by a research committee in 2001 as a collaborative result of academia and industry alongside national and local governments. The entire CASBEE certification process is done through the calculation of a quotient known as the Built Environment Efficiency or BEE.
Country of Origin: Japan
Applications: New construction, existing buildings, and renovations
Green Globes
Not everything is a physical system and is difficult to perform and assess. Many systems are remote and often help you to the maximum through online means. Green Globes is a US-based construction certification that is dedicated to classifying buildings supporting a wide variety of construction projects alongside existing projects. The best feature of Green Globes is that it is a guiding classification system that guides project managers and building owners to select various sustainability features ideal for their buildings and features that will best fit their projects.
The system also awards a project based on the minimum percentage required by providing a seal. It provides the seal to any project that meets 35% of the 1,000 available points. Green Globes was created as a self-assessment online tool, allowing project managers and building owners to judge and assess their buildings by simply completing a set of questionnaires online.
Country of Origin: USA
Applications: New construction, renovation, and interior
LEED
LEED is one of the largest building certification systems when it comes to sustainability. Its existence was laid by U.S. Green Building Council and it is the most widely used certification system in the world. primarily, its popularity is since it focuses on both the environmental and social aspects of sustainability with water and energy efficiency being the primary targets. Apart from these, CO2 emission reduction, promoting a healthy lifestyle, and indoor atmosphere alongside the promotion of the use of renewable building materials are also the focus points of LEED or Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design.
In essence, LEED’s certification system assesses and analyzes projects based on eight criteria such as location and transport, efficiency of water use, energy and atmosphere, sustainable space, materials and resources, internal environmental quality, innovation and processes, and regional priority credits.
Country of Origin: USA
Applications: New construction, existing buildings, commercial buildings, interiors, renovations, and urban areas
LBC
The LBC or Living Building Challenge is a challenging certification and classification system itself that will test your building’s sustainability to the maximum. Apart from assessing and classifying, the LBC also judges you based on certain criteria that are tough enough for you to understand, implement, and execute likewise. For example, the Living Building Challenge focuses on generating more energy than a building uses, capturing and treating a fixed quantity of water, and that a building is constructed using eco-friendly materials for one to challenge and opt for the certification.
Studying further, one understands that the LBC focuses on the sustainable dimensions of a building, and primarily, it focuses on the seven key elements that include location, energy, water, materials, health, heritage, and beauty.
Country of Origin: USA
Applications: New construction, existing buildings, renovations, and urban areas
Conclusion
MEP is directly linked to green buildings. To judge if a building sits well with the MEP and green building criteria, it must have Green Building Certifications. Wafaiyah and other similar contractors ensure that their buildings have those necessary Green Building Certifications. There are several such certifications up for grabs and considering the right type of certification depends on your building’s structure, the phase of its construction, and the area or zone of concern.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is a green building?
A green building focuses on sustainable aspects of the environment, atmosphere, and surroundings.
What is a Green Building Certification?
A Green Building Certification is the certification that ensures whether a building adapts to green building guidelines or not.
Is there a limited number of Green Building Certifications?
There are several Green Building Certifications but selecting the right one for your building is the key.
How to select a Green Building Certification for your building?
First, it is necessary to judge what type of certification your building needs and what type of certification supports your building.
Which country has the most number of Green Building Certification systems?
The United States has the most number of Green Building Certifications available.