LEEDing With the Right Foot: Flooring’s Role in Green Building

By: John McGrath, Director, International Standards and Training Alliance (INSTALL)

With all of the fast-paced hype that green building is receiving throughout the facility management and construction industry, it’s easy to overlook some elements that may not be right in front of a building manager’s nose. In this article, I invite you to keep your head down — straight down — and examine the role floorcovering plays in a green building project.

Flooring is one of the most significant and important building systems in a commercial structure. However, regardless of the quality of floorcovering product, the real worth of sustainable carpet, vinyl, linoleum, wood, ceramic or tile will be maximized and provide a return on investment if installed by a professional who understands the green building process.

In fact, by specifying the qualifications of the floorcovering professional as well as the flooring products, a facility manager can contribute to the accumulation of LEED points for both new construction and existing buildings via LEED’s operations and maintenance categories.

Did you know that products and installation materials contribute to LEED in seven of nine categories, and four of those seven areas encompass flooring? Flooring plays a LEED role in Indoor Environmental Quality (IEQ), Materials and Resources (MR), Innovation and Design Process (IDP), and Regional Priority. Flooring can help with LEED points in the categories of new construction, major renovation, existing buildings, commercial interiors, schools, retails, healthcare, and homes.

Pick Your Product Wisely

To gain MR credits, look for products high in recycled or rapidly renewable content such as recycled rubber, carpet fibers or cork. MR credits are available if the product is made locally or regionally, meaning materials used to make the flooring are extracted, harvested or manufactured within 500 miles of the job site. It’s also possible to capture an MR point if the flooring can help to reach the goal of 2.5 percent of the total value of the building materials being made from rapidly renewable materials, which include plants typically harvested in a 10-year cycle. Common substances here are cork, linoleum and bamboo.

IEQ credits are found by carefully selecting adhesives, solvents and carpet systems that meet established air quality standards. The South Coast Air Quality Management District’s (SCAQMD) Rule #1168 dictates volatile organic compound content limits, which can earn another LEED point for qualifying.

To gain another LEED point for flooring systems, carpet and cushion systems must meet Carpet and Rug Institute Green Label program parameters, while hard-surface flooring must be compliant with the FloorScore standard. Wood floor finishes also must meet requirements under the SCAQMD Rule #1168.

In the world of carpet, capturing LEED points is a viable goal in a variety of categories — too many to examine here. But as an example, let’s look at new construction MR. Carpet LEED points can be accomplished by focusing on reuse, such as mandating the use of existing interior nonstructural floorcovering elements in at least 50% of the completed building. The premise is to extend product lifecycles, conserve resources, retain cultural resources and reduce waste.

Up to two points are available under new construction MR if the project diverts construction and demolition debris from disposal in landfills and incineration facilities. Instead, the motivation is meant to re-direct recyclable recovered resources back to the manufacturing process and reusable materials to appropriate sites. Building managers can help work toward LEED points regarding the use of carpet by mandating the recycling and/or salvaging of nonhazardous construction and demolition debris, and establishing goals for diversion from disposal in landfills and incineration facilities and adopt a construction waste management.

Still another 1 to 2 points can be had in the MR section if flooring materials and products are reused. Salvaged, refurbished or reused materials should constitute at least 5 percent of the total value of flooring materials on the project. Materials with recycled content that make up at least 10 percent of the cost of the project materials also help capture LEED points.

Wood products have received a lot of attention lately, thanks to import issues from China. For LEED credits, points are available to encourage environmentally responsible forest management. In just one of several criteria dedicated to wood, LEED parameters require using a minimum of 50 percent (based on costs) of wood-based materials and products that are certified in accordance with the Forest Stewardship Council’s principles and criteria for wood building components.

The FloorScore Program

There are a number of certifying and standard-setting organizations that provide support for and complement the LEED program. The U.S. Green Building Council has approved hard surface flooring products certified by the FloorScore program as an alternative compliance path to achieve LEED credits for new construction. Developing the FloorScore program is the Scientific Certification System (SCS), a credible third-party testing, evaluation and certification system for indoor air quality performance. Also assisting in the FloorScore program is the Resilient Floor Covering Institute (RFCI), which also acts as a flooring products certification program focusing on indoor air quality.

Laying a Strong Foundation

But as I alluded to at the start of this article, proper installation of a sustainable flooring product is essential to reap the benefits that the LEED system is intended to deliver. Because of that, flooring installation contractors are playing a more vital role for specifiers and building managers because of their knowledge of flooring products, and how the installation process affects eligibility for LEED points. Contractors, in return, are heavily relying on their manpower to stay abreast of changes in the green building industry. And that’s where training becomes crucial.

Floorcovering professionals trained under the International Standards and Training Alliance (INSTALL) program benefit from significant green building training provided by the United Brotherhood of Carpenters’ International Training Fund. The UBC is a member and an educational provider of the United States Green Building Council and has had its green training materials reviewed and endorsed by the Green Building Initiative (GBI).

INSTALL’s green training familiarizes installers with the concepts, terminology, materials, benefits, and regulatory agencies involved in green building. Floor layers learn about natural carpet fibers and adhesives, proper recycling practices, low-VOC materials, and how green practices contribute to a healthful indoor environmental quality. Environmentally preferable building materials, as well as those made from salvaged or recycled products and those that both save energy and contribute to a safe and healthful environment, are also discussed.

Cost factors and ecological and human benefits of green flooring installation practices are taught, so that members understand the elements of green building in the context of how green building addresses the broader issues affecting the environment, business interests, and the quality of everyday life. Information on planning for green growth is included to give members an appreciation of changing planning and construction practices and how these new practices control the impact of growth and construction development on the community and the larger environment.

A Match Made in Green

A green floor’s performance will reflect how well the building manager and construction team married product specification and installation requirements. The best green product in the world will be useless if installed improperly, or without regard to adhering to LEED’s exacting standards. Therefore, it does matter who installs the floors. A mechanic without the knowledge of VOC emissions of open adhesives, for instance, can invalidate a LEED application for indoor air quality.

To shield a LEED project from unnecessary loss of points, facility managers should require that the flooring contractor places trained, certified crews on the job site. It is important to always be sure that your flooring contractor is competent and staffed with well-trained installers before they arrive on your job site. One way to ensure that is through detailed specification. Mandate that your flooring materials are installed by a certified professional. That specification still keeps your project open to dozens of prospective, qualified contractors, while at the same time weeding out poorly trained, ill-qualified, less reputable or less-equipped outfits.

Here is suggested language for various sections of Division 09 of the Master Specification program, such as:

096000 Flooring
096100 Flooring Treatment
096200 Specialty Flooring
096400 Wood Flooring
096500 Resilient Flooring
096700 Fluid-Applied Flooring
096800 Carpeting

Part 1 — General: Quality Assurance

Installers shall be skilled tradespeople enrolled in a state-approved apprenticeship program, or certified by a training and certification program equal to the INSTALL program. Key attributes of the training program must include: four-year (minimum) apprenticeship program, totaling 160 hours per year, career-long training, manufacturer-endorsed training and fundamental journeyman skills certification.

Or, if you prefer, specification language may be used in paragraph format, such as the following: INSTALL certification is a requirement for journeymen floor coverers, or membership in a state-certified apprenticeship program is a requirement for floor coverers who have not yet become journeymen, to be eligible to install flooring on this project.

By using the above specification, you are assuring yourself that installers handling your materials have the training, skills and experience to implement any project’s plans.

Summary

Regardless of a green project’s size, shape, schedule, or budget, it pays to keep a sharp eye on the flooring component. By carefully specifying flooring products and employing equal diligence in mandating the level of competence in the installation crew, LEED points should roll into your program, courtesy of your floorcovering, without fail.