ANALYZING THE BENEFITS OF GREEN BUILDING DESIGN AND CONSTRUCTION

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ANALYZING THE BENEFITS OF GREEN BUILDING DESIGN
AND CONSTRUCTION
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Research Team

• Industrial Engineering
• Kim LaScola Needy, Ph.D., P.E.
• Nuri Mehmet Gokhan, M.S.
• Civil and Environmental Engineering
• Robert Ries, Ph.D., R.A.
• Melissa Bilec, M.S.
• Various undergraduate students

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Outline

• Introduction
• Overall Objective
• Brief Overview of Research Approach and
  Methodology
• Results - Castcon Stone
• Conclusions and Future Work

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Introduction - Benefits of Green Construction

• Improved employee productivity
• Improved health and safety
• Energy and water savings
• Lower maintenance costs

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Overall Objectives

• Initial investments are relatively small given
  the long term proposed benefits.
• Long-term research
• Business sectors and employee types
• Office and Industrial Castcon Stone
• Commercial PNC Bank
• Professional and clerical positions
• Hospital Childrens Hospital
• Patient care, prescriptions, nurse
• Schools
• Challenges
• Focus on results

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Research Approach and Methodology

• Quantitative and qualitative analyses of building
  and performance metrics
• Data collection and statistical analysis
• Surveys for building performance metrics
• Identify control sites
• Variables
• Productivity
• Energy and Maintenance
• Health and Safety
• Building Performance Measurement
• Indoor Environmental Quality

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Castcon Stone
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Castcon Stone

• 47,000 sf green facility with fewer than 50
  employees
• 30,000 sf manufacturing facility, 12,000 sf
  storage building, and 5,000 sf office building
• Occupied in March 2003
• Green construction
• USGBC 2.1 LEED Silver Rating

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Green Features - Castcon Stone

• Reclaimed brownfield site
• Stormwater retention and bioremediation ponds
• Rainwater cistern for irrigation
• Motion sensor for lighting
• Open daylight design
• Clerestory windows
• Integrated design process

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Productivity Measurement Castcon

• Office
• White collar
• Manhours/Concrete Piece Drawing

• Plant
• Industrial Employees
• Pounds of Concrete

• Employee satisfaction surveys, data collection,
  and direct observation
• Pre-move data
• Progress data collection and analysis

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Energy and Maintenance Castcon

• Short- and long-term maintenance
• Utility Bills
• Progress data collection, verification, and
  analysis

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Health and Safety Measurement - Castcon

• Preexisting data
• Absenteeism
• Sick leave information
• Pre- and post-move
• Reporting today

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Building Performance Measurement Castcon

• Surveys
• Meeting with management
• Employee green recognition
• Reporting today

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Indoor Environmental Quality Measurement -
Castcon

• Correlation between productivity and health by
  survey
• Progress reporting today

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Quantitative Results

• Absenteeism and Sick Leave

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Quantitative Results

• Absenteeism and Sick Leave

Table 1. t-Test Results for Plant Workers, Pre-
and Post Moves
Table 2. t-Test Results for Office Workers, Pre-
and Post - Moves
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Quantitative Results

• Absenteeism and Sick Leave

Table 3. t-Test Results for All Workers, Pre- and
Post - Moves
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Quantitative Results

• Workers Compensation

Drug-Free Policy Starts
Move to New Facility
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Summary

• There is a disconnect between the companys
  perceived reduction in absences and the results
  of the analysis.
• Analysis shows the need to collect more data with
  longer time periods to further verify the
  results.
• Additional information is needed to better
  correlate the relationship between the reduction
  in workers compensation, the companys mandatory
  drug testing policy, and the move to the new
  facility.

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Castcon Stone Inc. Green Building Survey

• Based on previously developed surveys and company
  specific questions.
• 4 different surveys
• Pre-move Office side survey
• Pre-move Production side survey
• Post-move Office side survey
• Post-move Production side survey
• Comparisons
• Pre-move vs. Post-move (Combined)
• Pre-move vs. Post-move (Separate groups)

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Survey Results Work Area

• Workers reported that they are more satisfied
  with
• Their work area (p0.016)
• The amount of space they have at the work area
  (p0.011)
• Design of the building (p0.027)
• Cleanliness of the building (p0.006)
• Lunchroom and its location (p0.001)
• Fire and safety of the building (p0.016)
• Office employees are also more satisfied with
• The acoustic privacy (p0.011)
• The visual privacy (p0.017) at their work area.

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Survey Results - IEQ

• In terms of IEQ, the workers are more satisfied
  with
• The temperature during cooler weather (p0.022)
• Office employees also report, they are more
  satisfied with
• The temperature during warmer weather (p0.002)
  and in general (p0.011)
• The humidity during cooler (p0.009) and warmer
  (p0.024) weather
• Air quality in general (p0.005)
• Office employees believe that
• Air is cleaner (p0.016)
• More free of odors (p0.001)
• Air is less stuffy / stale (p0.006)

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Survey Results - Lighting

• For lighting, workers state that
• Their work areas are less dark (p0.012)
• There is adequate amount of daylight at their
  work area (p0.000)
• There is adequate amount of electric light at
  their work area (p0.002)
• They are more satisfied with the visual comfort
  of the lighting (p0.001)
• This visual comfort enhances their ability to get
  the job done (p0.009)

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Survey Results - Productivity

• In terms of productivity, workers are affected
  positively by
• The view outside from the work area (p0.040)
• The work area size (p0.045)
• Air temperature (p0.012)
• Relative humidity (p0.043)
• Office employees also reported that they are
  affected positively by
• Openness of the work area (p0.037)
• Work area furniture (p0.033)
• Visual privacy at the work area (p0.021) and
• Acoustic privacy at the work area (p0.031)

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Survey Results - Health

• The office employees responses showed reductions
  in
• Headache rates (p0.047)
• Cough rates (p0.047)
• Nose and throat irritations (p0.047)
• Blurring vision rates (p0.017) and
• Eye irritations (p0.025)

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Survey Results - General

• All statistically significant changes correspond
  to improvements.
• Office employees responses are of quality and
  consistent.
• Production workers had some trouble with
  understanding the questions or carefully
  assessing the pre-move conditions.
• Total of 7 office employees and 12 production
  workers compared old and new facilities.

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Conclusions

• Green Building construction provides a better
  work environment which leads to
• Increased productivity
• Less work place related sickness
• Higher safety and less workers compensations
• Increased building and work area satisfaction
• Higher indoor environmental quality
• Higher air quality, and
• Better lighting.

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Future Work

• Continue data collection and analysis
• PNC Bank Firstside Center
• Childrens Hospital of Pittsburgh
• Presented methodology and preliminary results
• American Society for Engineering Management
• United States Green Building Conference
• MSI Conference
• Industrial Engineering Research Conference
• Journal paper in progress
• Submitted proposals for external funding

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Acknowledgements

• University Of Pittsburgh Mascaro Sustainability
  Initiative
• PNC
• Castcon Stone
• Childrens Hospital of Pittsburgh
• Green Building Alliance