SMUD Customer Service Center Earns Leed Platiinum

Sustainable construction, operation and maintenance practices have earned the Sacramento Municipal Utility District (SMUD) top honors for Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED).

The U.S. Green Building Council, which developed the LEED standards, gave SMUD's Customer Service Center (CSC) platinum certification, which is the highest of four levels of excellence recognized by the council. SMUD is the first utility in the nation to earn top honors.

"Receiving this designation is huge," said SMUD General Services Manager Frankie McDermott. "Our building was built 'green' in 1995 and we've expanded on those features and developed green maintenance practices."

The CSC building was designed to incorporate leading edge technology and to be 35% more energy efficient than required by California's Title 24 building standards. Water use is nearly 30%below baseline code requirements.

Since conducting a comprehensive evaluation of the building's operating systems and maintenance practices, including each component of the HVAC, lighting and water systems, SMUD staff has been working to improve and expand the 'green' features.

Examples of improvements SMUD made in 2006 include:

• Installation of new devices to better control indoor humidity and temperature levels.
• Installation of carbon dioxide sensors in conference rooms, training rooms and other high-density areas to reduce air conditioning needs when rooms are unoccupied.
• Installation of water meters and data collection to eliminate unnecessary irrigation.
• Installation of BTU-monitoring equipment in each wing of the service center to pinpoint areas on high energy usage for potential energy reduction projects.
• Adoption of new strategies to maximize the building's daylighting features such as exterior light shelves pressure washed twice a year to maintain high reflectivity.

Additionally, SMUD adopted new sustainability maintenance practices that will be extended to all SMUD buildings and facilities.

• A switch to environmentally benign cleaning products, pest management and fertilizer solutions
• Stocking restrooms with recycled toilet tissue and paper towels
• On-site mulching of all green waste
• Use of only recyclable and low-VOC (volatile organic compounds) construction materials, including carpet and paint.

In a related development, SMUD was also awarded a state Flex Your Power Award in the "education and leadership" category for the CSC building and improvements that led to the platinum LEED certification.

For more information about SMUD, visit smud.org.

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