Every business day, $464 million worth of construction registers with LEED and as of December 2008, over 4.2 billion sq/ft. of commercial building space is involved with the LEED green building certification system. With the growth of LEED continuing to increase in all areas of construction, coupled with the exponential growth of registered and certified projects, the rating system itself is advancing. (photo courtesy of http://www.usgbc.org)

On April 27th, 2009, the United States Green Building Council, or USGBC, will introduce a new rating system entitled LEED Version 3 (v3) which includes the updated LEED 2009 rating system, enhancements to LEED online, and an expanded third-party certification program (GBCI). This new rating system is based on the various existing LEED families with an emphasis on creating uniformity and consistency. There will continue to be multiple LEED systems such as LEED NC, LEED C&S, LEED EB, but each will follow a similar  format.

With the introduction of LEED 2009 rating system; LEED for New Construction – EQ 4.2 Paints & Coatings remains virtually the same as NC v2.2 - EQ 4.2, except for the addition of a VOC budget if no low-VOC product option is available. This means if you have to use coatings on a LEED project that do not meet the VOC requirements you now have the option to average the VOC’s of all the coatings used on the project to see if they meet the baseline case in order fulfill EQ 4.2. If you are working on a project where this type of budgeting might be needed, please contact your local Tnemec Representative for further assistance.

The LEED 2009 point scale for award levels (Certification-Platinum) has changed from NC v2.2. There are now 100 Base Points available, 6 Innovation & Design points, and 4 Regional Points, for a total of 110 points. (Note: Innovation and Design, and Regional points count towards a project’s certification tally, but are not “base” points on which certified, silver, gold, and platinum thresholds are established.)

The addition of Regional Bonus credits is new to the rating system. Six LEED credits have been prioritized addressing specific environmental issues in a project’s given location. Each project will be awarded up to four (4) extra points (one point per credit) for earning the priority credits. These credits are based by a project’s zip code. No more than four (4) points may be earned. A database of Regional Priority credits will be available on the USGBC website at www.usgbc.org.

If you are not already aware, High Performance Coatings are needed on LEED projects. Tnemec has systems and solutions that can contribute to LEED credits and sustainable design, whether a project is targeting LEED Platinum level or just following environmentally conscience building practices. Please click here to locate the narrow products search for a list of products that meet the requirements of EQ 4.2 Paints & Coatings.

For information regarding High Performance Coating systems for your next LEED project please contact your local Tnemec Representative; or for more information on LEED 2009 visit the USGBC website and reference LEED v3. 

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