A Case Study
Reuse lies at the heart of Bob’s Metals’ operations, and core values of honesty, integrity, and sustainability drive the family-based metal processing business. “We are environmentally sustainable by our very nature,” says David Weinstein, Bob’s Metals’ vice president and chief financial officer. “As we expanded with our new headquarters building, we wanted to formally recognize our commitment to environmental stewardship.” Green Globes certification provided that pathway.
The headquarters is a 4,760 square-foot, two-level, office addition to an existing warehouse set on a 14-acre facility that serves clients throughout the Northwest. Because the project incorporated Green Globes at the outset, project architect Darrell Barnes (of Darrell Barnes Architect, Inc.) says process itself informed the team. “The initial evaluation identified measures that we could implement early on to improve our rating – measures that we wouldn’t be able to go back and do later, like creating integrated design team meetings that tracked our progress.”
The team and owner combined suggestions from the Green Globes’ initial assessment with sustainable practices already in place. For example, Bob’s Metals is one of the only scrap metal recycling operations in the nation to have a fully contained zero discharge site thanks to its state-of-the-art stormwater treatment center. Weinstein says that the stormwater project had displaced 10,000 cubic yards of earth and the team reused much of that soil in the foundation‘s footprint for the new headquarters. These items, along with other initiatives, led to its Green Globes certification:
- Site, envelope, and indoor environmental goals were established early in the design.
- Building design has modest glazing with cross braces in the window assemblies, which will prevent bird collisions.
- The roof has a high solar reflective index.
- New plantings were adequately protected and the landscaping incorporated mostly native and drought-tolerant plants.
- More than 75% of the construction waste was recycled.
Learning from the Job
No member of the design and construction team had tracked a project using Green Globes before. This offered a great opportunity to take teams to the next level, according to the project’s Assessor, Eric Truelove, principal of Green Building Resources. “The biggest benefit of going through certification is to show people where they are at with sustainability and where they can improve,” he says. “With Green Globes, both creativity and flexibility on your side.”
Barnes agrees. “The most valuable part was that it got everybody on the project involved and educated. During the Stage 1 review, the suggestion to recycle construction waste helped the contractor learn improved methods,” Barnes says. “The process made everyone aware of the value and importance of sustainability.”
Having access to resources and knowledgeable people at Green Globes was a distinct benefit in Weinstein’s view. “The Assessor added value to our project and our operations, like providing direction to improve our indoor air quality systems,” he asserts. “They gave us a lot of information on the forefront and helped achieve our goals, which created a seamless process.”
Truelove says Green Globes seeks to push owners beyond doing a standard a code building, and it offers an easy process that others can duplicate, financially justify and use to validate their sustainability practices.
Despite this being his first foray into Green Globes, Barnes notes that the process appears very straightforward now. “Green Globes really trains everybody involved. It’s a much friendlier than other frameworks and offers the entire team simpler ways of achieving sustainability measures.”
