Amherst, MA – At the University of Massachusetts, the new police station was built with more than just public safety in mind. With geothermal heating and cooling among many eco-friendly features, the facility is also a leading example of green construction on campus.
Now this green project on track to win gold – LEED Gold. Achieving this ranking requires not only a strong commitment by the project owner and the architect, but also by the general contractor, said Kristen Yee Loong, a LEED consultant with Toronto-based Enermodal Engineering Ltd., who oversaw the station’s construction.
The importance of material selection and construction practices to achieving a LEED ranking makes it critical to have a general contractor who is committed to sustainable building practices. With the UMass Police Station, CTA Construction Co. Inc. brought both a commitment to meeting LEED standards and experience in sustainable building practices. In both materials selection and work-site best practices, the Waltham, MA-based general contractor worked closely with Enermodal and architect, Caolo & Bieniek Associates.
“With deadlines, things get busy and contractors do not necessarily get to every little detail. But with CTA, they got every little detail, and they were really dedicated to making this happen,” Yee Loong said.
Davida Flynn, CTA’s project manager for the UMass project, worked closely with subcontractors to purchase and document sustainable building materials, both those made with recycled content and those made in the region. CTA kept meticulous records to establish a chain of custody for the building materials to ensure the sustainable products purchased where the ones used in the facility.
As a result, the project met requirements for 20% recycled building materials and 20% regional materials – extracted and manufactured within 500 miles of the job site. “It wasn’t easy, but we did it,” Flynn said. In addition, the project recycled more than 75% of the waste generated, exceeding the LEED threshold for waste diversion.
In those instances where the architect’s product specifications could not be met according to LEED targets – for example, with one type of ceiling tile – CTA worked with the LEED consultant to suggest alternatives. “The architect wanted it to look nice and to be sustainable, so we came up with an alternative that allowed us to keep the overall recycled content up,” Yee Loong said.
On site, CTA supervisors went above and beyond in controlling soil erosion, protecting air quality and properly storing building materials. CTA used both felt fencing and hay bales to control erosion and kept the fence in good condition throughout construction.
“What we sometimes find is a general contractor will get measures in place, but won’t pay enough attention to maintaining them, which almost defeats the effort of having put them up in the first place. CTA’s crews were experienced and diligent in keeping the protections in place” Yee Loong said.
With CTA’s experience on LEED projects, its crews proactively fixed breaks in the erosion barriers. They also sealed the building duct work during construction to prevent dust and dirt from entering it. And they kept building products, like insulation and drywall, protected from the elements and general damage to ensure materials were dry, clean and undamaged when installed.
“As a LEED consultant, sometimes we’re viewed as just doing this to get a plaque on the wall. However, it’s important to focus on the bigger picture and help the team to understand the great impact they can have on sustainable construction. Whenever we went to UMass for a site visit the attitude from CTA was, ‘Tell us what to fix.’ Our input was welcomed, and I felt they always wanted my feedback,” Yee Loong said.