LEED™ and Green Buildings
At Trane, we believe that sustainable construction and reduced environmental impact are more than just a trend; they
are good business and wise ways to reduce the impact we have on the Earth as a safeguard for future generations. We
have become an HVAC industry leader when it comes to green buildings because, virtually by definition, a green building
is a High Performance Building. We partner with a number of industry and construction organizations, sharing information
and resources to provide increased awareness of the importance of sustainable building practices and the energy and
financial efficiencies associated with them.
Trane is a key member of the US Green Building Council (USGBC) and we
have made a major commitment towards USGBC’s Leadership
in Energy & Environmental Design (LEED) building certification program. Trane is a Platinum sponsor of GreenBuild
and the LEED for Schools initiative launched this year. The LEED program certifies buildings at different levels of
energy efficiency and low environmental impact, basing the assessment on specific credit areas in a number of different
categories. As building owners are discovering, building or renovating to LEED standards ensures efficiencies that
generally result in cost savings over the life of the building.
LEED NC 2.2 overview and Recent Changes
Trane’s active role with the USGBC regarding LEED certification issues helps us to stay at the forefront of knowledge and understanding
of LEED requirements. This helps us to keep you informed as you address green building issues.
On November 11, 2005, the US Green Building Council (USGBC) announced approval of LEED for New Construction (NC) version 2.2. A number
of sections changed, including Energy & Atmosphere Credit 4 (EAc4).
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All refrigerants must use this calculation method in LEED NC v. 2.2 – no refrigerant gets "a free pass."
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Beginning January 1, 2006 all new applications for certification must use version 2.2.
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While most R-123 chillers can achieve this credit using the default leakage rate of 2% annually. A leakage rate four times lower –
just 0.5% annually – has been approved by the USGBC for new Trane R-123 chillers.
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