Nationwide Children’s Hospital is pleased to announce that its Research Building III has received LEED Gold Certification by the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC).
LEED, or Leadership in Energy & Environmental Design, is a rigorous certification program for proving that buildings have been constructed in accordance with strict environmental principles. LEED-certified buildings improve the health and well-being of their occupants, save energy and water, and use locally sourced and recycled materials.
The third research building on the Nationwide Children’s campus opened in 2012 and was designed by NBBJ. Factors central to Nationwide Children’s Research Building III receiving LEED certification include:
- An innovative “neighborhood” approach to lab planning which facilitates current, collaborative research paradigms and affords occupants views to daylight and nature in two directions.
- Variable speed fume hoods, which reduce the loss of heat in exhaust while still protecting the safety of the laboratory occupants.
- Advanced Aircuity technology, which senses air quality, increasing and decreasing ventilation as needed. This technology simultaneously saves energy and improves indoor air quality and alone contributed 7% to the overall energy savings.
- The facility uses nearly 40% less water than a comparable laboratory building.
- More than 40% of construction materials were locally sourced within 500 miles.
- 36% of construction waste was recycled, diverting it from landfills.
“We are enormously proud of our LEED Gold certification,” said Bruce Stevenson, PhD, vice president, Research Operations at The Research Institute at Nationwide Children’s Hospital. “As we fully consider child health, it is important that our organization exhibit best practices toward environmental issues that impact the health of everyone in our local and world communities. This certification demonstrates that Nationwide Children’s takes this responsibility seriously.”
“Research Building III uses almost half as much energy as a typical lab building,” explains Eric Thompson, AIA, LEED AP, BD+C, the sustainable design leader with NBBJ Columbus. “Because lab buildings are very high users of energy in general, this savings has a huge impact on our environment: the project saves about as much energy as the entire energy use of a comparably sized office building.”
“The care taken when designing and constructing Research Building III demonstrates the commitment of Nationwide Children’s to its scientists as well as the world around us,” says Irina Buhimschi, MD, director, Center for Perinatal Research, housed within Research Building III. “Our research benefits children and families throughout the world, and we’re proud to know our research is conducted in a building that contributes to a healthier environment.”
About NBBJ
NBBJ creates innovative places and experiences for organizations worldwide and designs environments, communities, and buildings that enhance people's lives. Founded in 1943, NBBJ is an industry leader in the design of healthcare, corporate, commercial, civic, science, education, and sports facilities. The firm has won numerous awards and has been recognized as one of the world's "Top Ten Most Innovative Architecture Firms" by Fast Company magazine two years in a row. NBBJ has more than 750 employees in 11 offices worldwide, including Beijing, Boston, Columbus, Hong Kong, London, Los Angeles, New York, Pune, San Francisco, Seattle and Shanghai. Clients include Alibaba, Amazon, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Boeing, Cambridge University, Cleveland Clinic, GlaxoSmithKline, Google, Massachusetts General Hospital, Microsoft, Reebok, Salk Institute, Samsung, Stanford University, Starbucks, Telenor, Tencent, and the Wellcome Trust. (http://www.nbbj.com)
About The Research Institute at Nationwide Children's Hospital
Ranked 9th of only 12 children's hospitals on U.S. News & World Report’s 2015-16 “America’s Best Children’s Hospitals Honor Roll,” Nationwide Children’s Hospital is one of the nation’s largest not-for-profit freestanding pediatric healthcare networks providing care for infants, children and adolescents as well as adult patients with congenital disease. As home to the Department of Pediatrics of The Ohio State University College of Medicine, Nationwide Children’s faculty train the next generation of pediatricians, scientists and pediatric specialists. The Research Institute at Nationwide Children’s Hospital is one of the Top 10 National Institutes of Health-funded free-standing pediatric research facilities in the U.S., supporting basic, clinical, translational and health services research at Nationwide Children’s. The Research Institute encompasses three research facilities totaling 525,000 square feet dedicated to research. More information is available at NationwideChildrens.org/Research.