Rating System

LEED BD+C: New Construction

Rating System Version

v2 - LEED 2.2

Inquiry

Our project, a Central Utility Plant or CUP, is the building and site for a district heating and cooling plant. The building houses chillers, boilers, pumps, compressors, and related equipment. Chilled water, steam, and compressed air (for building controls) will be generated within the building and piped to 23 existing buildings through underground piping. The building which houses the equipment will also have administrative office areas. Therefore, there are 2 distinct areas within the building: One area is industrial in nature, and the other is an office area. The industrial areas which house the equipment will be occupied when necessary for maintenance and operation procedures, while the offices will be occupied as typical office occupancies. We seek approval for treating the industrial portion of the project as a non-occupied area, thereby not applying the requirements of the Indoor Environmental Quality (IEQ) category of points to that portion of the project. With intermittent occupancy and reduced flexibility in the choice of (equipment component) materials, the requirements of the IEQ category appear to be inappropriate for the industrial space. ASHRAE 62.1-2004 lists many occupancies, but none of them similar to the equipment area of the CUP in type.