Rating System

LEED BD+C: New Construction, LEED BD+C: Schools, LEED ID+C: Commercial Interiors, LEED BD+C: Core and Shell, LEED O+M: Existing Buildings

Rating System Version

v2 - LEED 2.2, v2 - Schools 2007, v2 - LEED 2.0, v2 - LEED 2.0, v3 - LEED 2008

Inquiry

Our project is a 173,569 SF manufacturing development with a projected labor force of 450 employees. The facility will include a 71,522 SF Manufacturing Floor, with 74,426 SF of Warehouse, and 15,749 SF of Administrative and Employee Service Areas. The facility will be staffed and producing food products on a 24 hour per day basis, 365 days per year. The facility\'s food manufacturing operations will require a 3-shift per day staffing with approximately 120 employees per shift (80% of total employees) working on the manufacturing floor and/or supporting the manufacturing operation in warehousing, maintenance, and sanitation. The tasks performed in the manufacturing operation and in support of the manufacturing operation by their intrinsic nature are not suited for controllable task lighting or for adjustable shared lighting, primarily because of the personal mobility required for operating the process machinery, sorting, packaging, and transporting the finished products. Additionally, food safety requirements as well as personal employee safety constraints require that these areas be well lighted at all times. In your 10/22/2007 CIR ruling for this credit, it was stated that the determining factor in defining "Building Occupants," "is not WHO uses the space, but HOW the space is being used." In this building, 80% of the total employee count will be engaged in physical, labor intensive tasks in areas comprising 84% of the project building area, which for safety reasons must be performed in consistently well illuminated areas. Controllable task lighting, or or for adjustable shared lighting in these areas would be additional lighting and counter-productive to the intent of the LEED Program. For these reasons, we would like to propose that this manufacturing floor area, the receiving warehouse, and the shipping warehouse, not be considered regularly occupied spaces for the purposes of this credit. We suggest this because it would be unreasonable and a safety hazard to meet the intent of the credit in these area\'s. The project design will provide controllable task lighting for the 20% of employees included in the various levels of management and administrative staff who are provided with individual work stations. Additionally, employee support areas for training and scheduled work break area will be provided with controllable lighting functionality. So please confirm this interpretation: 1. The manufacturing floor area, the receiving warehouse, and the shipping warehouse, will not be considered regularly occupied spaces for the purposes of this credit. 2. Assuming you affirm the first interpretation, please confirm the following. We will give the 20% of occupants with workstations task lighting, and the other 80% of occupants will be accounted for by providing all other (not including spaces warehouse/shipping/receiving) regularly occupied shared spaces with adjustable lighting to meet group needs. Thus, we will have accounted for 100% of the occupants. Please confirm.