Green Building is a design and construction practice that promotes the economic health and well being of the community and the environment. A smart step towards economic rewards, green building also has positive social and environmental ramifications that assert your commitments to the future and the way we live for years to come.

The relative concepts of sustainable development and sustainability are integral to this philosophy. Effective green building can lead to:

1. Reduced operating costs.

2. Improved public and occupant health.

3. Reduced environmental impacts.

Green building achieves ecological and aesthetic harmony between structure and the natural environment; it reduces the building impacts on human health and environment by better site selection, design, construction, operation, maintenance and removal, the complete building cycle.

Realizing a sustainable design is about more than simply utilizing specialized materials and systems—it requires a fundamental shift in thinking from start to finish. The key to successfully integrating green elements into any design is early involvement. Important decisions regarding systems and finishes must be carefully considered during the planning phase of a project to maximize the available options for the completed space. Integration is another key factor—it is critical that all systems in a building work together smoothly, and changing one will likely require a change in the others. But if such concerns are taken into account during the design phase, green elements can be easily incorporated into any facility with only a small increase in cost. They can also save money in the long run through improved efficiency and lowered maintenance costs.

For a long time, most people believed “green” or sustainable building was the province of granola-gobblers who built homes out of recycled tires and equipped them with hideous-looking solar panels the size of garage doors. Perhaps they used hay bales for insulation. And they all lived in California. Then, environmentally conscious construction began to enter the mainstream, and some early adopters in the commercial sector went with the flow. The problem green-leaning contractors always had was convincing owners that higher initial construction costs would pay off in the long run with a building’s reduced energy consumption. The “feel-good” factor, prodding owners to a loftier level of ecological awareness, was an even harder sell, especially in a low-bid world.

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