The Winnipeg head office building of Qualico, a fully integrated real estate development company and one of the largest development operations in Western Canada, has been awarded LEED Silver certification. The three-storey, 65,000-sq.-ft. building incorporates over 6,300 square feet of outdoor garden and rooftop patio and is home to over 150 employees.
“Some of the features of the building include energy efficient windows, a geothermal mechanical system, green roofs, a building management system and water efficient plumbing fixtures” said Brian Cornelsen, Qualico project manager. “A significant challenge was to ensure the building operated as intended and part of the LEED program was to complete comprehensive commissioning of all building systems.”
Some green facts about the Qualico head office include:
- Water usage has been reduced by 45 per cent;
- Energy cost savings of 59 per cent from a conventional building;
- 80 per cent of the construction waste was diverted from the landfill;
- 13.5 per cent of materials used contained recycled content;
- 14.8 per cent of construction materials were regionally manufactured and extracted;
- A minimum of 75 per cent of the furniture used in the building is certified through Green guard or equivalent.