GHT employed Revit® MEP building information modeling (BIM) software to provide full documentation for the 30,000 SF interior fit out of the Natural Resources Defense Council’s (NRDC) Washington, DC office. The project team is pursuing a certification level of Platinum under the LEED for Commercial Interiors ™ rating system. A major contributor to the sustainable design is an HVAC and lighting control system designed to improve energy consumption by 30% above the ASHRAE standard baseline. To support that pursuit, GHT created an energy model to measure the system performance.

The model was also used to perform additional iterations to isolate the impact and anticipated paybacks of a variety of Energy Conservation Measures (ECMs).  Sustainable features include a 40% reduction in water use compared to a baseline building; occupancy sensors; lighting and temperature controls; daylight dimming; energy efficient supplemental HVAC systems; task lights with occupancy sensor control; measurement and regulation of outdoor airflow rate via airflow monitoring and electric sub-metering.