Today, all of this is attainable, no matter the size of business. Posty Cards is one
of only seven manufacturing plants in the U.S. to get Platinum certification and by
far the smallest—others include Volkswagen and ConAgra plants. So Jessee
brings with him a unique perspective. He doesn't think many of the older hurdles
remain.
"There's no architect or constructor who doesn't know how to approach
LEED projects," Jessee says. "The landscape for building LEED is drastically
different from five years ago. Small businesses assume only large companies can
afford it, but additional cost is minimal."
How long it takes to recoup upfront costs varies from project to project, but
most small-business buildings are built with an expected 20-25 years of use or
more in mind. By then, the efficiencies will have more than made up for initial cost.
With the push federal and state governments have made in the last few years,
which require new projects to be Silver or Gold due to the savings in energy over
time, there's plenty of momentum to take into a certification project now.
5) If everything works out, you will be LEED certified.
Before going down this route, Jessee believes the LEED framework should be
in mind from day one of the project. Many problems and headaches stem from
Section 2
4
New Landscape for Building LEED
