College of Applied Science and Technology Building wins National ‘Green Building’ Design Award

Its ‘green’ design and sustainable usage continues to win accolades for the College of Applied Science and Technology at Rochester Institute of Technology. The Upstate New York Chapter of the National Association of Industrial and Office Properties awarded its first Green Building Design award to the college and representatives from the RIT Facilities Management Services team at the association’s 15^th Annual Awards dinner.

Recognized during the ceremony were James Yarrington, director, Campus Planning and Design and Construction Services; Witold Bujak, sustainability manager; Catherine Ahern, director, Engineering Services; and Maureen Valentine, College of Applied Science and Technology associate dean and Paul A. Miller Professor.

“I have been most impressed for the recognition in which we have shared the same stage that evening with other top professionals whose projects succeeded in creating a showcase of creativity, engineering, management and sustainable thinking,” says Bujak.

RIT was nominated for the award by the association and voted upon by commercial and industrial real estate professionals. Each year the chapter recognizes projects that exhibit design excellence, ingenuity and a focus on green technologies. The organization recognized the college building design for its use of a wide range of sustainable strategies such as careful management of the building site, use of renewable and recyclable materials, improvements to air quality through construction and a focus on the efficient use of energy and water.

“I like the fact that this project marks a significant point in advancing RIT’s sustainable thinking, with significant impact on design and outcomes of future projects,” says Yarrington.

The college building on the RIT campus earned the U.S. Green Building Council’s Gold Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design, commonly called LEED, certification. This is the most widely accepted rating system for evaluating sustainable, high-performance buildings and gold is the second highest of four levels of LEED certification. The College of Applied Science and Technology is only the 16th building in New York State to achieve this level of environmental recognition. It is the second university building to earn the honor.