By Steve Rizer
It will be interesting to see whether a new information resource that USGBC has unveiled will live up to its hype for advancing the market for sustainable structures. In trumpeting the new offering, billed by the organization as a “real-time green building data resource for U.S. states,” USGBC Chief Operating Officer Mahesh Ramanujam declared that “providing the green building market with this detailed level of information is critical to the success of our mission of market transformation.”
The online “data visualization” resource highlights real-time green building data for each state in the U.S. and Washington, D.C., focusing on Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) projects, LEED-credentialed professionals, and USGBC membership. Included in the resource are “market briefs” showcasing information about cumulative LEED-registered and -certified projects. In addition, there is information on gross square footage of LEED-registered and -certified space, project totals broken down by owner type and space type, USGBC member organizations by type, LEED professional credential holders, links to the relevant chapter/s serving the state, and a “project profile scorecard.”
The market briefs for each state “were created to supply green building advocates with on-the-ground information to tell robust stories about the multi-faceted benefits of LEED green buildings,” USGBC stated. “Each market brief acts as a state-level barometer of economic activity taking place in an industry that McGraw-Hill projects could be worth up to $248 billion and represent more than one-half of all commercial and institutional construction in the U.S. by 2016.”
LEED for Homes and LEED for Neighborhood Development data have yet to be included in the resource but will be added later this year, according to USGBC. Market briefs for countries outside of the U.S. are available upon request.
State market briefs can be downloaded either as a visualization or as a raw data file. To access this information, visit www.usgbc.org/advocacy/market-brief.
The ConstructionPro Network member version of this article includes the transcript of an interview that ConstructionPro Week conducted with a USGBC spokesperson about the resource.
