Vertical Screen's world headquarters wins LEED Platinum
The global headquarters of Vertical Screen, in Warminster, Pennsylvania, has received LEED Platinum from the US Green Building Council.
The facility has been designed by Erdy McHenry Architecture. It is located on a nine-acre site and spans 50,000 square feet. The stucture has made use of several green features such as a geothermal HVAC system which utilises 64 ground-loop wells measuring 500 feet in depth to meet the building's heating and cooling requirements. Its roof has been fitted with a solar photovoltaic array featuring 900 panels which contributes to 20% of its electricity needs. The facility further sports four green roofs and a living wall in its interior portion.
The building also incorporates a rainwater harvesting system which uses an underground storage tank with a capacity of 15,000 gallons. The tank stores rainwater from the roof and then filters and recycles the water in the office's toilets, interior green roofs and the living wall. Use of 40 feet tall glass on its eastern and western portion's curtain walls along with a ten feet glass wall in the southern part allow optimum natural light penetration throughout. The facility also comprises a Building Automation System which controls light intensities and an automated shading system depending on the amount of natural light. An air-tight Structured Insulated Panel roof deck system adds to its sustainability by reducing energy consumption.
The facility has made extensive use of reclaimed materials and renewable sources such as carpeting of used car tires, recycled countertops made of glass, concrete comprising byproduct fly ash or slag elements, and building slab and parking space underlayments in discarded crushed masonry. Other reused materials fitted in the building include doors and cabinetry formed in bamboo, wheat board cabinets, cork and linoleum flooring, as well as board toilet dividers from Kirei. In addition, the wood used in the office is Forest Stewardship Council-eligible.
The office has reduced energy consumption by 60% and water usage by over 70% compared to similar structures, owing to eco-friendly measures.
