Selecting Carpet and Resilient Flooring

Interior materials and finishes are a component of buildings where life-cycle impacts may be significantly greater than the impact associated with the initial manufacture and installation of the material.  Floor coverings in particular, which are subject to mechanical wear, may be replaced several times during the life of a building.

By Jim Taggart with Shelley Penner

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Design flexibility, energy efficiency and healthy environments

by Bill Reynolds

A sustainable approach to building design brings with it demands for flexibility, energy efficiency and healthy work environments. Interior spaces need to respond rapidly and cost effectively to organizational and technological changes. Meanwhile, steadily increasing energy costs require building systems that operate with improved efficiencies while ensuring a healthy, comfortable environment for building occupants. (more…)

Product choices and considerations for energy savings

Thermafiber’s Mineral Wool Insulation contains over 80% recycled content and helps projects qualify for LEED Green Building Credits.

Insulation is only one component of many in the building envelope - but arguably the most critical one in determining energy savings and interior thermal comfort. Every aspect of the envelope design must be considered including the air tightness and the positioning of windows within the thickness of the walls. (more…)

Sustainability increases productivity in Phase II campus expansion

Environmentally Responsible Design

The complete campus, with Phase II located to the left of the soccer field.

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Electronic Arts [EA], a leading developer and publisher of interactive entertainment software, began the development of its corporate campus in Burnaby, BC about 10 years ago. From the outset, the company was interested in working within the broad parameters of environmentally responsible design, and in providing a work environment that would ensure the well being of its employees. (more…)

Major industry player takes a stand for sustainable design

Explicit expression of concrete, steel and glass in the south elevation illustrates the company’s primary focus on construction. The Centennial Learning Centre becomes the new front door to an existing campus of company buildings.

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A corporate headquarters must be more than simply shelter from the storm. Ideally, it is a living, breathing advertisement conveying the image, values and philosophy of its owner to the world. (more…)

basic choices for green building

hardwood flooring from certified forests is becoming more available for interior applications

Products for interior environments should be carefully chosen for reasons of durability and indoor air quality, and for sustainable attributes such as their source, embodied energy, and recycled content. (more…)

LEED Silver pavilion furthers mission of environmental stewardship

The dramatic lantern effect at night reveals the steel frame sculptural form

The Toronto Botanical Garden [TBG] is a charitable organization whose purpose is to inspire passion, respect and understanding of gardening, horticulture, the natural landscape and a healthy environment. (more…)