By SkySite Property staff
BMW Group Canada and Nissan Americas are steering the automotive industry in the green direction with their new environmentally-friendly facilities.
The new BMW facility in Richmond Hill, Ont., is aiming for the U.S. Green Building Council’s Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Silver certification and is set to open at the end of 2009. The site, to be built on a 5.75 acre greenfield, will accommodate the company and its expanding staff of 300.
“We are making significant environmental advancements to our products with our strategy, and our new headquarters further demonstrates our commitment to environmental leadership,” said Lindsay Duffield, president and CEO of BMW Group Canada.
While Nissan’s 10-story facility in Franklin, Tenn., isn’t seeking LEED certification, it’s keeping an eye on the environment by implementing green practices and building features.
“Nissan Americas is an investment in our future,” said Nissan president and CEO Carlos Ghosn. “The building is a statement about our confidence in the continued growth of Nissan in the Americas and our unyielding commitment to environmental sustainability.”
A key element in the facility is the sunshade system, which takes advantage of the sun in every position, reducing the solar load on the building in the summer and maximizing the sun exposure in the winter.
Both automakers hope the new, green facilities will enhance worker performance.
“The thing we like to say about the buildings is that we understand the importance of green, but we realize the importance of a good working environment, which often goes hand-in-hand with green features,” said Mary Jane Finlayson of Sweeney Sterling Finlayson & Co. Architects, the firm that designed the BMW facility.
Both facilities have raised floors with under-floor heating and cooling systems that are controlled by individual adjustments, which improve energy efficiency. The two companies also intend to cut down on energy usage and bills at the facilities through efficient water fixtures, natural lighting, censored lights and recycling.
Unlike typical office buildings, enclosed offices and conference rooms at BMW are in the interior of a floor, leaving the perimeter open for work spaces, a move that makes the most of natural lighting.
The Canadian facility also has many more green features:
- Floor-to-ceiling glazing with light shelves.
- High-efficiency indirect lighting.
- More than 75 percent of the building has direct access to daylight and views.
- Materials of high recycled content are used.
- Locally-sourced and regionally-manufactured products are used wherever possible to reduce the energy required to get materials to the site.
- Construction waste on site will be diverted from landfills.
- Shared, low-consumption, high-efficiency hybrid or alternative fuel vehicles are used for at least 3 percent of the building occupants and these vehicles will have a preferred parking location.
