1.

Methods and tools for building assessment

Buildings and their construction are responsible for approximately 30% of fossil
fuel consumption and they produce a high percentage of residues. For this
reason there are a number of environmental assessment methods for
buildings. The assessment methods are tools that permit us to measure the
environmental impact of existent buildings and future constructions. The aim
of these methods is to:

 Reduce buildings’ impact on the environment.

 Implement a renown ecologic label.
 Carry out a public comparative between buildings.
 Establish criteria and standards that are more exhaustive than those of the
existing legislation.
 Encourage the technological innovations in the construction market.
 Promote the demand for environmental friendly buildings.
 Empower the organisations with the capacity to demonstrate their
improvements in corporate social responsibility.
Environmental assessment methods for buildings
There are several methods of which the most important are:

 LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) is an American

method that evaluates the facility’s environmental impact, the water
consumption, the energy efficiency, the choice of the materials used, the interior
environmental quality and the innovation. The building typology includes, but is
not limited to, offices, institutional buildings, retail and services establishments,
hotels and residential buildings. It’s the most spread method world-wise
speaking. The different evaluation labels are Silver, Gold and Platinum.
 BREEAM (Building Research Establishment Environmental Assessment) is a
British method that evaluates the energy and water use, the internal environment
(health and well-being), pollution, transport, materials, waste, ecology and
management processes. It’s the oldest method. The different evaluation labels
are Pass, Good, Very Good, and Excellent.
In Top Management we have an Environment Department with personnel
who are qualified to act as BREEAM, LEED and also HQE assessors.

1. Rating tools
The rating tool is a major part of the green building assessment process. It
demonstrates the result of calculation and decision tools, it also includes many
criteria in different categories which reflect priorities in various regions. In
order to give priority to categories and criteria, decision making tools are
needed, in order to understand which category is more important in a specific
region or zone. Rating tools are adaptable and flexible, meaning that the criteria
are able to be adjusted; changed or tailored depending on the conditions which
the rating tool is being utilized for.
After determining the precedence over criteria, they receive points in
order to change them into quantitative criteria which could be measurable. The
relationship between rating tools and calculation tools are usually relevant to
quantitative criteria such as carbon emissions, energy performance, water and
resource consumption, etc. Some criteria like aesthetics, cultural aspects, and
project management are qualitative criteria. However, quantity measurements
are tried to be established but it still highly depends on expert judgment. Table 1
shows the main categories for different rating tools.

2. Calculation tools
In this section of the paper, it is intended to describe some of the most
prominent calculation tools developed along with sustainable building
assessment tools. Rating systems are developed to assess the sustainability of a
building in accordance with the economic, cultural and ecological environment
they are being used in. Therefore, rating systems may define sustainability
differently and allocate diverse weight factors or scores to each category [1]. To
explain more, as an example LEED’s main assessment aim is to reduce annual
expense on energy in a building while BREEAM aims to decrease carbon
emission caused by energy consumption in a building [1]. Therefore, energy
performance of a building seems to have considerable impact on the
sustainability level [2].

3. Decision-support tools
This section of the paper, introduces and compares Decision- Support (or
Decision-making) Tools based on sustainability criteria. The following five
Decision-Support tools have been designed and developed in the field of
construction and infrastructure (see Table 2). Decisions are made based on tools
which offer better support toward the approach taken for projects. Decision-
Support tools are typically produced by engineering consultancies and
occasionally by academia. These tools are developed to assist engineering
consultants who are advising project clients. They are called Process tools,
because they plan a process which maps onto the conventional project cycle and
applies different tools to support more sustainable decision-making. They are
flexible enough to be tailored to a range of projects. including advising a
specific project phase (such as site selection), advising an entire project, or
devising organizational practices and corporate social responsibility (see Fig. 1)
[6]. These tools can provide decision-makers with relevant environmental,
economic and /or social data.

2. USGBC LEED building assessment standard

Buildings and their construction are responsible for approximately 30% of fossil
fuel consumption and they produce a high percentage of residues. For this
 reason there are a number of environmental assessment methods for
buildings.
The assessment methods are tools that permit us to measure the
environmental impact of existent buildings and future constructions. The aim
of these methods is to:
 Reduce buildings’ impact on the environment.
 Implement a renown ecologic label.
 Carry out a public comparative between buildings.
 Establish criteria and standards that are more exhaustive than those of the
existing legislation.
 Encourage the technological innovations in the construction market.
 Promote the demand for environmental friendly buildings.
 Empower the organisations with the capacity to demonstrate their
improvements in corporate social responsibility.
Environmental assessment methods for buildings
There are several methods of which the most important are:
 LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) is an American
method that evaluates the facility’s environmental impact, the water
consumption, the energy efficiency, the choice of the materials used, the interior
environmental quality and the innovation. The building typology includes, but is
not limited to, offices, institutional buildings, retail and services establishments,
hotels and residential buildings. It’s the most spread method world-wise
speaking. The different evaluation labels are Silver, Gold and Platinum.

3. LEED certification process

Mentioned later

4. Green Globes building assessment protocol

 The Green Globes NC assessment process requires two separate stages: 1) a
Design Review of the construction documents, and 2) an On-Site Assessment to
meet with the project team and tour the completed building.
Green Globes for New Construction (NC) evaluates environmental
sustainability, health & wellness of future tenants, and resilience of new
construction and major renovation projects through the latest science, research,
and alignments with technical advancements.
The user-friendly online questionnaire and integrated Green Globes
assessment process enable project teams to:
 Consider options for environmental improvements during the design and
delivery process
 Evaluate and rate the benefits of different design scenarios
 Monitor the performance of an individual building or compare performance
among portfolio properties
Green Globes NC encourages design, construction, and sustainability
professionals to assess opportunities for energy savings, to reduce
environmental impacts, and lower future maintenance costs. Green Globes NC
is the only environmental rating system that provides early feedback on your
process – before you make critical final decisions. This is a proven method for
saving time and money through integrated design and delivery, while benefiting
from a cost-effective third-party assessment and certification process.
Green Globes for New Construction 2021 is the implementation of a
consensus-based ANSI standard (ANSI/GBI 01-2021: Green Globes
Assessment Protocol for Design, New Construction, and Major Renovations)
that drives innovation in sustainability, promotes a healthy and safe
environment for tenants, and encourages life cycle thinking from project
conception.
“After the first year, we were 34% more efficient than a comparable building
and that has increased in efficiency every year. We’re committed to continuing
to get better. Next year, we will re-certify with GBI and try to reach Four Green
Globes. I’m a big believer.”
– Debbie Shock, Director of Operations and Facilities with the Clinton
Foundation

▸ Green Globes for New Construction Point Allocation

▸ Eligibility Requirements

▸ Assessment & Certification Process

▸ New Construction Resources

5. International building assessment systems

Here, it presents the comparative review of five prominent sustainable rating
systems namely BREEAM, LEED, CASBEE, GREEN STAR and HK-BEAM.
Green Building Rating Systems (GBRSs) are typically third-party,
voluntary, and market driven standards that measure buildings’ sustainability
level by multi-criteria assessment, and encourage the adoption of
environmentally, socially and economically sustainable practices in design,
construction and operation of buildings (or neighborhoods). GBRSs aim at
guiding and assessing the project throughout all its life cycle, thus limiting the
negative impact on the environment, as well as on the building occupants’
health and well-being, and even reducing operational costs. Hundreds of GBRSs
are now available worldwide, varying in approaches, application processes, and
evaluation metrics. BREEAM, CASBEE, GREEN STAR and LEED are among
the most applied worldwide. Despite some differences, they all adhere/follow to
the same general evaluation structure: project performances are measured using
a set of relevant indicators, grouped per topics such as water management,
energy use, materials, site qualities. Each assessed requirement is assigned a
 score/judgment, the total of which determines the level of sustainability
achieved. In addition to regular updates, a current trend is to improve the
effectiveness of protocols, making them more comprehensive and accurate,
while keeping them easy to use.
BREEAM:-
CASBEE:-
GREEN STAR:-
LEED:-

What is LEED? (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design)

LEED is one of the most popular green building certification
programs worldwide designed by the U.S. Green Building Council.
We all know that buildings have a considerable impact on our
environment as well as on our health and overall wellbeing. Buildings use
resources, generate waste and are costly to maintain and operate. Green building
is the practice of designing, constructing and operating buildings in a manner
that uses fewer resources, minimizes waste and environmental impact, and
decreases life cycle costs to achieve increased productivity and better occupant
health.
LEED is an internationally recognized green building certification system that
provides third-party verification that a particular building or complex was
designed and constructed keeping in mind the following parameters:
 Maximum energy savings
 Efficient use of water
 Reduced greenhouse gas emissions
 Healthier indoor air quality
 Increased use of recycled materials
 Optimum utilization of resources and sensitivity to their impacts
 Reduced maintenance and operation costs
What is BREEAM?
BREEAM was founded almost three decades back in the United Kingdom in
1990 by the Building Research Establishment (BRE), and it stands for Building
Research Establishment Environmental Assessment Method. It is one of the
most popular and internationally recognized green building rating systems in the
world that sets standards and measures the environmental performance of
buildings – both new as well as existing.
In other words, BREEAM is the world’s leading sustainability assessment
method for master-planning projects, infrastructure and buildings. It recognizes
and reflects the value in higher performing assets across the built environment
lifecycle, from new construction to in-use to renovation and refurbishment.
BREEAM does this through third party certification of the assessment of
an asset’s environmental, social and economic sustainability performance, using
standards developed by BREEAM. This means BREEAM-rated developments
are more sustainable environments that enhance the well-being of the people
who live and work in them, help protect natural resources and make for more
attractive property investments.

Difference between LEED and BREEAM

By now, you’re already aware that LEED is an American green building rating
system developed by the U.S. Green Building Council whereas BREEAM is
English and was introduced by the UK-based Building Research Establishment
(BRE).
The first LEED building appeared in 1998 – only 8 years after the creation of
the BREEAM system. Technically, these two systems are pretty similar (almost
70-80%). They are constantly improving and taking the best world practices in
the design, construction and operation of buildings. But the approach to
certification of buildings is very different.
In case of LEED, the project team (usually with the help of a LEED
Accredited Professional) is engaged in the design and construction of the
building. The team itself can register the project, take into account the
requirements of LEED standards and prepare the necessary documentation. It
forms a package of project documentation and sends it to the USGBC, where
the examination is conducted in different sections. If everything is in order, it
results in a certificate with a certain level.
BREEAM has a different approach, and if there are similarities with the
technical criteria with LEED, the processes vary considerably. In BREEAM
there is the concept of an “appraiser”, and when a project is developed (usually
by involving a BREEAM consultant), it is checked by an appraiser – one
person, not a group of experts. The evaluator acts very formally: he is provided
with documents for checking compliance with the established criteria, and if
everything is in order, he approves them. Appraiser appears twice – at the
design stage and at the stage of putting the object into operation. Based on the
results of the compliance check, he prepares a report, which is then sent to the
UK for a selective audit. The evaluation results in a certificate.
It is important to note that in the BREEAM system the certificate is issued twice
(for the project itself and at its completion), the LEED certificate is issued once
after the object is completed.
Another important difference between the two systems is that LEED bases its
thresholds on percentages whereas BREEAM relies on quantitative standards.
Also, the nuance of the LEED system is that there are very strict mandatory
requirements that are necessary for execution – otherwise the building will not
be considered green. However, BREEAM as a system is more flexible. There
are mandatory requirements, but they are much simpler than LEED. Under
BREEAM, the higher the level of certification, the greater are the requirements.
For example, at a minimum level, one of the mandatory conditions: that
fluorescent lamps are high-frequency and do not flicker. This is very simple,
because all modern equipment does not flicker. In general, the system is more
flexible, it is possible not to make the building highly energy efficient, but it can
be made more favorable in terms of air quality, or improvement or green
materials. Performing alternative criteria, you can still get a certificate, though
with a restriction on the level of certification.
Geographically, BREEAM is more used in the United Kingdom, while LEED
makes more sense to a global corporative policy. Therefore, LEED is the most
known signature because of its presence in more countries, but BREEAM wins
at certified buildings in Europe.
Which is better – LEED or BREEAM?
Both the certifications need to improvise their understanding of whether a high
rating brings an improvement in the construction projects’ operational
performance. They both rate the building and do not consider the building’s
operation in reality.
Both LEED and BREEAM are measurement tools and do not stand for poor
designs. The design process should come forward and indicate which
certification method works best in a specific situation.
LEED is ahead of the game whereas BREEAM is dominant in the UK because
it is better adapted to the UK legislation and standards, and is cost efficient to be
implemented. But still, LEED is gaining grounds and is globally recognized
more as compared to BREEAM.