LEED (Leadership in Energy & Environmental Design)

The U.S. Green Building Council is the nation's foremost coalition of leaders from across the building industry working to promote buildings that are environmentally responsible, profitable and healthy places to live and work. It is leading a national consensus for producing a new generation of buildings that deliver high performance inside and out. As a member of LEED, using our products may help to achieve LEED credits (up to 4 credits) or points (up to 2 points). The LEED program focuses exclusively on an individual building structure not a specific product. The purpose of the program is to evaluate the whole building from an environmental performance perspective over the buildings life cycle to determine if the building is a "green building.

Sustainability

Under normal type of foot wear and tear as well as traffic, rubber flooring typically outlasts carpet and linoleum floors. The tiles can be managed in such a way that their life span is doubled and even tripled. Moving the interlocking pieces away from high traffic zones and exchanging them with other interlocking tiles-mats-blocks in low traffic zones achieve this. In addition, the interlocking tiles-mats-blocks are sometimes reversible (depending on the product) and easy to re-install if needed, thus extending the life span.

Once the unitary rubberized safety surfacing, flooring and pavers are no longer being used, the can be shipped back to "UNITY" for recycling. This resulting materials are then used in manufacturing our other environmentally friendly products such as: Tough-Land, Pave-Land, Play-Land, Soft-land, Rainbow land and even Rubber-Land.

Materials & Resources Credit 4: Recycled Content

Intent: Increase demand for building products that incorporates recycled content materials, therefore reducing the impacts resulting from extraction and process of new virgin materials.

Credit 4.1 (1 point) Requirements:  Used materials with recycled content such that the sum of post-consumer recycled content plus one-half of the post-industrial content constitutes at least 5% of the total value of the materials in the project.

Credit 4.2 (1 point) Requirements:  Used materials with recycled content such that the sum of post-consumer recycled content plus one-half of the post-industrial content constitutes at least 10% of the total value of the materials in the project.

Potential Technologies & Strategies: Establish a project goal for the recycled content materials and identify material suppliers that can achieve this goal. During construction, ensure that the specified recycled content materials are installed and quantify the total percentage of recycled content materials installed.

Materials & Resources Credit 5: Regional Materials

Intent: Increase demand for building materials and products that are extracted and manufactured within the region, thereby supporting the regional economy and reducing impacts resulting from transportation.

Credit 5.1 (1 point) Requirements:  Use a minimum of 20% of building materials and products that are manufactured regionally within a radius of 500 miles.

Credit 5.2 (1 point) Requirements:  Of the regionally manufactured materials documented for MR Credit 5.1, use a minimum of 50% building materials and products extracted, harvested, or recovered (as well as manufactured) within 500 miles of this project site.

Potential Technologies & Strategies: Establish a project goal for locally sourced materials and identify materials and material suppliers that can achieve this goal. During construction, ensure that the specified recycled content materials are installed and quantify the total percentage of recycled content materials installed.

LEED - NC 2.1 Contribution

LEED is a self-assessing rating system based on a point system that focuses on a number of design and construction categories, which will reduce buildings environmental footprint. Unity Surfacing Systems can help with two of the categories - Materials and Resources and Indoor Environmental Quality.

The following chart summarizes the point potential for both these categories and shows where Unity Surfacing Systems unitary rubberized safety surfacing, flooring and paver products may help you contribute to the potential earning of credit points.

Indoor Environmental Quality Credit 4:
Low-Emitting Materials

Intent: Reduce the quantity of indoor air contaminants that are odorous, potentially irritation and/or harmful to the comfort and well being of installers and occupants.

Credit 4.1 (1-point) Requirements:  The VOC (Volatile Organic Compounds) content of adhesives and sealants used must be less than the current limits of South Coast Air Quality Management District (SCAQMD) Rule # 1168, and all sealants used as fillers must meet or exceed the requirements of the Bay Area Air Quality Management District Regulations8, Rule 51.

Potential Technologies & Strategies: Specify Low-VOC Materials in Construction documents. Ensure that VOC limits are clearly stated in each section where adhesives and sealants are addressed. Review product cut sheets, MSDS's, signed attestations or other official literature from the manufacturer clearly identifying the emissions limits.

Unity Surfacing Systems = tiles - mats - blocks.

Adhesive (glue)