Most people reading the news items or blogs on ED+C and Sustainable Facility magazines’ websites have jobs directly related to the building design, construction and operations industry. I also assume most readers of these publications have heard of the USGBC and LEED or have been involved in a project that is considering pursuing green building certification. Not long ago, many of us thought if this “LEED thing” were to catch on, it would be pretty cool. Now, according to the Green Building Market Impact Report, not only are green buildings a large portion of the design and construction industry, but green buildings are becoming a part of every project discussion. Clearly, the trend to incorporate triple bottom line thinking into our building projects, new or existing, is here to stay. Moving forward, we must continue to be vigilant and seek to raise the bar. 

Another idea starting to catch on is Net-Zero Buildings. A net-zero energy building generates as much or more energy than it consumes. These can also be called “zero-energy buildings” or “zero-carbon” buildings or NZEB’s and ZEB’s. Whichever term you use is beside the point. It appears that soon net-zero buildings will be talked about as much as LEED is today. Many smaller projects are trying to incorporate this idea into their designs, but at this point, there are very few good examples of a true net-zero building, although many are reaching “near zero” status.

From a design perspective, what does it take to design and build a net-zero building?  It at least sounds simple, and only two things need to be kept in mind if your next building project is seeking this currently prestigious achievement. First, the design team must not only be aggressive in reducing the energy consumption of the systems in a building, but the team must also utilize a truly holistic and integrated design approach. That means once the decision to design and construct a new building is made, the very next decision must be to pursue a net-zero design. This decision can’t be made after the programming stage of design of a building. 

The other commitment in this pursuit is the use of onsite renewable energy production. There is only so much efficiency that can be squeezed out of a building’s systems, especially in climates that require air conditioning equipment.   Again, the earlier the decision can be made to integrate solar water heating, solar photovoltaics or micro wind turbines, the better.

Right now, project teams are endeavoring to make net-zero buildings as commonplace as LEED-certified buildings. But, this concept doesn’t have to relate only to energy consumption. Net zero can be applied to many other areas of design and construction. The most logical area is to address the water needs of a facility. With ideas like “Cradle to Cradle” continuing to take hold, most building products could fit some net-zero definition as well. Once all of these elements are truly considered by our industry, we can start moving on to a “net-positive” model of design, construction and operation.