Sustainable – or “green design” – seeks to reduce the consumption of non-renewable resources, minimize waste, and create healthy, productive environments. An integrated, holistic approach, sustainable strategies can be applied at every stage of the building life cycle, from initial site selection and building design through construction and operations, to final decommissioning.

Sustainable design principles seek to:

• optimize site potential
• protect and conserve water
• minimize non-renewable energy consumption
• enhance indoor environmental quality
• use environmentally preferable products
• optimize operational and maintenance practices.

The U.S. Green Building Council has codified these principles in the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) rating system. LEED was created to define “green design”, establishing a national standard of measurement that recognizes achievement in integrated, whole-building design practices by calculating performance points in five categories. Based upon total points earned, a building can attain LEED certification at one of four levels.

Cannon Design’s focus on sustainability long predates LEED, however, and we have been designing green buildings for over three decades. In the 1970s, before the first energy crisis, we routinely incorporated energy recovery measures into building systems design. In the 1980s, we designed innovative systems for an all-glass building that was hailed as the most efficient office building in the world – consuming just one third of the energy used by conventionally designed structures of similar size and function. In the 1990s, we were commissioned by the New York State Energy Office to author the state’s Guidelines for Energy Efficient Building Rehabilitation, a publication honored with one of the first Progressive Architecture awards for research.

We are the only firm whose work has been honored with two Owens-Corning Energy Conservation Awards. The Occidental Chemical Center became one of the first buildings to receive the prestigious Energy Star, a joint citation by the U.S. Department of Energy and Environmental Protection Agency honoring building designs that demonstrate excellence in energy performance. The Center for Environmental Science and Technology Management at SUNY Albany received Consulting-Specifying Engineer’s Integrator Award, a national citation honoring innovation in architectural-engineering design. Most recently, a second Energy Star recognized our work on the corporate campus of Ecology and Environment, an internationally known environmental consulting firm.

Cannon Design’s commitment to sustainable design and development is a reflection of our core values and dedication to client service. Our “single firm, multi-office” (SFMO®) practice approach enables us to focus the full capabilities of our staff to meet client needs, drawing resources from any of 15 regional centers nationwide. Over 100 of our professionals are now LEED-accredited, forming a multidisciplinary core group that represents all facets of building design and delivery.

From the outset of a project, we strive to establish close relationships with our clients to ensure a continuing dialogue focused on design quality, cost parameters, operational considerations and schedule requirements. We employ a highly interactive, collaborative design approach and routinely team with our in-house cost estimating group, applying value engineering analysis to ensure we recommend the most cost effective technologies. Since sustainable design strategies can yield substantial cost savings over the building life cycle and many of today’s technologies carry little or no cost penalty, these skills and talents inform and add value to our work.

As a member of the U.S. Green Building Council, Cannon Design has embraced and seeks to foster the spirit of innovation, experimentation and creativity needed to achieve new levels of sustainable design. We strive to create environments that are a thoughtful response to their program mission, physical setting and functional purpose, seeking the optimal balance of cost, environmental and societal benefits. Our success stems directly from our commitment to client partnering, to design excellence, and to the creation of environments that enhance human culture and improve the quality of life. This is Cannon Design’s legacy and our vision.

Energy Modelling

By using the latest in BIM software in conjunction with a powerful suite of software applications, Cannon Design can predict how a building concept will perform and operate once built – maximizing quality and encouraging innovation while minimizing the environmental footprint.

Our process enables our clients to understand how the building will perform and Cannon Design’s professionals to make well-informed design decisions quickly. Using the information generated by our suite of analysis tools, our clients can:

• Consider the consequences of different design options
• Assess their risks by exploring “what if?” scenarios throughout the design process
• Improve building performance and occupant satisfaction
• Reduce capital and operating costs
• Minimize the environmental impact of building design, construction and operation

“The greatest opportunities for saving costs over the life of a building occur at the beginning of the design process,” states The American Institute of Architects Energy Design Handbook.

Energy modeling is an effective tool that can be used at any stage of the design process, from concept to completion and throughout the building life cycle.

LEED Certification

Cannon Design is a member and active leader of the United States Green Building Council (USGBC), the Canadian Green Building Council (CaGBC), and the Cascadia Region Green Building Council. We are committed to the principles of sustainability in the design and execution of our operations and our work. Cannon Design embraces the LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) certification program as the benchmark for sustainable buildings and aspires to design all of its projects to the highest possible level of LEED certification. Our projects are benchmarked against the LEED guidelines and when established as a project goal by the client and project team, we pursue LEED certification from the US Green Building Council. Our portfolio includes LEED certified projects across a variety of building types as well as numerous others still in design and construction registered for future certification with the USGBC. Consistent with the Guiding Principles of our Vision and commitment to the conservation of resources, protection of the environment and leadership in sustainable design, over 100 of our staff in multiple disciplines are LEED Accredited Professionals. All Cannon Design professionals will be LEED Accredited by the end of 2008.

Materials Analysis

Cannon Design takes a life-cycle approach to materials analysis, employing a selection process that fully integrates clients’ requirements for functionality, quality, and sustainability.

After ascertaining clients’ specific product performance and sustainability objectives, we evaluate an array of products along multiple dimensions, including recycled content, volatile organic compound (VOC) content, biodegradability, potential for future reuse, energy efficiency, cost, durability, and quality. In determining sustainability of products, we also evaluate the sustainable practices of the products’ manufacturers, seeking locally extracted and manufactured materials, low-energy manufacturing practices, and manufacturer-issued material conservation policies and warranties.

Potential product choices are thoroughly analyzed and collaboratively reviewed with clients to determine final selections and to quantify their contribution to the project’s overall sustainable design profile.

Integrated Design

Sustainable design is now established as an integral process requiring input from all project stakeholders in the design, construction and operations sequence of new building development. Meeting sustainability targets is now often a regulatory requirement – and one likely to become more significant in the future. As pioneers in the field, Cannon Design’s thoughtful building systems design strategy sets a high standard for environmental performance.

We play a vital role in enabling our clients to commission environmentally responsible buildings. We analyze the environmental impact of building design options from the conceptual design phase throughout the project and often into the post-occupancy period. Using advanced modeling techniques, we evaluate the energy performance of design alternatives and decisions. We use the world leader in rating systems, LEED, as the basis of design for every project, regardless of certification requirements. We make extensive use of the proper balance of passive energy control strategies in concert with appropriate applications in state of the art building systems technologies. Our project-appropriate, integrated building system design solutions result in an energy-efficient, safe and productive interior environment.

By using the latest in BIM software in conjunction with a powerful suite of software applications, Cannon Design can predict how a building concept will perform and operate once built – maximizing quality and encouraging innovation while minimizing the environmental footprint.

Our process enables our clients to understand how the building will perform and Cannon Design’s professionals to make well-informed design decisions quickly. Using the information generated by our suite of analysis tools, our clients can:

• Consider the consequences of different design options
• Assess their risks by exploring “what if?” scenarios throughout the design process
• Improve building performance and occupant satisfaction
• Reduce capital and operating costs
• Minimize the environmental impact of building design, construction and operation

“The greatest opportunities for saving costs over the life of a building occur at the beginning of the design process,” states The American Institute of Architects Energy Design Handbook.

Energy modeling is an effective tool that can be used at any stage of the design process, from concept to completion and throughout the building life cycle.

Cannon Design is a member and active leader of the United States Green Building Council (USGBC). We are committed to the principles of sustainability in the design and execution of our operations and our work. Cannon Design embraces the LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) certification program as the benchmark for sustainable buildings and aspires to design all of its projects to the highest possible level of LEED certification. Our projects are benchmarked against the LEED guidelines and when established as a project goal by the client and project team, we pursue LEED certification from the US Green Building Council. Our portfolio includes LEED certified projects across a variety of building types as well as numerous others still in design and construction registered for future certification with the USGBC. Consistent with the Guiding Principles of our Vision and commitment to the conservation of resources, protection of the environment and leadership in sustainable design, over 100 of our staff in multiple disciplines are LEED Accredited Professionals. Consistent with the Guiding Principles of our Vision and commitment to the conservation of resources, protection of the environment and leadership in sustainable design, over 275 of our staff in multiple disciplines are LEED Accredited Professionals, and it is the goal of the firm to have all of our professionals LEED Accredited.

Cannon Design takes a life-cycle approach to materials analysis, employing a selection process that fully integrates clients’ requirements for functionality, quality, and sustainability.

After ascertaining clients’ specific product performance and sustainability objectives, we evaluate an array of products along multiple dimensions, including recycled content, volatile organic compound (VOC) content, biodegradability, potential for future reuse, energy efficiency, cost, durability, and quality. In determining sustainability of products, we also evaluate the sustainable practices of the products’ manufacturers, seeking locally extracted and manufactured materials, low-energy manufacturing practices, and manufacturer-issued material conservation policies and warranties.

Potential product choices are thoroughly analyzed and collaboratively reviewed with clients to determine final selections and to quantify their contribution to the project’s overall sustainable design profile.

Sustainable design is now established as an integral process requiring input from all project stakeholders in the design, construction and operations sequence of new building development. Meeting sustainability targets is now often a regulatory requirement – and one likely to become more significant in the future. As pioneers in the field, Cannon Design’s thoughtful building systems design strategy sets a high standard for environmental performance.

We play a vital role in enabling our clients to commission “environmentally responsible” buildings. We analyze the environmental impact of building design options from the conceptual design phase throughout the project and often into the post-occupancy period. Using advanced modeling techniques, we evaluate the sustainability of design alternatives and decisions. We use the world leader in rating systems, LEED, as the basis of design for every project, regardless of certification requirements. We make extensive use of the proper balance of passive energy control strategies in concert with appropriate applications in state of the art building systems technologies. Our project-appropriate, integrated building system design solutions result in an energy-efficient, safe and productive interior environment.