FROM THE EDITOR
Last week, the U.S. Green Building Council put out the first of three of what it’s calling its “LEED In Motion” reports. These reports, says USGBC, will provide “a holistic snapshot of the green building movement, equipping readers with the numbers and insight they need to build a strong case for sustainability.”
The big reveal in this first report — titled “People and Progress” — is that about 4.3 million people live and work in LEED certified facilities. That’s an impressive number, isn’t it?
But to me, the more impressive number included in the report is this: There are now a total of 186,476 LEED professional in the industry. That includes 32,168 LEED Green Associates and 64,118 LEED Accredited Professionals with Specialty (there are 90,190 LEED APs without Specialty).
The vast majority (56,796) of those APs with Specialty are Building Design & Construction (BD&C). There are only 4,550 with Interior Design and Construction (ID&C) Specialty and even fewer with Operations and Maintenance (O&M) Specialty — 2,711.
It’s a little surprising that the O&M number is that low, but not totally shocking. One reason there are far fewer O&M Specialties is obvious: Facility managers don’t have nearly the same incentive (or if one is being cynical, time) as architects to complete the credential. Indeed, I’d be willing to bet the vast majority of those O&M Specialties are actually consultants, not facility managers.
While an O&M credential could certainly help, nobody would go so far as to argue that it’s a must-have for a successful LEED-EBOM initiative. Even with the dearth of O&M Specialties, EBOM is humming along just fine — as you’ve no doubt heard once or twice, it passed LEED-NC in December 2011 as the rating system with the most cumulative square footage certified.
So now for the question: How much stock do you put in these LEED credentials? Have you considered an O&M Specialty? Why did you decide to do it, or why did you decide against it?
Cheers,
Greg Zimmerman, editor
GREEN STRATEGIES
LEED-EBOM: How To Overcome Challenges in Multi-Tenant Facilities
The cover story of the June issue of Building Operating Management provides a blueprint for using LEED-EBOM in multi-tenant facilities.
IN THE NEWS
USGBC Releases First LEED in Motion Report
USGBC’s first LEED in Motion report — titled People and Places — was released as a free download for USGBC members.
GREEN MULTIMEDIA
LEED-EBOM Most Popular Rating System
This short podcast breaks the news that as of December 2011, total space certified by LEED-EBOM is greater than that certified by LEED-NC.
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