Estimating Sustainable Projects

Planning, Experience Key to Keeping Green in Black

by Karen Schwartz

The recent increase nationwide in the construction of sustainable projects has been dramatic.

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Indeed, there has been a “tenfold increase” in the number of projects going green nationwide, says Reed Thomas, chief estimator of Atlanta-based R.J. Griffin & Co., the southeast division of the Kansas City, Mo.-based J.E. Dunn Construction Group. Just in the past six months alone, his office has handled four LEED projects; during 2006, only one of his firm’s projects applied for LEED certification.

How difficult is it to estimate green projects? Do these types of projects cost more money upfront? How much?

A couple key variables will likely increase costs, estimators say. The cost in time to assess materials for sustainable projects and document them for LEED certification is usually more than conventional projects. Moreover, certain building systems will typically carry higher price tags than their counterparts.

But these greater costs can be offset, they say. Commitment from an owner to sustainability will allow the time to find the best material and seek savings elsewhere, especially in value engineering. Local vendors might be found to reduce transportation costs.

“Though there are always exceptions, and costs vary from project to project, in my experience, most LEED projects have additional costs,” Thomas says. “For the certified LEED category, it is an average of an additional 0.5% to 1.5% cost; for the silver category, an average of an additional 1% to 2% cost; for the gold LEED category an additional 2% to 5% cost; and for platinum, the cost on average is an additional 5% or greater.”

Calculating Green

Madison-based general contractor J.H. Findorff & Son completed construction of its LEED-certified new office in Milwaukee in March 2006, says Josh Lowe, Findorff project engineer.

There was an increase in costs due to the extra time allotted for the LEED paperwork and submittal process, as well as additional engineering and calculations that needed to be compiled to document energy efficiency and savings, he says. The HVAC system also costs more due to stricter performance specifications that were required in applying for LEED certification.

The system itself did not add much to the cost, Lowe says, but the increased energy efficiency and monitoring that is part of the LEED requirement add controls for monitoring as well as individual controls for each zone of the office.

“The difficulty in estimating the cost for us as a general contractor was weeding through the differences in prices from our subcontractor bids,” Lowe says. “Due to LEED being relatively new, especially for many of our subcontractors, everyone prices it differently.

“Some who have had some experience with the paperwork process place a large upfront charge for this added time to their work. Others with little experience may have no extra charge because they are not familiar with the soft costs associated with the documentation process.”

Owner commitment may help keep the costs of sustainable projects down, sources say.

For example, the Beloit College Center for the Sciences is a sustainable project begun in April on the campus of Beloit College in Wisconsin. Lowe says the 106,000-sq-ft building, which is aiming for LEED silver certification, incurred some added costs because of its application for certification, but costs were contained because it was decided early on to go green.

“We have found that the earlier the decision to go green is made, the more affordable a project becomes for the owner,” Lowe adds.

Echoing the importance of owner commitment was Griffin’s Thomas, who has been in construction since 1969 and a full-time estimator for 15 years.

“You can’t really know how much more this type of project will cost unless you go down a checklist and specifically ask the client about every feature he wants in the building, because every building and location is different,” he says.

Green Materials Costs Vary

When it comes to sustainable products, in some cases they cost more, while other times they cost about the same as conventional materials.

Green roofs, for example, come in many different types and typically cost $10 to $15 more per sq ft than conventional roofs, Thomas says. Also, wood that is certified by the Forest Stewardship Council in Washington, D.C., is usually 15% to 25% more expensive than noncertified wood and may be hard to get.

Not all sustainable materials cost substantially more. For instance, carpeting that contains low volatile organic compounds and recycled content and paints with low VOCs should be readily available without much or any additional costs, Thomas says.

“There are three common construction materials that most lay people don’t recognize as green but truly are, and they won’t cost any more money,” Thomas adds. “These are concrete, steel and gypsum board.

“Concrete components can usually be found locally, and certain components like fly ash and slag are recycled products. Steel these days usually has a minimum of 50% recycled content and often much more. Drywall also contains recycled content and—depending on location—can be regionally produced.”

Because a greater number of building owners and developers are requiring that buildings be LEED certified, more contractors are being asked to estimate these sorts of projects, says Randall Chapple, a principal with Chicago-based architecture firm Goettsch Partners. He is also president of the Chicago chapter of the Construction Specifications Institute.

“CSI is working to incorporate sustainable design into its master format system,” Chapple says. “We have a program called Green Format, which is a databank of green products. Manufacturers can input attributes about their projects and then the design community can access that information.”

Think Globally, Buy Locally

Sourcing materials within 500 mi of a construction site is often the goal of many sustainable green projects because less energy is consumed to transport it, Thomas says. In some cases, overall costs are greater, while other times costs are reduced.

“Sourcing materials within 500 mi should reduce transportation costs,” Thomas adds. “The problem can be that there are trade-offs in comparison with other materials.

“Sometimes, as with certified wood, you may find a material within 500 mi that does not meet other green criteria. Or, you may find a local material, but it is higher in cost than one from farther away.”

As estimators sort through these issues, an increase in the construction of all types of sustainable green projects is likely.

“Hospitals and schools are ripe for more green buildings because the purpose of those buildings so aligns with sustainable construction,” Thomas says. “But you will see all types of construction because the market is more aware of and is asking for green buildings. I think you will also see more and more government agencies and municipalities offering incentives for green building.”

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