I would strongly encourage every designer to take advantage of the virtual product overviews Ron Blank & Associates has established. The half hour review is an excellent way to keep up on current products and manufacturers while conveniently fitting into your personal schedule. The presenters are respectful of your time and only discuss the products that are of interest to you. Overall a great format to keep every designer current in their product knowledge!Bruce Burchfield, AIA
Spec Shaman - LEED v4
The LEED v4 rating system is the most successful and widely used green building rating system on the planet. The LEED v4 blog posts are for building product manufacturers, architects, students, and other professionals who wish to learn more about LEED certification. The blog topics include: LEED specifications, LEED exam prep, LEED points, and other green building issues. Users are encouraged to comment on the blogs and provide an interactive experience. Guest bloggers are always welcome and can contact us for blog submission information.
On: Jan 29, 2019
 The USGBC has launched registration for both new construction projects as well as interior spaces with LEED v4.1 BD+C and LEED v4.1 ID+C. Focused on implementation, the USGBC states that LEED v4.1 is accessible, user-friendly and an agile tool. To participate, users can register LEED Online and review the LEED v4.1 Beta Guide. |
On: Jan 9, 2019
 How LEED v4.1 Could Affect Building Product Manufacturers
How will LEED v4.1 affect building product manufacturers? What new requirements, benefits, and opportunities exist in the proposed update to the LEED rating system? Let’s look at major changes to the LEED v4 BD+C rating system. |
On: Dec 12, 2018
 Several building product manufacturers still have no sustainability expert or advocate in 2018. It’s hard to believe that there are still major product manufacturers and many small to medium sized companies that have nobody on their team that is versed in LEED or green building. The companies that do have sustainability champions and LEED professionals on their staff usually have greater specification opportunities than those who have nothing. |
On: Oct 18, 2018
 Should a building product manufacturer develop a Health Product Declaration (HPD) or a Declare Label? Both product disclosures are excellent tools but differ in complexity, cost, and potential ROI. There are other excellent sustainability documentation tools available such as Cradle to Cradle, BIFMA, and ANSI resources to meet Materials Ingredients credits. However, our focus today is on HPDs and Declare Labels. |
On: Oct 16, 2018
 The USGBC released their 3rd quarter 2018 LEED certification update. The key takeaways revolve around the achievement level, LEED rating version, and LEED rating system. Also, metrics include the country and state where certifications took place. There are several good signs for building product manufacturers which we’ll explore. |
On: Sep 7, 2018
 The world of product manufacturing is a gamble and full of risks. So many variables outside of the manufacturers control can affect the outcome, and this has been the case since the beginning of product manufacturing. But with the speed that the AEC industry is changing, it’s easy to get overwhelmed or wonder if your product will become obsolete in the move toward sustainability, regenerative, and resilient architecture, design, and construction. |
On: Jul 15, 2018
 When I tell people that I work in the sustainable build and design industry, they usually assume we’re all tree huggers collecting plastic bottles and straws and wearing hemp clothing. They don’t understand that sustainability goes much deeper than that. Its official focus is to avoid the depletion of natural resources, so ecological balance is maintained. In laymen’s terms, we just want to save the environment so that it’s still alive and healthy in a thousand years, right? |
On: Jun 28, 2018
 Opportunities don’t happen, they are created. One of the ways to create opportunity is to say yes when your first reaction is to say no. Usually, we say no because we think we’re unqualified or won’t succeed, or we think it doesn’t apply to us. Maybe you have thought this regarding the LEED Green Associate accreditation. But you could be limiting your opportunities. |
On: May 18, 2018
 The road to product specification can seem like you’re on the Star Trek Enterprise and that you just got transported to an unknown alien planet. There’s lot of steps to take to get specified. There are many strategies to implement. And it’s not all straight forward. It can be confusing! |
On: Mar 28, 2018
 LEED v4.1 could be a game-changer for building product manufacturers in 2018. Our team recently met with Mahesh Ramanujam, CEO of the USGBC to learn more about LEED v4.1. The Texas Breakfast event in Austin provided attendees an opportunity to learn about the changes coming down the pipeline. |
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GreenCE offers AIA HSW online continuing education, LEED online courses, ADA online courses, and LEED Exam Prep. GreenCE helps design professionals obtain their AIA HSW hours, LEED-specific hours, barrier-free hours, and IDCEC CE hours. The website delivers LEED Exam Prep for the LEED Green Associate exam, LEED BD+C exam, and LEED O+M exam. The online LEED certification courses educate architects, engineers, interior designers, contractors, and students.
GreenCE is a USGBC Education Partner that offers the only free LEED exam prep in the country. The LEED certification course includes a free LEED exam study guide, free LEED practice questions, and LEED certification tips and strategies. In addition, GreenCE offers free courses for LEED APs to obtain their LEED BD+C hours, LEED ID+C hours, and LEED O+M hours. Most GBCI courses are free and in video format.
GreenCE is an AIA Education Provider and offers free AIA online courses. The free AIA courses are sponsored by building product manufacturers. In addition, the platform offers barrier-free ADA courses for Texas and California architects. Texas barrier-free online courses and California Accessibility courses meet state requirements. TX ADA courses and CA ADA courses are created by the top ADA experts in the country.
Building product manufacturers can get specified by using GreenCE services. GreenCE develops AIA and LEED courses for product manufacturers to educate architects. The online architect courses help build brand awareness about building products. In addition, GreenCE hosts manufacturer webinars for 200-300 architects at a time. The AIA webinars and LEED webinars are free for architects who can learn about various products.
Finally, GreenCE helps manufacturers develop Health Product Declarations (HPDs), LEED v4 product documentation, mindful MATERIALS documentation, Google Portico documentation, and Declare Labels. We value our relationships with design professionals and building product manufacturers. They are crucial to our success.
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Project Architect Crabtree, Rohrbaugh & Associates Architects |
The Spec Shaman
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Posted On Sep 22, 2022 |
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Posted On Aug 17, 2022 |
