In a world where energy-efficient and sensitive to the environment is becoming more necessary than ever, reusing and upcycling is gaining popularity. More and more people are buying second-hand clothes, furniture and other items to stop creating waste and increase the life cycle of things that have already been manufactured.
The question is, how far can the concept of reusing things be taken? For example, renovating and remodeling an old home would be better than building an entirely new property. You need to build additions or make renovations to your eco-friendly house carefully. This is a question many people have, and today we’re going to explore this and determine the best way to have a great home without harming the environment.

In theory, buying an old home and bringing it up to the modern era should be better for the environment. Less building materials would go into it and require less funding, so it surely must be better, right?

The answer isn’t that simple or straightforward. In many ways, a remodel can be worse for sustainability. So, how do the two different options match up when it comes to what’s better for our planet?

New Materials and Innovations Making Sustainability More Accessible

It’s safe to say that we collectively have more innovations and new ideas than ever before in terms of sustainable technologies. When it comes to understanding what’s good for the planet, we know more than we did decades ago, which means that homes that are built now will be way more sustainable than what was built a long time ago. Along with this, building regulations have also shifted to ensure that energy and the materials being used for the building are carefully considered.

So, if you were to purchase an older house, you might incur more costs because it will need to be brought up to today’s codes. It might not always be as easy as making a few simple changes for sustainability. You might need to deal with undertakings like new windows, new floors, outdoor cladding and alternative energy sources. Ultimately, a brand-new home can be built with sustainability in mind from the ground up.

If you’re getting a loan to renovate, you might find that the more sustainable upgrades will completely eat up the amount you qualify for before you even get to the cosmetic fixes. It’s essential to know how much you can get, which you can do at sites like https://reverse.mortgage/.

Another exciting development in sustainability and construction is the rise of the tiny home movement, where people purposefully build smaller homes to reduce waste and harm to the planet. There are now smart ways to make use of space more efficiently, and technology can make a living in a smaller area feel less claustrophobic. This again would not have been possible decades ago, showing that new construction can find ways to be friendly to the planet and stylish.

What About Waste?

On the other side of this debate is the amount of waste produced by the different methods of building or achieving a quality home. One of the most significant issues the planet faces is what to do with all the waste that society produces as an effect of development and progress. It has been reported that millions of tons of furniture make its way to landfills every year, adding to the vast heaps of waste that’s already polluting the planet. If we’re producing this much furniture waste, how much waste could construction projects possibly be producing year over year? Renovation offers the chance for us to have less construction waste.

New builds come with a lot of waste, and if we’re able to reuse and recycle or at least get rid of less stuff, we might reduce the items that make it to landfills. Sure, there are ways to make new construction less wasteful, but it’s fair to say the one thing renovations have over new construction is that waste can be controlled a lot more and that certain things need repairs, not outright replacements. There is even a chance to extend the life cycle of items in an older home without using them yourself. Through the rise of sites like Facebook Marketplace, you can sell the old stuff in your home instead of throwing it away, so in that way you aren’t adding to the landfill issue we have.

If you care about sustainability, you might think that the world of building and construction doesn’t make it easy to achieve. There are, however, ways to make any building project a bit better for the planet. It’s all about starting with your goal in mind and making sure every detail in the home helps the earth. Do your research before you build, and you’ll be able to accomplish both a beautiful home and piece of property that moves away from the waste and energy inefficiencies that are plaguing our planet.

The post Is Renovating or a New Build Better for the Planet? appeared first on Green Building Insider.

BIM is software that enables construction professionals to create, analyze and share digital models of their projects. It’s become increasingly popular among construction firms, mainly as a means to reduce costs and shorten completion times. With the right approach, it can also serve as an effective way to design, create and sustain green buildings.

BIM is already a widely used tool, with 73% of construction firms employing it as of 2020. Here’s how these professionals can incorporate it into green building engineering.

Use BIM to Create Sustainable Designs

BIM provides more visibility during the design phase of a construction project. Architects and engineers can use this to their advantage to create optimal green building designs. Just as these solutions help craft better designs for traditional buildings, they can help design more sustainable ones.

For example, daylighting, which can lead to lighting energy savings of 60%, relies on optimally placed windows to achieve its full potential. Since it takes less time to create and edit digital models than physical ones, architects can compare multiple design choices. They can compare different window placement schemes in BIM to find the most sustainable design.

Many of these programs can also support data analytics. Data from similar projects can suggest design changes in a new model to maximize sustainability. The more often companies use these resources, the more accurate these analytics will become, too.

Prevent Mistakes Before They Arise

One of the primary selling points of BIM is a feature called clash detection. These tools point out flaws in a design that may cause problems during the construction phase and beyond. Teams can then fix them in the design phase before they become more pressing concerns.

It may not seem like it at first, but preventing these mistakes is a crucial aspect of green building engineering. The rework required to fix these problems in construction can account for as much as 30% of the total labor on a project. Avoiding rework means substantially less time and energy spent in the construction phase.

Construction work consumes a lot of energy and produces a lot of carbon emissions. Consequently, the longer a project goes on, the more environmentally damaging it becomes. Using new digital tools to prevent mistakes shortens construction time, lessening projects’ carbon footprint.

Perform Energy Analysis

Understanding a project’s lifetime energy consumption is a significant part of green building engineering. Predicting how much electricity a building will use can be a challenge with traditional methods, but BIM makes it easier. Some BIM programs can link to energy analysis tools, making this process more straightforward.

After designing a building in these programs, architects can run an energy analysis. Since it doesn’t take long to modify virtual models, they can do this after making minor adjustments, too. This checking process can help them design a building that will use as little electricity as possible across its lifetime.

Buildings account for 28% of total energy consumption in the U.S., so these analytics can have considerable consequences. Even making marginal improvements can lead to substantial savings over a building’s lifetime.

Minimize Material Waste

Another way construction companies can incorporate BIM in green building engineering is waste reduction. In 2018, the U.S. generated 600 million tons of construction debris, more than double the municipal solid waste that year. Effective BIM implementation can help building crews just what they need, minimizing this waste.

In the planning phase, architects can compare different models to find the most material-efficient designs. Data analytics can show how they could minimize the resources they would need to construct a structure. The accuracy of these digital models can also help teams order only what they need for the job.

Since clash detection features prevent mistakes, they also reduce material waste in the construction phase. When workers don’t have to tear down and rebuild anything, they save a considerable amount of materials. All of this combines to produce less wasteful buildings.

Capitalize on BIM-Adjacent Technologies

Using BIM opens doors to a range of other technologies that can help engineer greener buildings. One of the most promising of these is robotics. While construction robots are still new and have yet to see much adoption, using them with BIM can save lots of time and energy.

Virtual models and plans from BIM can guide robots in assembling parts of a building. This guidance helps machines work with utmost precision, and automation helps shorten project completion time, reducing energy consumption. As a result, these two technologies work together to minimize both material and energy waste.

Similarly, BIM can guide 3D printers. Since 3D printers use only the materials they need, they also reduce waste, and digital building models can ensure they’re accurate. While both robotics and 3D printers can work apart from BIM, using them together expands their respective benefits.

Monitor Buildings After Construction

Green building engineering is a continuous process that goes on even after project completion. A building’s lifetime after construction can provide a lot of useful information about energy use and other environmental factors. Monitoring this data can improve BIM models in the future, leading to even more sustainable buildings.

If a building’s energy efficiency declines over time, it could be due to a design problem or material choice. Recording that data can inform models for future projects, helping avoid the same mistakes. The more companies do this, the better they’ll get at designing and constructing green buildings.

Having a single source of truth in a BIM model can also inform more efficient repairs and maintenance. Teams will be able to look to these records to find issues and possible solutions faster. Less time on maintenance means less energy expenditure, improving the building’s carbon footprint.

BIM Takes Green Building to New Heights

Green building engineering is a complicated, multifaceted process. Technology like BIM lets construction companies take more control over more of these factors, creating more sustainable buildings. As BIM adoption rises, the building and construction industry has the opportunity to become greener.

The post How to Incorporate BIM in Green Building Engineering appeared first on Green Building Insider.

Consumers everywhere value eco-friendly products and services more than ever, and government initiatives encourage them. Once a niche segment, green real estate could dominate the market in the near future.

The real estate industry is ripe for change when it comes to sustainability. Buildings account for 39% of total energy consumption in the United States. Eco-friendly technologies are also more affordable than ever, so green building is no longer inaccessible.

From sustainable building materials to renewable energy, green building is shaking up the real estate market. Here’s a closer look at how it will change the face of the industry.

Lower Lifetime Ownership Costs

One of the most impactful changes this green trend will have on real estate is declining ownership costs. Not long ago, sustainability was prohibitively expensive, but things have changed. Wind and solar power are now cheaper than fossil fuels in most of the world.

Buildings with built-in solar panels or wind turbines will provide residents with more affordable energy. These features may make some properties more expensive upfront, but lifetime ownership costs will be lower. This affordability will attract new homeowners, leading to more sales and making housing more accessible.

Green building materials can further lower costs by making buildings more energy-efficient. Traditional fiberglass insulation allows 30% of heat and air conditioning to leak out, but foam insulation is far more efficient. These materials keep more air in, lowering heating and cooling costs and making homes even more affordable.

More Independence

Another advantage of built-in renewable energy generation (such as geothermal energy) is that it gives property owners more independence. Solar panels and wind turbines allow residents to get some or all their power from the environment, not utility companies. In addition to the savings this entails, it gives building owners freedom from the power company.

A recent survey shows that just 33% of American consumers trust their utility companies to offer fair rates and services. That means two-thirds of Americans feel suspicious over whether these organizations have their best interest at heart. Green real estate prevents them from supporting businesses they don’t trust.

When building owners don’t have to rely on utility companies, they can avoid contracts and other limits. Residents will have more flexibility, which is especially important in commercial buildings since businesses likely have higher ambitions than average homeowners. Utility companies limit expansion, but renewables remove those limits.

Higher Diversity of Materials

Most traditional buildings stick to just a few materials like concrete, wood, brick and steel. The sustainable real estate movement opens up a world of new green building materials that buyers can choose from. Many of these also come with benefits that go beyond eco-friendliness.

Some waxes, for example, have natural hydrophobic properties, making walls and ceilings more resistant to water damage. Similarly, wool insulation is naturally flame-resistant and offers similar if not higher thermal properties to traditional insulation. Many sustainable building materials are synthetic, too, so new options emerge all the time.

High-tech materials are a blossoming and promising part of the industry. For example, smart glass changes its thermal properties based on heating and cooling trends in the building. With such an abundance of different materials, green homes can appeal to far more market segments, meeting a diverse public’s diverse needs.

Stronger Emphasis on Green Certifications

Green certifications will become more valuable to consumers. Real estate agents can pursue these benchmarks to make their properties more appealing to potential buyers. Before long, these certifications will be so vital they’ll be less of a competitive edge and more of a necessity.

People want sustainability, even if they have to pay more for it. More than 50% of Gen Z consumers, who will make up an increasingly high percentage of homebuyers, will pay more for sustainable goods.

Green certifications let real estate agents prove to prospective buyers that they’d be purchasing a sustainable home. The rising demand for sustainability will likely also lead to greenwashing and false promises too, making these certifications more valuable. As these trends continue, far more buildings will pursue these benchmarks to meet market demands.

New Construction Opportunities

As the green real estate market continues to soar, construction companies will have an abundance of new opportunities. While homeowners can retrofit existing buildings with sustainable technologies and materials, an entirely green home typically requires a whole new structure. Rising demand for green houses will give construction firms plenty of potential projects.

The U.S. housing market is already worth $33 trillion, and the demand for green homes will push it further. Since retrofitting can only go so far, real estate agents will have to turn to making and selling new buildings. The green revolution could lead to a considerable uptick in demand for construction as a result.

Demand for new construction projects will shift. Construction firms that embrace green building techniques and sustainable certifications will be far more valuable in the coming years. As the real estate market becomes greener, so too will construction.

Green Real Estate Is the Future

Not long ago, sustainable real estate was an expensive and niche market segment, but it’s becoming the norm. Environmental issues are more prominent than ever, driving consumers to demand sustainability in all areas of their lives. This trend shows no signs of slowing, either, so it will transform industries going forward.

Green real estate helps the industry become more eco-friendly and makes it more profitable. Sustainability is changing the face of the sector, making it more appealing to young consumers. When construction and real estate go green, everyone involved benefits, and this mutual growth is driving change in the industry.

The post How Green Buildings Will Change Real Estate Expectations appeared first on Green Building Insider.

Green buildings cover a range of sustainable needs. For the environment, public health and the economy, these innovations steer the world in the right direction. With issues like the climate crisis and the COVID-19 pandemic co-occurring, the world needs strong progress. The way forward is clear — green buildings combine the best elements of eco-friendliness and sustainability.

Climate Change

Climate change is an all-encompassing force. Scientists have put timelines on when the world needs to take action to reverse the effects that include increased temperatures, more sporadic and unpredictable weather, habitat destruction and increasingly unlivable conditions. Buildings can help curb these effects when they become greener.

In the United States alone, buildings account for over 40% of energy consumption. This energy commonly comes from plants that burn fossil fuels for electricity. With such high levels of power consumption, buildings must radically change to have a better impact on the environment — locally and around the globe.

Luckily, renewable energy is becoming more widely available and inexpensive. For new and old buildings, using renewable sources like solar and wind energy will drastically reduce that 40% of energy consumption. With it, emissions will decrease as well. Specifically, carbon dioxide is one of the main culprits of climate change. It hurts the ozone layer and worsens air quality. All around, numerous environments and individuals see the detriments of climate change.

Another exciting source of reliable, clean energy comes from smart grids. These grids often work with solar power and use batteries to provide backup or additional energy for all residents on the grid. With these clean resources, buildings can quickly become greener.

Resource Conservation

Energy is a big topic, so it’s important to examine it on all levels for sustainable development. Climate change is a global threat that trickles down to every individual’s consumption of resources. For instance, using too much water or leaving the lights on more than necessary is wasteful. Instead, greener solutions help residential and commercial buildings reduce waste.

Smart technology like motion-detecting lights and sinks can save a significant amount of energy and money. Replacing standard incandescent light bulbs with light-emitting diode (LED) bulbs will also be a sustainable long-term investment. Both of these acts are easy to do with new builds or retrofits for older buildings.

Further, HVAC systems can make a huge difference. Insulating windows and doors is an essential first step. During construction, architects and contractors should use natural lighting to decrease reliance on electricity for lighting, heating and cooling. Then, HVAC systems can run on renewable energy and work alongside the natural elements.

However, the issues run deeper. While renewables and sustainable tech can retrofit older buildings, new structures should adhere to using more sustainable materials. For example, mixing cement gives off carbon dioxide and requires a lot of water. Sustainable alternatives to cement are now on the rise and are critical for green building initiatives.

Public Health

The harm the environment faces from building emissions and energy consumption is not the sole detriment. Public health also sees significant harm from this pollution and waste. Carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gasses hurt human health and can effectively cause premature deaths in the worst regions.

Inside the buildings, having more greenery and natural air will help people’s health. The air quality will improve and become more breathable. Making sustainable changes in the surrounding area will also help the community be healthier. Since urbanization is on the rise — and most buildings reside in cities — a focus on community health is essential.

The COVID-19 pandemic exposed the link between the climate crisis and public health. Pollution can make certain areas unlivable. For the people who can’t leave, their health is at risk. A Harvard study further connected higher levels of air pollution to an increased death rate from the pandemic.

Sustainability has always been a public health issue. With this renewed awareness through the pandemic, though, sustainable development is more necessary than ever. Green buildings benefit people both inside and out with the right renewable changes. Though the pandemic brought new light to the issue, these efforts and changes must continue long after this public health issue has gone away.

Job Creation and Innovation

Public health isn’t the only area the pandemic has disrupted. The economy and job outlook have taken a big hit. Unemployment soared at the beginning of the pandemic in 2020 and is slowly decreasing from the 14.8% record high due to waves and spikes of COVID-19. The ripples of this disruption will likely stick around for years.

With new construction and retrofits comes new jobs and opportunities. By pushing forward with renewable energy, smart technology and green building design, the economy can open up and help reduce that large peak of unemployment.

While unemployment drops, innovation will increase. Smart cities represent the future. They provide new, technological ways to improve the community and residential life. Two key parts of smart cities are public health and sustainability. With a movement toward green buildings, cities can reach that innovative potential of becoming fully smart cities.

Singapore is a common example of a place where progress happens. It plans to make 80% of its buildings green through 2030, which will drastically reduce emissions and environmental harm. These feats speak to what’s possible for the future. Green buildings can lead the world to this point with the right funding and focus.

The Sustainable Way Forward

Sustainability is not an isolated topic. It spans from public health to the economy and back to the environment. The road ahead has several obstacles, but with the right focus on all aspects of sustainability, a better future is possible.

The times are changing. With them, new ideas come to light. Green buildings are now a core element for creating a better world. The next step is getting individuals, cities and countries to recognize the power green buildings hold.

The post Green Buildings Are Crucial to the Future of Sustainable Development appeared first on Green Building Insider.