Today, proving that your workplace is environmentally friendly requires more than just placing recycling bins throughout the building and installing energy-saving light bulbs.
Your office building will need to meet environmental standards, such as having a Leader in Energy and Environmental Design certification, or LEED certification for short. It assures people that your commercial building meets energy efficiency standards and offers a comfortable indoor environment.
This certification may also prove attractive to customers and potential business partners as many people and companies value organizations that are doing their part to be eco-friendly.
To get a LEED certification, a commercial building must acquire a certain number of points. These points aren’t awarded through tests done on the building, but by adding certain environmentally friendly installations to your space.
Window tinting is one such installation that can help your workplace gather enough points to achieve its LEED certification. These tints, also called window film, are an easy and cost-effective installation for your office space.
Let’s take a look at how window film can help you with your office’s LEED certification.
How the LEED rating system works
Before getting into how window film helps with your LEED certification, you need to understand how the LEED rating system works.
First off, there are four levels of LEED certifications: Certified, Silver, Gold, and Platinum. Each certification requires a certain number of points—the more points a building receives, the higher the rating.
To get points, a building must meet several standards, such as carbon emissions, water usage, waste management, energy efficiency, material selection, and indoor environment quality.
With the help of window film, some of these criteria can be easily achieved.
How window film can help you achieve LEED points
If used the right way, window tinting in Pittsburgh PA can potentially help your building earn up to 9 LEED points. Here are some of the criteria where commercial window film can earn points.
Reducing light pollution (1 LEED point)
Light pollution is a major problem, especially in big sprawling cities, as indoor lighting from buildings can cause sky glow. Window film can help reduce the amount of light escaping through windows, lessening its impact on nocturnal environments.
Window film can also increase your staff’s comfort by eliminating glare during the day.
Providing views and daylight (1-2 LEED points)
Window film will reduce the need for curtains and blinds and allow plenty of natural light to illuminate your workplace during the day. This will help maintain the connection between the outdoor environment and your commercial building’s occupants.
Rejecting UV rays (1 LEED point)
UV radiation from sunlight can cause skin cancer in people who are exposed to it frequently. By installing window film, such as solar control window film, you can keep your workplace free of these harmful rays.
Offering thermal comfort (1 LEED point)
With window film, you can balance indoor temperatures, creating a more comfortable environment where your employees can become more productive. Window film additionally makes your workplace rely less on the HVAC system, allowing you to save energy.
Improving energy performance (1-4 LEED points)
Thanks to the temperature regulation capabilities of window film, your workplace can reduce heat gain during the warmer months and trap heat when the climate turns cold, making you rely less on climate control systems.
According to research by the U.S. Department of Energy, window film can decrease energy usage by 15%.
Optimizing the use of materials (1 LEED point)
By installing window film that comes from local suppliers and with the help of window film installers, you can greatly reduce pollution and the costs incurred while transporting window film materials.
Speak to a professional about window tinting in Pittsburgh PA
Getting a LEED certification for your workplace is no small achievement—it’ll help greatly in establishing your organization as a green company and improving your brand image in the long run.
You should consider working with a professional window film installation company in Pittsburgh to optimize the use of window film to achieve your LEED points and possibly obtain a higher LEED rating.
