When I first heard about Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide earning the highest level of LEED achievement—LEED Platinum—for its headquarters building in Stamford, Conn., I scanned the information I received for some mention of solar, wind or geothermal. My search came up empty. Turns out Starwood achieved LEED Platinum without any renewable energy technologies. “We were able to do it without the big flash items,” says Ken Siegel, Chief Administrative Officer, General Counsel and head of Global Citizenship at Starwood. “Thought was the critical piece of this. We proved that you can do this without going overboard with things that may or may not make economic sense. Our headquarters is a lab.”
Beginning in 2009, the team behind the design of the headquarters began working tenaciously toward the LEED goal—examining every possible opportunity to earn a LEED point. The existing building that was gutted to make way for about 290,000 square feet of office space ended up earning every water point, according to Andrea Pinabell, Vice President Sustainability, Global Citizenship for Starwood.
“There were 15-year-old bathrooms,” says Fergal Hayes, Senior Director-Project Management for Starwood. “We gut renovated the bathrooms and put in low-flow fixtures—dual-flush toilets, aerators, waterless urinals, low-flow showerheads. We installed low-flow spray valves in the cafeteria and now feature native species in landscaping.”
The building in Stamford is also a showcase for the latest lighting technologies. “The old spaces were filled with T-12s,” Hayes says. “We put in T-8s or T-5s.” Sensors prompt the dimming down of lighting when there is enough daylight to illuminate the office space. Offices are positioned to maximize the use of natural light and clear office walls facilitate light distribution.
“People really enjoy the lighting and views,” Pinabell says. “Watching the lights cycle on and off is fascinating,” Siegel adds.
Enhanced Commissioning a Critical Step
Key to earning the Platinum designation was the enhanced commissioning of equipment to make sure it was installed and functioning as designed. During construction Starwood sourced many materials locally to reduce excessive transportation of materials. Furniture, for example was sourced from within a 500-mile radius of the site. Eighty-five percent of construction “waste” was recycled.
The building has an air filtration system to make sure contaminants from the external air are filtered for the employees working inside. Centralized printing stations reduced the number of printers on each floor, cut paper and ink waste, and have the additional benefit of getting people up and moving as well as interacting. The company added full-scale recycling in its pantries as well as adding dishes and dishwashers on each floor to cut down on disposable plates and flatware.
Siegel told me that constructing to the LEED Platinum level added about 2 percent to 4 percent to construction costs. However, he says, “having us in the building dramatically increased its value.”
Lessons Learned from LEED Process
I asked Pinabell, Hayes and Siegel if there were any particular lessons learned as part of the LEED certification process. They all agreed that organized documentation, selecting the right commissioning agent, and having the right people on your team are key.
“Being able to explain the ‘why’ to occupants is also important,” Pinabell says.
Starwood’s headquarters is a reflection of its commitment to reduce energy consumption by 30 percent, water consumption by 20 percent, and carbon emissions by 30 percent by 2020 (baseline year 2008).
“If we are going to ask the properties to do that, we should do it at home,” Siegel says. “It is important symbolically and is appropriate.”
Siegel says Starwood is making progress toward reaching its 2020 goals, having already reduced water consumption by 17 percent systemwide and energy use 8.5 percent. A lot of “low hanging fruit” types of initiatives have gotten Starwood to its current point. Siegel says the next series of initiatives will be more capital-intensive. Systemwide, Starwood expects to reduce costs by about $1 billion over the next 10 years.
In regard to LEED, all Starwood Element hotels are being constructed/renovated to achieve LEED certification. “With our Aloft brand we are offering a LEED package,” Siegel says, adding that Starwood’s St. Regis and W brands are currently focused on how they add sustainability to the luxury experience.
Starwood’s current headquarters will be its home for quite some time. Last summer, it signed a 430,000-square-foot, 20-year lease—giving it plenty of room for growth.
Green Lodging News Adds CozyPure, GreenEarth Cleaning as Ad Partners
Green Lodging News welcomes CozyPure as a Green Product & Service Directory partner. With over 25 years devoted to green lifestyles and organic sleep, CozyPure remains dedicated to developing and manufacturing organic bedding products that are made in the USA with superior quality and value, eco-smart certifications, tasteful aesthetics and organic comfort. CozyPure’s organic mattresses last much longer than conventional mattresses. A removable top panel and four way zipper makes spot cleaning easy and offers access to adjust or replace inner layers. CozyPure latex mattress sleep systems use certified organic cotton stretch knit fabrics, natural latex certified organic rubber with a five-zone core and 100 percent wool. Call (800) 229-7971, e-mail susan@cozypure.com, or go to www.cozypure.com.
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Because clothes cleaned the GreenEarth way aren’t bathed in perc or other petrochemical solvents, they come back fresh and clean without unpleasant “dry cleaning” odor. GreenEarth is also very gentle on clothes. Colors do not fade and whites do not gray or yellow the way they do in traditional dry cleaning, even after repeated cleaning. Call (816) 926-0895, e-mail info@greenearthcleaning.com, or go to www.greenearthcleaning.com.
Who is Your Sustainability Champion?
Green Lodging News is always looking to profile sustainability champions in our Personnel Profile section. If you would like to nominate someone for this section of Green Lodging News, contact me at (813) 510-3868, or by e-mail at editor@greenlodgingnews.com.
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Every two weeks Green Lodging News posts a new guest column on its website. (Click here for examples.) The guest column also appears in the weekly e-newsletter. Green Lodging News is currently in need of industry experts to contribute occasional guest columns. Experts may include consultants, architects, designers, suppliers and those who own or operate green lodging establishments. Columns may be articles that take a stance on a particular subject or be strictly educational in nature. Columnists benefit by having their photo included along with a one paragraph description of their company. Interested in writing a column? Contact Glenn Hasek, publisher and editor, at (813) 510-3868, or by e-mail at editor@greenlodgingnews.com.
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