Green Globes is a web-based program for green building guidance and certification that includes an on-site assessment by a certified third party. Promoted as a reasonably priced substitute for LEED, the new system incorporates an online Life Cycle Assessment tool that allows builders to accurately gauge the sustainability of their building materials and practices.

The Green Building Initiative (GBI) has released a significant upgrade to the Green Globes???(R)???AE???? for New Construction (NC) program. The program, advertised as a cost-effective alternative to the LEED rating system, is meant to advance the environmental performance and sustainability of commercial buildings.

Green Globes NC is now based on an ANSI standard: ANSI/GBI 01-2010: Green Building Assessment Protocol for Commercial Buildings. The standard was developed using an ANSI-approved consensus process that involved stakeholders from across the green building industry.

"In addition to utilizing the ANSI standard, Green Globes received major enhancements to all seven assessment areas led by those covering Energy and Materials & Resources," said Sharene Rekow, GBI's vice president of business development. "The program uses advanced building science which will result in higher performing buildings." A free white paper provides detail on the updated program.

Green Globes, which first became available in the U.S. in 2006, is a web-based program for green building guidance and certification that includes an on-site assessment by a certified third party. The new approach focuses on full life cycle assessment, multi-attribute certifications, and third-party certified Environmental Product Declarations (EPDs), advancing Life Cycle Assessments (LCA) as the basis of sustainable rating systems.

In the U.S., Green Globes incorporates the Athena Impact Estimator, an online LCA tool that allows the designer to build assemblies specific to their project, receive LCA rating feedback and perform comparisons efficiently, leading to the best LCA outcome. By providing options, Green Globes offers users the opportunity to select structure, envelope, and interior materials and products that provide the least environmental impact.

"While making a major improvement in the building science used by Green Globes, we kept the unique program attributes that have made Green Globes the choice of an increasing number of sustainability professionals"?(R)?the web-based survey, the transparent process, the live customer support, the on-site assessment, and the written and in-person feedback for improvement," said Rekow.

Each project is assigned a certified third-party assessor who is available to answer questions regarding greening strategies during the design and construction process at no additional cost. At the completion of the project, the assessor performs an on-site final evaluation of each project. Based on this evaluation, a building is awarded one to four Green Globes according to the points earned in the certification process.

Click here for more information on the updated program.