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LEED Consulting: How Much Does It Cost?
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A universal question when assessing LEED certification is documentation cost. That is to say, how much does it cost to hire a LEED consultant? Unfortunately, there’s not really a one size fits all answer.
LEED documentation costs are subject to a wide variety of variables such as the level of certification, which credits are being pursued and the complexity of building design and systems.  This makes it nearly impossible to quantify the cost based on a percentage of construction cost or a dollar amount by square footage.
Based on our experience, the best rule of thumb is to use a cost of $600 to $2000 per point, with the higher end for credits that require more documentation effort or calculations, and for larger or more complex buildings. The documentation cost is largely fixed with a slight variable cost component for those credits requiring advanced modeling and significant hours of analysis.
While this might not give an exact number to insert into a financial model this rule should at least give you an understanding of the rationale behind consulting costs.
Please share with the rest of us any formulas you use in your own practice.
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Energy Modeling for Determining Improvement ROI
Posted by: | CommentsUsually when we see an energy model, it is filled with high efficiency equipment, a well-insulated envelope and several other goodies to make a building as efficient as possible. However, most projects have real budgets and it is critical to understand not only the overall system, but to calculate the return on investment from each component.
An energy model is most simply explained as a computer-based simulation designed to predict building energy consumption given a predetermined set of variables and assumptions. This model is not designed to simulate the exact building characteristics, but rather to give the design team a set of reasonably accurate parameters from which to make informed decisions.
One project we are working on is a 60-unit residential conversion of an older loft warehouse building here in Chicago. This architecturally landmarked building features oversized windows and existing exposed brick walls – nice assets for the end use, but challenging from a standpoint of budget and energy efficiency. The project is targeting LEED Silver under NC 2.2 with a large emphasis on EA in achieving the same.
Performing the analysis with an emphasis on the financial return of each improvement enabled us to quickly develop a hierarchy of improvements for the client to select from; thereby maximizing the energy savings from each available project dollar.
In this instance, we were able to determine that a $100,000 investment in windows with a higher U value had a far greater impact on the efficiency of the building envelope than a similar investment to upgrade the exterior wall insulation.
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