EVALUATION OF THE PROJECT DELIVERY PROCESS FOR DUKE GREEN BUILDINGS

Abstract

Since 2003, Duke’s sustainable buildings policy has required that all new and retrofit buildings be LEED certified at a minimum, while “every reasonable effort will be made to achieve silver or higher ratings.” As Duke University strives to achieve its commitments to become carbon neutral, green building will play an increasingly important role for campus sustainability. However, to date Duke has conducted no internal evaluations of the LEED process, and recent reviews of LEED scorecards show that Duke green buildings are achieving the least points possible in the energy category. Using qualitative interviews and case studies of LEED certified buildings, this study aims to evaluate the green building design and implementation process at Duke, and to provide useful feedback for improvements that might aid in the decision-making process. The results of this study emerged under five themes: (1) Environmental goals, (2) Motivation and perceptions, (3) Methods and criterion for financial analysis, (4) Communication and interaction of stakeholders, and (5) Timeliness. The results were analyzed from a Conventional versus Integrated Design framework, and concluding recommendations were made that would increase the practice of integrated design.