Vertegy Revises LEED Course for AGC
 
December 21, 2009
 
ST. LOUIS -- The Associated General Contractors of America (AGC) has engaged Vertegy to develop an updated course to train construction professionals in the use of LEED guidelines for new construction.
 
LEED, or Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design, is a broad program for evaluating the environmental sustainability of a construction project. The U.S. Green Building Council, which developed the LEED system, launched a new version of the LEED program – known as LEED 3.0 -- earlier this year. LEED 3.0 included revisions to the rating system, under which buildings are designated Platinum, Gold, Silver or Certified, based on their environmental sustainability.
 
Vertegy is revising an AGC class for training construction professionals that focuses on the impact of LEED 3.0 on the rating system. The class is called “Building to LEED-NC: Overview and Impact on Construction Practices.”
 
Vertegy, an Alberici Enterprise, is a consultancy that offers assistance to contractors, designers and owners seeking to develop environmentally sustainable projects and to obtain LEED certification.
 
Thomas Taylor, Vertegy’s general manager, is working with the AGC to finalize the class so it can be available to professionals by June 2010. Vertegy is developing the curriculum for this eight-hour course, as well as revising a course participant’s manual, instructor’s guide and course assessment. The course’s goal will be to train construction professionals on pertinent LEED topics, such as:
 
  • differences between the old LEED-NC Version 2.2 and the new LEED 3.0 program,
  • prerequisites and credits within the LEED categories,
  • creation and function of the Green Building Certification Institute (GBCI), and
  • changes to the professional credentialing process.
“The new curriculum outlined in the revised ‘Building to LEED-NC’ course will ensure  that these individuals are well-versed on sustainability in new construction as defined by the recently-modified guidelines so that they can successfully focus on achieving their or their clients’ sustainability goals,” Taylor said.
 
Taylor and the AGC are currently running advanced pilot programs to make sure the course exceeds the expectations of individuals in the construction industry, and so far they have received positive feedback. More than 50 participants took part in a recent advance pilot session at Greenbuild Phoenix in November. On Dec. 15th, Taylor presented a webinar describing the course in detail to more than 100 professionals across the country. The pilot version is also scheduled to be implemented at the national AGC Convention, which is taking place in Orlando in March 2010.
 
For more information, contact Vertegy General Manager Thomas Taylor: (314) 733-2666   Email: tomt@alberici.com.