February 13, 2008—Owens-Illinois, Inc., recently announced that its new world headquarters building in Perrysburg, Ohio, has been awarded silver LEED certification, meaning it has been recognized as a truly environmentally friendly structure. O-I chose the Lathrop Company as well as architecture and engineering firm Albert Kahn Associates, Inc. to provide design-build services for the 100,000 square-foot building.
The LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) Green Building Rating System established by the US Green Buildings Council is a voluntary, consensus-based national standard for developing high-performance, sustainable buildings. LEED certification is based on the number of points accumulated in the areas of sustainable sites, water efficiency, energy/atmosphere, materials/resources, indoor environmental quality, and innovation/design process.
“The building was built in a uniquely sustainable nature. Everything from the materials used, and the recycling of scrap materials, to waterless urinals and a system to irrigate the grounds with water from a pond, lends to the environmentally friendly construction and maintenance of the building,” said Frank Butler, O-I’s director of global real estate.
A variety of other features are utilized in accordance with LEED, such as featuring prairie grass plantings to reduce the need for irrigation and pesticides, as well as to eliminate lawn mower emissions, says O-I. In addition, bike racks, outlets for hybrid vehicles as well as a measurement and control system for lighting, heating, cooling, and air quality are used to enhance the eco-friendly nature of O-I’s headquarters.
Further, the interior office space construction utilizes a refurbished modular partition system, which has been recycled from the previous headquarters building and allows almost all workplaces to have visibility to daylight.
For more information about O-I’s Environmental Commitment and its sustainable glass container products, visit the company’s Web site.
