Beginning with the $62 million, 160,000 square foot
Business Instructional Building in Urbana, the University of Illinois has been
a leader in pursuing high environmental standards for new construction on its
campus. The BIB earned a platinum LEED rating by using displacement
ventilation, triple glazed windows, and a 4,000 square foot solar power array
on the roof. Now, the under construction College of Electrical and Computer
Engineering building, a $95 million, 230,000 square foot project, is seeking
not only platinum LEED certification, but also zero energy design.
The University pursues aggressive conservation
goals for its overall campus, requiring that all new construction and major
physical plant renovations obtain LEED gold certification at a minimum, and
seeking a reduction of total campus energy consumption by 40% by 2025, and
complete campus carbon neutrality by 2050.
