Designing Silver

Col. Steven Hiss, 28th Bomb Wing vice commander, Lt Col. Michael Johnson, 28th Civil Engineer Squadron commander, and Col. Trent Edwards, 28th Mission Support Group commander, attends the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design ceremony at the 28th CES headquarters on Ellsworth Air Force Base, S.D., Dec. 14, 2011. The 28th CES building is the first building on base to be awarded the silver LEED certification for its design and energy efficient features. (U.S. Air Force photo by Airman 1st Class Zachary Hada/Released)

Designing silver

Published Dec. 15, 2011
By Airman 1st Class Anania Tekurio
28th Bomb Wing Public Affairs

ELLSWORTH AIR FORCE BASE, S.D. -- The 28th Civil Engineer Squadron received the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design Award Silver Certificate for the new, environmentally-sustainable and energy efficient 28th CES building headquarters on Ellsworth Air Force Base, S.D., Dec. 14, 2011.

The building is the first of its kind on base to meet LEED standards. Design work began in October 2008 and was fully completed in June 2010.

"It's fantastic to have the first building, it being the civil engineering building, to be LEED certified," said Col. Steven Hiss, 28th Bomb Wing vice commander, "I look forward to certifying more buildings as we move down this road".

The United States Green Building Council, a non-profit and non-federal trade organization, was established in 1993 to promote environmentally responsible approaches to how buildings are designed, built and operated. The USGBC created and maintains LEED's green building rating system that establishes criteria to obtain silver, gold or platinum certifications according to the number of points obtained.

Mark Meissner, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers LEED project manager said, "The heating and ventilation system was a major factor in obtaining the highest points for this building."

Other contributing factors include: automatic lighting controls, bike storage, shower facilities, low-flush water closets and parking spaces designated for fuel efficient vehicles.

With the attainment of this silver certificate award, the 28th CES building is leading the way in environmentally sustainable technology. The next building in planning is the new base deployment center.

"Designing and building to the LEED standard is the future of Air Force [military construction] projects," said 1st Lt. Rebecca Gehrman, 28th CES programs deputy flight chief.