Overall Rating Silver - expired
Overall Score 53.50
Liaison Amy Kadrie
Submission Date Jan. 31, 2019
Executive Letter Download

STARS v2.1

University of Rochester
OP-3: Building Operations and Maintenance

Status Score Responsible Party
Complete 1.17 / 5.00 Patricia Beaumont
Director
Facilities Support Operations
"---" indicates that no data was submitted for this field

Total floor area of building space:
1,189,130.16 Square meters

O+M Certified Space

Building space must be certified under a rating system focusing on the operations and maintenance of existing buildings (e.g. LEED O+M) to count as certified space for this credit. Sustainability in new construction and major renovation projects (e.g. LEED BD+C certification) is covered in the Building Design and Construction credit.

Floor area of building space that is certified at each level under a green building rating system for the operations and maintenance of existing buildings used by an Established Green Building Council:
Certified Floor Area
LEED O+M Platinum or the highest achievable level under another GBC rating system 0 Square meters
LEED O+M Gold or the 2nd highest level under another 4- or 5-tier GBC rating system 0 Square meters
Certified at mid-level under a 3- or 5-tier GBC rating system (e.g. BREEAM-In Use, CASBEE for Existing Buildings, DGNB, Green Star Performance) 0 Square meters
LEED O+M Silver or at a step above minimum level under another 4 -or 5–tier GBC rating system 0 Square meters
LEED O+M Certified or certified at minimum level under another GBC rating system 0 Square meters

Floor area of building space that is certified under a non-GBC rating system for the operations and maintenance of existing buildings, e.g. BOMA BESt, Green Globes CIEB:
0 Square meters

Percentage of building space certified under a green building rating system for the operations and maintenance of existing buildings:
0

If reporting certified space, provide:

A brief description of the green building rating system(s) used and/or a list or sample of certified buildings and ratings:
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If reporting uncertified space, provide the following:

Uncertified Space 

Indoor Air Quality Management 

Of the institution's uncertified building space, what percentage of floor area is maintained in accordance with a published indoor air quality (IAQ) management policy or protocol? (0-100):
0

A copy of the IAQ management policy or protocol:
---

The website URL where the IAQ policy/protocol may be found:

Green Cleaning 

Of the institution's uncertified building space, what percentage of floor area is maintained in accordance with a published green cleaning policy, program or contract ? (0-100):
48

A copy or the green cleaning policy:
A brief description of how green cleaning is incorporated into cleaning contracts:
Each employee that is hired as an Environmental Services Worker (ESWs) at the RC and the SMD is trained on the green practices and procedures of the University. They are taught about the green cleaning products and the appropriate time and manner they are used, basic proper disinfection, infection control, ergonomics, and best cleaning practices. ESWs have one week of training which involves hands on experience and a final exam. They are taught area specific cleaning, procedures, supplies, and equipment. Newly hired ESW are taught from the New Employee Training Packet. Their work is evaluated weekly by scheduled and unscheduled visits by their supervisor in order to ensure that they are using the clean products in a clean and sustainable manner. There are also annual training updates for infection control, hazardous materials, safety, and ergonomics. River Campus has installed single-use oxo-biodegradable plastic bags used for discarding feminine hygiene products, known as the Scensibles System. They provide an easy alternative to flushing feminine hygiene products down the toilet, diverting these items from going into the sanitary sewer systems and polluting coastal areas as well as preventing sea turtles, birds, and fish from ingesting sanitary items and destroying their digestive tracks. Stone and terrazzo floors were previously coated with a floor finish and stripped 2-3 times a year. Now, at the SMD, these floors are polished with diamond disks and high speed equipment that gives an ultra high gloss shine. At both the RC and the SMD, Orbio Units are used. These are machines that electrically convert water into a cleaning solution that cleans effectively, improves safety, and reduces environmental impact. This has significantly lessened the number of chemicals needed for cleaning. The University has recently bought two new ORBIO OS3 200 machines. This system produces a hospital grade disinfectant (with a 10min dwell time) from water and also gives us the Ionized water the ORBIO 5000 gives us currently.

Energy Management and Benchmarking 

Of the institution's uncertified building space, what percentage of floor area is maintained in accordance with an energy management or benchmarking program? (0-100):
100

A brief description of the energy management or benchmarking program:
All HVAC systems are managed under one of 4 building automation systems which are designed to maximize energy savings/reduction. Energy sequences include load shedding, peak demand limiting, optimal start programming, enthalpy/economization, sunrise/sunset outside lighting, zone scheduling and other energy demand control strategies. The metering at the university is used for many reasons: 1) Tracking usage per building of the different utilities (CHW, HW, Steam, Electric, Gas and Water) and stored for historical reference 2) Monthly reports for the different divisions/buildings for comparison and action (IE: meter reads higher than historical yields investigation) 3) EUI calculations for all the buildings from their meter data to gauge annual performance 4) Internal dashboard to look at building instantaneous EUI and energy history for troubleshooting and correction 5) Comparing building EUI against average for each campus (IE: River Campus average vs bldg. on River Campus) 6) Metric on our external metering at our Central plant to verify efficient operation and distribution (KW/ton, etc)

Water Management and Benchmarking 

Of the institution's uncertified building space, what percentage of floor area is maintained in accordance with a water management or benchmarking program? (0-100):
85

A brief description of the water management or benchmarking program:
All major and most minor University buildings (approximately 85%) have water meters installed. The meters measure water consumption and report back to Central Utilities for data and billing purposes. Since the University receives our water from the city, there are a few major water meters that record major city water intakes. When the meters show excessive use of water, emergency notices are sent out to immediately remedy the problem. The University of Rochester installs and replaces urinals and toilets with low flow fixtures whenever possible. The University has replaced old taps and shower heads with low flow taps and shower heads and old toilets with low flow toilets throughout the dormitories, classroom and other buildings. Landscaping on campus is designed so the plants do not need irrigation. Typical plant construction plans do not include irrigation designs instead favoring those that reduce water consumption. Native plants are included to maximize survival of plantations, and currently annual, drought tolerant flowers are grown as well. The goal is to reduce water usage by one-third. The Horticulture and Grounds department monitors weather forecasts and when appropriate will direct manual adjustment of irrigation throughout the campus.

Optional Fields 

The website URL where information about the programs or initiatives is available:
Additional documentation to support the submission:
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Data source(s) and notes about the submission:
Guidelines for sustainable operations and maintenance on page 9 of the campus master plan.

The information presented here is self-reported. While AASHE staff review portions of all STARS reports and institutions are welcome to seek additional forms of review, the data in STARS reports are not verified by AASHE. If you believe any of this information is erroneous or inconsistent with credit criteria, please review the process for inquiring about the information reported by an institution or simply email your inquiry to stars@aashe.org.