RW Design Focus:  Sustainable Construction & LEED® Certification

Design & Construction professionals worldwide are fulfilling their responsiblity to be good stewards of the earth's finite resources.  We actively engage in the industry's efforts to contribute highly sustainable design & construction methods to the building industry by incoporating efficient & innovative materials & design solutions.

Our LEED® Accredited Professionals are here to guide you through the benefits utilizing precast modules for your project, from design through project close and maintenance.  Our team is enhanced with LEED® Accredited staff in our Estimating, Business Development and Operations departments to ensure a thorough understanding of the LEED® driven strategy created for each project.  During the preconstruction phase, our team works with the Architect and general Contractor to maximize the contributing elements that RW's system and modules may offer to a facility or building.  This strategy is built into the purchasing and mobilization plan and then ultimately to the Operations Team to execute, as applicable, at the manufacturing facility. 

The RW Advantage

Precast modules provide numerous advantages over other construction methods simply due to the inherent characteristics of the materials used.  Adding to the inherent material advantages, RW's manufacturing method, along with the module design, provides a highly sustainable, energy and material efficient, durable construction solution.

Sustainable Construction...

• Precast modules are produced monolithically- reducing the number of wall to wall joints that require
   recurring maintenance.
• Precast modules serve as the structural load-bearing elements of a building; no superstructure is
   required, thus reducing the overall building footprint and allowing for a more efficient use of open space.
• RW's use of the mass wall insulation system offers substantial advantages for drastically increased
   energy efficiency.  Click here to view our new media page for more information.

LEED® Advantages

1- SS Credits 5.1 and 5.2 - Concrete modules may be stacked into a multi-story arrangement giving the ability to conserve more existing natural area, by minimizing site development required, and maximizing open space. Because modules are structural load bearing elements, they can bear their own weight/loads as well as imposed roof and corridor loads.

2- SS Credits 6.1 and 6.2 - Stormwater Design—Reinforced concrete construction is often designed as the support for vegetated roof systems. Because of their inherent strength, modular concrete construction can serve this function in a residential application.

3- WE Credit 2 - RW is currently working with our major plumbing fixture manufacturers to bring innovative solutions regarding waste water management to our clients. RW promotes the utilization of greywater systems and vacuum systems in modular design and construction.

4- WE Credit 3 - RW is working with leading plumbing designers and manufacturers to increase water efficiency by strategically lowering water use. To date, this is achieved with low-flow fixtures within housing modules and electronic water control systems.

5- E&A p2 - The ASHRAE/IESNA Standard 90.1-2007 drives baseline building performance in the category of energy use. For this LEED prerequisite, new buildings must demonstrate a 10% efficiency improvement in the proposed building performance rating as compared to the baseline building performance rating. Precast buildings exhibit a property called “thermal mass”. Components of buildings with this property have enough heat-storage capacity  to moderate daily temperature swings. This reduces peak heating and cooling loads and helps moderate indoor temperature extremes. HVAC equipment can in some climates be sized smaller, due to relationship with insulated precast outer structure. 

6- E&A Credit 1 - Utilizing insulated concrete construction in combination with other energy savings measures can reduce a buildings energy costs, thereby facilitating consideration of this credit.

7- M&R Credit 2.1 and 2.2 - Rotondo Weirich is determined to reduce construction waste on our jobsites, and takes multiple measures on all projects to ensure very little waste ends up in incinerators/landfills. Rotondo Weirich recycles all extra reinforcing steel, and pours retaining wall blocks or precast planters with all excess ready mixed concrete. Additionally RW’s manufacturing molds guarantee a precise material takeoff, so that overruns are uncommon. With our module finishing program, exact quantities are assembled into place in a controlled manufacturing environment. This trend toward assembly replacing in-place construction eliminates waste. We maintain and reuse our molding systems and equipment, so that little or no material is “project specific”, and therefore disposable.

8- M&R Credits 4.1 and 4.2 - Reinforced concrete construction contains several recycled components. In the concrete, supplemental materials such as flyash, silica fume, and slag cement are all pre-consumer recycled content materials. Recycled concrete can also be used as an aggregate (post-consumer material). Reinforcing steel also contains recycled materials.

9- M&R Credits 5.1 and 5.2 - Rotondo Weirich builds local! This credit exemplifies RW’s business model. We transport our production facility on or close to the project jobsite to eliminate the environmental impact of the transportation of building components. This also means that on all of our projects, materials are sourced regionally. RW buys all ready mixed concrete from suppliers that source local aggregates and ingredients harvested from within a 500 mile radius of the project. By moving our manufacturing facility to the locality of a project, RW wipes out a huge carbon footprint that traveling structures leave on our planet.