Integrative Project Planning and Design

Prerequisite
This prerequisite applies to: Healthcare
Intent
Maximize opportunities for integrated, cost-effective adoption of green design and
construction strategies, emphasizing human health as a fundamental evaluative criterion
for building design, construction and operational strategies. Utilize innovative approaches
and techniques for green design and construction.
Requirements
Use cross-discipline design and decision making, beginning in the programming and pre-
design phase. At a minimum, ensure the following process:
Owner’s Project Requirements Document
Prepare an Owner’s Project Requirements (OPR) document. Develop a health mission
statement and incorporate it in the OPR. The health mission statement must address
"triple bottom line" values—economic, environmental, and social. Include goals and
strategies to safeguard the health of building occupants, the local community, and the
global environment, while creating a high-performance healing environment for the
building’s patients, caregivers, and staff.
Preliminary Rating Goals
As early as practical and preferably before schematic design, conduct a preliminary LEED
meeting with a minimum of four key project team members and the owner or owner’s
representative. As part of the meeting, create a LEED® action plan that, at a minimum:
 Determines the LEED certification level to pursue (Certified, Silver, Gold, or Platinum);
 Selects the LEED credits to meet the targeted certification level; and
 Identifies the responsible parties to ensure the LEED requirements for each
prerequisite and selected credit are met.
Integrated Project Team
Assemble an integrated project team and include as many of the following professionals
as feasible (minimum of four), in addition to the owner or owner’s representative.
 Owner’s capital budget manager
 Architect or building designer
 Mechanical engineer
 Structural engineer
 Energy modeler
 Equipment planner
 Acoustical consultant
 Telecommunications designer
 Controls designer
  Food Service Consultant
 Infection Control Staff
 Building science or performance testing agents
 Green building or sustainable design consultant
 Facility green teams
 Physician and nursing teams
 Facility managers
 Environmental services staff
 Functional and space programmers
 Commissioning agent
 Community representatives
 Civil engineer
 Landscape architect
 Ecologist
 Land planner
 Construction manager or general contractor
 Life cycle cost analyst; construction cost estimator
 Lighting Designer
 Other disciplines appropriate to the specific project type
Design Charrette
As early as practical and preferably before schematic design, conduct a minimum four-
hour integrated design charrette with the project team as defined above. The goal is to
optimize the integration of green strategies across all aspects of building design,
construction, and operations, drawing on the expertise of all participants.
Behind the Intent
The building systems and equipment of modern health care facilities impose large
environmental burdens on regional energy and water resources and contribute
significantly to greenhouse gas emissions. Hospitals in the United States, on average,
consume 2.5 times more energy per square foot than the average commercial building, for
example. In addition, health care projects have the mission of improving the health and
healing of patients while preventing the spread of disease. Because of their unique
challenges and conditions, health care facilities especially can benefit from implementing
an integrative process that guides the project from visioning to occupancy. A
comprehensive, integrative process accounts for the interactions of all building and site
systems, relying on an iterative cycle of analysis, workshops, implementation, and
performance feedback. This prerequisite focuses on establishing a framework for this
process and requires an integrative charrette that clarifies the strategies and goals for the
project’s guiding documents.
Step-by-Step Guidance
Projects starting after the programming and predesign phase should complete
requirements as early as practical and preferably before the schematic design phase.
Projects beginning this process after predesign are still eligible for Healthcare certification
but should complete the requirements as early as possible.
Step 1. Identify Project Team
During predesign or at the start of the design process, assemble an integrative project
team with at least four members in addition to the owner or owner’s representative.
 Review the list of eligible project team members in the prerequisite requirements.
 If possible, include a representative from the builder or construction manager so
that cost and construction considerations are integrated into the development of
design concepts.
 If possible, include a representative from the health care facility’s staff.
 Ensure that the team members have broad enough experience to contribute
meaningfully to the major areas of focus.
Step 2. Prepare for Integrative Design Charrette
Before the initial integrative design charrette, become familiar with the integrative process
and complete preliminary research and analysis to support effective and informed
discussions about potential integrative design opportunities.
 Review the Integrative Process (IP) ANSI Consensus National Standard Guide© 2.0
for Design and Construction of Sustainable Buildings and Communities, which
provides step-by-step guidance for implementing an integrative process.
 Review the Integrative Process credit, which is derived from the IP ANSI Standard
Guide and focuses on early, iterative analysis of energy- and water-related systems.
 Collect information about the local climate, site conditions, waste treatment
infrastructure, energy load distribution, water sources, transportation options, and
potential building features.
Step 3. Convene Integrative Design Charrette
Hold an initial integrative charrette to align the project team around the owner’s goals for
the project, including budget, schedule, functional programmatic requirements, scope,
quality and performance expectations, and occupants’ expectations. Use the charrette to
accomplish the following:
 Introduce all project team members to the fundamentals of the integrative process
 Share initial background research and analysis from Step 2
 Elicit the owner’s and stakeholders’ values, aspirations, and requirements
 Clarify functional and programmatic goals
 Establish initial principles, benchmarks, metrics, and performance targets
 Identify desired LEED certification level and credits to be targeted
 Generate potential strategies for achieving performance targets
 Determine the questions that must be answered to support project decisions
 Initiate development of the project’s health mission statement
Retain a copy of the action plan.
Step 4. Document Goals and Performance Targets
Prepare the owner’s project requirements (OPR), including the project goals, performance
and LEED targets, and health mission statement (see EA Prerequisite Fundamental
Commissioning, Further Explanation, Owner’s Project Requirements).
 Ensure that the health mission statement meets the credit requirements and
reinforces any existing corporate and/or institutional commitments to environmental
health and community responsibility.
 Consider continuing the integrative process throughout design.
Further Explanation
Campus
Group Approach
All buildings in the group may be documented as one.
Campus Approach
Eligible.
Required Documentation
Documentation All Projects

Narrative explaining how health X

mission statement addresses
credit requirements

Action plan from preliminary X

rating goals

Related Credit Tips

Integrative Process Credit
The related credit requires implementing a detailed energy and water analysis to maximize
synergies of the building systems through design improvements. Its initial steps will help
Healthcare projects plan and implement a successful design charrette.
Changes from LEED 2009
 The required charrette duration has changed from a full day to four hours.
 Disciplines have been added to the list of eligible professions on the integrative
design team.
Referenced Standards
ANSI Consensus National Standard Guide© 2.0 for Design and Construction of Sustainable
Buildings and Communities (February 2, 2012): ansi.org
Exemplary Performance
Not available.
Definitions
None.
Integrative Process
Credit
This credit applies to:
 New Construction (1 point)
 Core and Shell (1 point)
 Schools (1 point)
 Retail (1 point)
 Data Centers (1 point)
 Warehouses and Distribution Centers (1 point)
 Hospitality (1–5 points)
 Healthcare (1–5 points)
Intent
To support high-performance, cost-effective project outcomes through an early analysis of
the interrelationships among systems.
Requirements
Beginning in pre-design and continuing throughout the design phases, identify and use
opportunities to achieve synergies across disciplines and building systems. Use the
analyses described below to inform the owner’s project requirements (OPR), basis of
design (BOD), design documents, and construction documents.
Energy-Related Systems
Discovery
Perform a preliminary “simple box” energy modeling analysis before the completion of
schematic design that explores how to reduce energy loads in the building and accomplish
related sustainability goals by questioning default assumptions. Assess at least two
potential strategies associated with the following:
 Site conditions. Assess shading, exterior lighting, hardscape, landscaping, and
adjacent site conditions.
 Massing and orientation. Assess how massing and orientation affect HVAC sizing,
energy consumption, lighting, and renewable energy opportunities.
 Basic envelope attributes. Assess insulation values, window-to-wall ratios, glazing
characteristics, shading, and window operability.
 Lighting levels. Assess interior surface reflectance values and lighting levels in
occupied spaces.
 Thermal comfort ranges. Assess thermal comfort range options.
 Plug and process load needs. Assess reducing plug and process loads through
programmatic solutions (e.g., equipment and purchasing policies, layout options).
  Programmatic and operational parameters. Assess multifunctioning spaces,
operating schedules, space allotment per person, teleworking, reduction of building
area, and anticipated operations and maintenance.
Implementation
Document how the above analysis informed design and building form decisions in the
project’s OPR and BOD and the eventual design of the project, including the following, as
applicable:
 Building and site program;
 Building form and geometry;
 Building envelope and façade treatments on different orientations;
 Elimination and/or significant downsizing of building systems (e.g., HVAC, lighting,
controls, exterior materials, interior finishes, and functional program elements); and
 Other systems.
Water-Related Systems
Discovery
Perform a preliminary water budget analysis before the completion of schematic design
that explores how to reduce potable water loads in the building and accomplish related
sustainability goals. Assess and estimate the project’s potential nonpotable water supply
sources and water demand volumes, including the following:
 Indoor water demand. Assess flow and flush fixture design case demand volumes,
calculated in accordance with WE Prerequisite Indoor Water-Use Reduction.
 Outdoor water demand. Assess landscape irrigation design case demand volume
calculated in accordance with WE Credit Outdoor Water-Use Reduction.
 Process water demand. Assess kitchen, laundry, cooling tower, and other equipment
demand volumes, as applicable.
 Supply sources. Assess all potential nonpotable water supply source volumes, such
as on-site rainwater and graywater, municipally supplied nonpotable water, and
HVAC equipment condensate.
Implementation
Document how the above analysis informed building and site design decisions in the
project’s OPR and BOD. Demonstrate how at least one on-site nonpotable water supply
source was used to reduce the burden on municipal supply or wastewater treatment
systems by contributing to at least two of the water demand components listed above.
Demonstrate how the analysis informed the design of the project, including the following,
as applicable:
 Plumbing systems;
 Sewage conveyance and/or on-site treatment systems;
 Rainwater quantity and quality management systems;
 Landscaping, irrigation, and site elements;
 Roofing systems and/or building form and geometry; and
  Other systems.
Behind the Intent
An integrative process is a comprehensive approach to building systems and equipment.
Project team members look for synergies among systems and components, the mutual
advantages that can help achieve high levels of building performance, human comfort,
and environmental benefits. The process should involve rigorous questioning and
coordination and challenge typical project assumptions. Team members collaborate to
enhance the efficiency and effectiveness of every system. The Integrative Process credit
goes beyond checklists and encourages integration during early design stages, when
clarifying the owner’s aspirations, performance goals, and project needs will be most
effective in improving performance. An integrative process comprises three phases. The
first—discovery—is also the most important and can be seen as an expansion of what is
conventionally called predesign. Actions taken during discovery are essential to achieving
a project’s environmental goals cost-effectively. The second phase, design and
construction, begins with what is conventionally called schematic design. Unlike its
conventional counterpart, however, in the integrative process, design will incorporate all of
the collective understandings of system interactions that were found during discovery. The
third phase is the period of occupancy, operations, and performance feedback. Here, the
integrative process measures performance and sets up feedback mechanisms. Feedback is
critical to determining success in achieving performance targets, informing building
operations, and taking corrective action when targets are missed. A fully integrative
process accounts for the interactions among all building and site systems; this credit
serves as an introduction to the comprehensive process, rewarding project teams that
apply an integrative approach to energy and water systems. By understanding building
system interrelationships, project teams will ideally discover unique opportunities for
innovative design, increased building performance, and greater environmental benefits
that will earn more LEED points. By identifying synergies between systems, teams will save
time and money in both the short and the long term while optimizing resource use. Finally,
the integrative process can avoid the delays and costs resulting from design changes
during the construction documents phase and can reduce change orders during
construction. Through the integrative process, project teams can more effectively use LEED
as a comprehensive tool for identifying interrelated issues and developing synergistic
strategies. When applied properly, the integrative process reveals the degree to which
LEED credits are related, rather than individual items on a checklist.
Step-by-Step Guidance
Discovery Steps
Step 1. Become Familiar with Integrative Process
Review the Integrative Process (IP) ANSI Consensus National Standard Guide© 2.0 for
Design and Construction of Sustainable Buildings and Communities, which provides step-
by-step guidance and a methodology for improving building design, construction, and
operations through a replicable, integrative process. Although this standard encourages
project teams to engage in a comprehensive integrative process, the credit requirements
address only the discovery phase, whose steps are similar to those described in the ANSI
guide for engaging energy and water-related systems.
Step 2. Conduct Preliminary Energy Research and Analysis (in concert with Step 3)
Complete energy-related research and analysis to support effective and informed
discussions about potential integrative design opportunities (see Further Explanation,
Recommended Preliminary Data Collection).
 Collect information about the local climate, site conditions, energy sources,
transportation options, and potential building features.
 Use the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s Target Finder tool or other data
sources to benchmark energy performance for the project’s type, scope, occupancy,
and location.
 Develop a “simple box” energy model (assuming a simplified building form) to
generate a basic distribution of energy uses and identify dominant energy loads.
 Use this conceptual energy model to analyze design alternatives for potential load
reduction strategies (see Further Explanation, Recommended Preliminary Energy
Analysis and Example 1).
Step 3. Conduct Preliminary Water Research and Analysis (in concert with Step 2)
Complete water-related research and analysis to support effective and informed
discussions about potential integrative design opportunities.
 Collect information about waste treatment infrastructure, water sources, and
potential building features (see Further Explanation, Recommended Preliminary Data
Collection).
 Assess expected water demand for indoor, outdoor, and process water using the
methodologies for WE Prerequisite Indoor Water Use Reduction, WE Prerequisite
Outdoor Water Use Reduction, and WE Credit Cooling Tower Water Use.
 Gather data to quantify the project’s potential nonpotable supply sources, such as
captured rainwater, graywater from flow fixtures, or condensate from HVAC cooling
equipment.
 Conduct a preliminary water budget analysis to quantify how fixture and equipment
selection and nonpotable supply sources may offset potable water use for the water
demands.
Step 4. Convene Goal-Setting Workshop
Introduce all project team members to the fundamentals of the integrative process.
Engage the project owner in a primary project team workshop to determine the project
goals, including budget, schedule, functional programmatic requirements, scope, quality,
performance, and occupants’ expectations. Understanding the owner’s goals promotes
creative problem solving and encourages interaction. This workshop should accomplish
the following:
  Share initial background research and analysis findings from steps 2 and 3.
 Elicit the owner’s and stakeholders’ values and aspirations.
 Clarify functional and programmatic goals.
 Establish initial principles, benchmarks, metrics, and performance targets.
 Identify initial responsibilities and deliverables.
 Initiate documentation of the owner’s project requirements (OPR).
 Identify targeted LEED credits.
Step 5. Evaluate Possible Energy Strategies (in concert with Step 6)
Evaluate the proposed goals and performance targets for feasibility by exploring possible
strategies for the project’s energy-related systems. Evaluate strategies against the initial
performance targets and targeted LEED credits. It is recommended that project teams
engage this initial early research and analysis by evaluating each subsystem described in
the ANSI Consensus National Standard Guide© 2.0 for Design and Construction of
Sustainable Buildings and Communities. Conduct preliminary comparative energy
modeling using the “simple box” energy model (Step 2) before completing schematic
design to evaluate energy load reduction strategies (see Further Explanation,
Recommended Preliminary Energy Analysis and Example 2). Aspects to consider include
the following:
 Site conditions. Landscape solar shading, exterior lighting, feasibility for natural
ventilation, adjacent site conditions.
 Massing and orientation. Number of floors, building footprint, configuration, solar
orientation.
 Building envelope attributes. Wall and roof insulation, thermal mass, window size
and orientation, exterior shading devices, window performance (U-values, solar heat
gain coefficient, visible light transmittance).
 Lighting levels. Lighting power density, lighting needs in workspaces, reflectance
values for ceiling and wall surfaces, high-efficiency lighting fixtures and controls,
daylighting.
 Thermal comfort ranges. Temperature setpoints and thermal comfort parameters.
 Plug and process loads. Equipment and purchasing policies, other programmatic
solutions, layout options.
 Programmatic and operational parameters. Hours of operation, space allotment per
person, shared program spaces, teleworking policies.
Conduct such preliminary modeling to assess at least two optional strategies for each of
the above seven aspects.
Step 6. Evaluate Possible Water Strategies (in concert with Step 5)
Evaluate the proposed goals and performance targets for feasibility by exploring possible
strategies for the project’s water-related systems. Conduct a preliminary water budget
analysis using research on potential water-use reduction strategies (Step 3). Aspects to
consider include the following:
  Indoor water use demand. Preliminary baseline and design case water consumption
inside the building, based on the building occupants’ use of assumed plumbing
fixture flow and flush rates (using the methodology for WE Prerequisite Indoor
Water Use).
 Outdoor water use demand. Preliminary baseline and design case water
consumption for landscape irrigation, based on assumed landscape strategies and
irrigation systems (using the methodology for WE Prerequisite Outdoor Water Use).
Gather data (in addition to that for Step 3) to assess and quantify the project’s potential
nonpotable supply sources, such as captured rainwater, greywater from flow fixtures, and
condensate produced by initially assumed HVAC cooling equipment. Assess and quantify
how potential nonpotable supply sources can be used to offset potable water use for the
water demands calculated above. Identify at least one on-site nonpotable water source
that could supply a portion of at least two demand components.
Implementation Step
Step 7. Document How Analysis Informed Design and Building Form
Document energy-related research and analysis from the discovery phase.
 Document how the above energy-related analysis informed design and building
form decisions in the project’s OPR and basis of design (BOD), including the
following, as applicable:
 Provide narrative explanations of the energy evaluation in the energy analysis
section of the Integrative Process worksheet (provided by USGBC) and identify at
least two options for each of the seven aspects listed in Step 5.
Document water-related research and analysis from the discovery phase.
 Document how the water-related analysis informed building and site design
decisions in the project’s OPR and BOD, including the following, as applicable:
 Provide narrative explanations of the water evaluation in the water analysis section
of the Integrative Process worksheet.