Signing on to a green project these days means a whole lot more than embracing some nice-sounding principles. A project's LEED certification level depends on points earned by a variety of strategies - design, material choices, and jobsite practices.
That means that anyone on a project can literally make or break it, LEED-wise, by not paying close enough attention. It can be as simple as not monitoring what material you put in which dumpster. 
Two recent trends make it even more challenging. One is the race for Silver, Gold, or Platinum LEED status, since plain old LEED just doesn't cut it these days.
On top of that, a new American Institute of Architects document says that, while architects are responsible for mapping the way for a project to earn LEED certification, they are not contractually responsible for guaranteeing LEED levels.
Bottom line: you have to know - and prove - what you're doing. Green projects can be profitable, once contractors understand how to bid them, and how to conduct them from a risk management and project management perspective.
Fortunately, BAC contractors don't have to figure it out themselves, thanks to the nation's only sustainable masonry certification program, developed by IMI and delivered all over the country, including a recent session in New Jersey.
"I left there with a new outlook on how to handle my LEED submittals for future projects," says Joe Acchione from Speranza Brickwork, Inc.
John Scrofani from J. Scrofani Construction Corp. attended because he knows that LEED work is inevitable, and appreciated the help. "This program has prepared us well," he says. Gerald Ganz from Ganz Masonry LCC agrees:
"I now have the information I need."
