One of the largest industrial buildings in Northeastern Pennsylvania has received a prestigious environmental certification from the United States Green Building Council (USGBC).
Mericle Commercial Real Estate Services has obtained LEED® for New Construction for the 744,080 square foot industrial facility it leases to Kimberly Clark on CenterPoint Boulevard in CenterPoint Commerce & Trade Park East, Jenkins Township.
LEED® stands for “Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design,” and is a national industry measurement tool created by the USGBC to define the industry’s most environmentally conscious projects.
LEED® provides third-party verification that a building was designed and built using strategies aimed at improving performance across metrics such as energy savings, water efficiency, improved indoor environmental quality, and stewardship of resources and sensitivity to their impacts.
Two of Mericle’s in-house design professionals recently earned USGBC LEED® professional accreditation.
The industrial facility was built by Mericle to Kimberly Clark’s exact specifications on a greyfield redevelopment site. Mericle completed remediation and stabilization of the site approximately one year prior to constructing the building.
Mericle undertook a variety of steps to garner LEED® High efficiency, T5 fluorescent high-bay light fixtures were installed in the warehouse. The lights are zoned and fitted with motion sensor technology to reduce power consumption. Various water reduction devices were used to reduce water consumption by 40%. High efficiency gas-fired roof top units were installed throughout the building and insulated steel overhead doors and dock seals were installed at the loading areas for more energy efficient envelope. certification.
Mericle also specified native and adaptable landscaping, which does not require irrigation.
Mericle started a Green Building Program several years ago with a commitment to provide lower operating costs to tenants through the implementation of eco-friendly, energy-saving measures. By constructing tight building envelopes, installing energy-efficient T-bay lighting and HVAC systems, improving ventilation and indoor air quality, and by using native and adaptive landscaping and recycled/regional materials, Mericle is making a concerted effort to “go green.”
“More and more corporations are starting to put energy efficiency specifications in their requests for proposals,” said Mericle Vice President Bill Jones. “Most major companies are very concerned about the rising cost of energy and many prefer to work with real estate developers that have LEED® experience. As the only developer in the region with industrial LEED experience, we are confident that we can meet the needs of any industrial client.”
Mericle’s Kimberly Clark project is the second industrial building in Northeastern Pennsylvania to receive LEED® In 2009, Mericle received LEED® Silver Certification for Commercial Interiors for the 615,600 square foot fulfillment center it leases to Amazon.com in Humboldt Industrial Park near Hazleton. certification.
Mericle is working to obtain LEED® certification for other company-owned buildings.
Mericle began constructing CenterPoint in the fall of 2005. The park is located in Jenkins and Pittston Townships and is home to 24 companies that employ approximately 2,500 workers. Close to 5.3 million square feet of distribution, manufacturing, flex and office space has been built in the park.
Mericle Commercial Real Estate Services, founded by Rob Mericle, is a vertically-integrated company with more than 200 in-house professionals with expertise in all aspects of commercial real estate development and construction. The Mericle team includes licensed architects, land planners, professional engineers, surveyors, licensed electricians, plumbers, carpenters, certified public accountants, in-house legal counsel, leasing and marketing professionals, licensed brokers, property managers, and more.