Industry News

Office Depot, headquartered in Delray Beach, Fla., has announced plans to build and open its first LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design)-certified retail store in Austin, Texas, in mid-2008.

At the same time, Office Depot will investigate incorporating LEED certification into its store prototype. Office Depot has already piloted the green building design concept of "daylight harvesting" in its Greensboro, N.C., store, a concept that removes, on average, 250,000 pounds of carbon and greenhouse gases from the environment each year.

Office Depot is already a leader in the area of green construction, having achieved the following during 2006:

• Saved nearly 66 million kWh of electricity due to energy efficiency and conservation efforts in North American warehouses and stores;

• Avoided approximately $6.2 million in electricity costs due to energy efficiency and conservation efforts in North American facilities;

• Dramatically reduced Absolute Greenhouse Gas emissions by 10.1 percent across N.A. buildings;

• Retrofitted nearly entire store chain (1,186 stores in North American) to T5 high-output lighting; and

• Rolled out an energy management system upgrade to the majority of stores in an effort to track usage and trends in one central location.

"Office Depot has successfully implemented a number of environmental construction initiatives over the past few years," says Edward Costa, vice president of Construction for Office Depot. "We see both our membership in the U.S. Green Building Council and our long-term strategy of having a retail store prototype LEED-certified as examples of Office Depot’s environmental vision to increasingly buy green, be green and sell green."

More information is available at www.officedepot.com/corporatecitizenship and www.officedepot.com/environment.

C&D Transfer Station Sited Along Rail Line in Ohio

The Stark County, Ohio, Health Department has announced plans to issue a demolition materials transfer site permit to a company out of New Jersey that will be operating on a two-acre plot of ground in Louisville’s industrial park, according to a report in the Alliance Review (Alliance, Ohio).

According to Stark County Health Commissioner Bill Franks, this may be the only county in the state that requires licensing for transfer station operations, and state laws do not cover them.

A different company tried to get a permit to operate a transfer station at the same location two to three years ago, and when asked about the differences between the two, Franks explained the previous company had wanted the county to give them a variance because they wanted to transfer up to 50 percent solid waste, which the Ohio EPA allows.

"But this company (Hudson Logistics Inc. out of Passaic, N.J.) told us that’s all they want to transfer is C&D material. So, until they would violate these rules, we’re pretty much obligated to approve their application for a permit," Franks tells the Review.

The application for the site permit states the property is owned by Groffre Investments and Hudson Logistics will be leasing at least two acres of ground to operate on. The anticipated total demolition material to be transferred yet this year is listed as 25,000 tons with a total yearly transfer capacity anticipated at 100,000 tons.

The construction and demolition debris trans-load operations plan submitted by Hudson Logistics Inc. states the site is located with access to Broadway Road Northeast on the west boundary and runs along the Norfolk Southern rail line to the south, giving it direct rail access from the Norfolk Southern Canton Rail Yard, which is on the west side of Broadway Road, according to the report.

The facility will only accept C&D debris for trans-load and no other material will be delivered into the facility. Material delivered to the site will be properly inspected and segregated at its origin to ensure the material delivered consists only of C&D debris, the company says.

The C&D debris will be delivered to the site on railcars and will be spotted for trans-load along the side of the off-loading platform, which will consist of an existing 6-foot high retaining wall and an earth platform. The material will be loaded with an excavator directly onto a waiting truck. No material will be stockpiled on the ground for any reason, and dust suppression will be accomplished by the use of water nozzles.

Cardinal Health Seeks LEED Certification for HQ Expansion

Cardinal Health, Dublin, Ohio, a global provider of products and services for the health care industry, has started construction on a $50 million, 250,000-square-foot expansion at the company’s headquarters.

The new West Campus facility will be home to the Healthcare Supply Chain Services sector, a $74 billion business that was formed through the combination of the company’s pharmaceutical and medical products supply chain businesses.

Cardinal Health will also be seeking LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) certification from the U.S. Green Building Council for the West Campus facility. Cardinal Health’s West Campus will be the first facility in Dublin to receive LEED certification, according to a news release from the company.

The building is expected to be completed in spring 2009.

Cardinal Health selected Dublin-based Bird Houk Collaborative as the lead architect, Perkins+Will for interior design and Danis Building Construction Co. as the construction contractor for the project.

More information is available online at www.cardinalhealth.com.

North Carolina Counties Study C&D Recycling

North Carolina’s Raleigh and Wake counties have announced that they are funding a study to examine recycling options for construction and demolition material, according to a report in the News & Observer (Raleigh, N.C.).

The counties will split the study’s $41,000 cost.

The four-month study will examine how other communities handle debris and what markets are available for recycled materials.

Raleigh and Wake have considered an ordinance that would require the recycling of C&D debris, but no law has been enacted.

Wrecking Corp. Wins D.C. Demolition Contract

Wrecking Corp. of America has been awarded a contract for hazmat removal and demolition of two 12-story buildings on one of Washington DC’s busiest, high-traffic corners. The buildings are located at Connecticut Ave and K Street.

The project involves razing 400,000 square feet of concrete structure to sidewalk elevation. The project will begin this month, and is scheduled for completion next year. Clark Construction Group LLC is the general contractor for the project. Before actual demolition takes place the company will undertake significant asbestos removal.