Forum discussion
NC-2009 MRc4: Recycled Content
Per the LEED Ref. Guide MR Overview Table 1, CSI Division 12 "may be included with Divisions 3-10, if done consistently for credits 3-7."
Does this mean we can selectively choose which Div. 12 items to include in all the MR credits (ex. include 123116 Mfr. Metal Sandwich Panel Casework but exclude 123623 Plastic Countertops) or does it mean that if we include any item from Div. 12 on the project then we have to include all Div. 12 materials?
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The recycled content percentage on the product data sheet is given as a range. What should I do?
Is the default average recycled content value of 25% for steel still allowed?
Can site materials, such as soil, be included in the MR credit calculations?
Are there recycled content claims that I should be wary of?
Michelle Robinson Schwarting
148 thumbs up
September 25, 2015 - 9:54 pm
However in LEED v4 Ref. Guide in the overview to Materials & Resources, under the "Qualifying Products and Exclusions" with regards to passive MEP materials it says:
"If they are included in credit calculations, they must be included consistently across relevant MR credits. However, unlike furniture, if some of these products are included in credit calculations, not all products of that type must be included. For example, if the cost of ducts is included in the MR calculations for recycled content, the cost of ducts that do not meet the credit requirement does not need to be included in the numerator or denominator of the credit calculation."
So in v4 not necessarily all products would have to be included.
Also, there's a really old LEED Interpretation from 2003 (#3005) that says:
"Materials in CSI Masterformat Divisions 2 through 10 must be included. If a project team chooses to include additional items as part of the base material cost, such as elevators, appliances, hot tubs, or other semi-mechanical/electrical components, it should do so for all relevant material credits, which include MR Credits 3, 4, 5 and 6 (note that MR Credit 7 utilizes a different cost denominator, referencing only the wood-based products of the building). "
So back in v2 you could pick and choose for those kinds of items as well.
Because of these two references, I'm not sure that the entire Division 12 would have to be included. (Both v4 and v2 also had clearer definitions of "furniture" than simply referring to Div. 12...)
Has anyone submitted with only some materials from Div. 12, and what was the LEED Reviewer response?
Jon Clifford
LEED-AP BD+CGREENSQUARE
LEEDuser Expert
327 thumbs up
September 26, 2015 - 5:01 pm
I think the operative words are “if done consistently,” but I came to this conclusion from a different direction.
LEEDv4 has completely revamped the MR credits, so the V4 citation above may not apply to LEEDv3. Indeed, its reference to ducts is irrelevant, as LEEDv3 explicitly excludes HVAC work specified in CSI Division 23. Since this is an NCv3 forum, I will focus on V3.
Similarly, LI#3005, which addressed MEP work as well as furniture, does not apply to NCv3. When this and several other rulings came down, NCv2 requirements were still evolving. In the decade since, newer Reference Guides have supplanted many of these early Rulings.
However, of these old rulings, LI#3901 is still relevant to NCv3. It clarified that built-in furniture may be included in LEED credit calculations. The ruling also allowed non-permanent furniture to be included, “BUT ONLY if furniture is included in the project's scope of work. Furniture must then be included in all relevant credit calculations or none at all…. A common sense approach must be taken when deciding what to include as furniture. LEED certification reviews will ensure that project teams are reasonable with what they choose to include and will not skew the results and conflict with the intent of LEED.”
More recently, LI#10294 provided a clear definition for furniture and distinguished between “permanent,” “base building” “real estate” and “non-permanent” furniture that is “personal property” (http://www.usgbc.org/leed-interpretations?keys=10294). This ruling also highlights that CSI Division numbers do not align perfectly with these definitions. Division 12 includes items that, for many projects, are permanent (casework, countertops, walk-off systems, etc.). Division 10 includes items that this ruling excludes as non-permanent furniture (visual display units).
Therefore, when I have documented NC MR Credits, I have included only those Division 12 items purchased as permanent, base-building construction. I have chosen to exclude movable and “non-permanently” affixed furniture and other items bid and purchased separately as furniture, fixtures, & equipment (FF&E).
At a "LEED Certification Work Zone" at a past GreenBuild, a GBCI Reviewer concurred with this approach. She recommended that we document our rationale in case reviewers question our choices.
RETIRED
LEEDuser Expert
623 thumbs up
December 24, 2015 - 6:41 pm
I posed this question to Kristen Vachon Vogel, Certification Reviewer, at the GBCI Certification Work Zone at Greenbuild in DC. Sorry for my belated post. She confirmed verbally that all of Division 12 must be included or excluded.
She followed up with this via e-mail: "In NC v2009, Div 12 may be included or excluded, as long as it is done consistently throughout the project. If included, all items in Div 12 must be included in the denominator (Total Materials Cost), unless otherwise noted in the guidance (ex. artwork and plants are to be excluded)."
Anya Fiechtl
ArchitectBuro Happold
74 thumbs up
July 1, 2020 - 5:06 pm
I'm wondering if some division 10 specialties could be excluded from the total materials cost, such as signage and window film/tinting and graphics. These can be high cost, mostly due to the design and customization, whereas the material itself is inexpensive (and less likely to have recycled content). Asking for a CI v4 project, but also assume the response would apply to NC v4.
Edit: Also, The LEEDv4 BPDO calculator includes Div 11 (equipment/appliances), and for ID+C also Div12 (furnishings)... Why is this? Are there exceptions? It seems to me that equipment/appliances should be excluded from the total materials costs, as these are high cost products due to their specialty or customization. Whereas the materials used in these products probably represents a small portion of the cost. And products in these divisions are typically not permanently attached to the building, so what is the intent behind their inclusion?