When the British Columbia Government Employees Union (BCGEU) planned for their new Fraser Valley Headquarters Building in Langley, they decided to go green and opted for LEED gold status. The building, described as a showplace to green thinking is located on 198th Street in Langley and is home to Fraser Valley Area Office and the union’s Organizing Department.
The building has a great deal of glass and yet the overall energy performance of the building were low enough to meet tough standards comparable to similar energy efficient buildings with less glass, because of reflective coatings and remote control blinds. Light Emitting Diode (LED) light fixtures were utilized and these consume only a fraction of the power of other comparable lighting arrangements. Although the BCGEU invested about 20 % more for the initial building costs the life cycle cost of the structure is expected to be comparable because of reduced operating and maintenance costs.
Western Mechanical Services participated in this green building project by providing the fundamental and best practice commissioning services.