What's new at CDS Associates?

You may not realize the significant environmental impact that U.S. buildings have: 65.2% of total electricity consumption; 36% of total primary energy use; 30% of total greenhouse gas emissions; 136 million tons of construction and demolition waste; and 40% of global raw materials use!

CDS is committed to reversing that trend through multi-disciplinary sustainable design, which focuses mainly on sustainable site and community planning, safeguarding water and water efficiency, energy efficiency and renewable energy, conservation of materials and resources, and indoor environmental quality. Our staff has been trained to facilitate an integrated design process that addresses those areas by pulling in owners, designers, contractors and even maintenance/custodial staff to participate in the creative solutions.

But sustainable design is not just a moral imperative, it is a good fiscal practice. The return on investment can include significantly reduced energy and operations costs, higher market value and rent, quicker resale, higher retail sales, lower mortgage rates and insurance premiums, and higher productivity. The most intensive sustainable-designed projects follow a design and construction procedure established by the US Green Building Council that can result in buildings being LEED® (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) certified as green buildings.

Leading the sustainable design efforts at CDS is James H. Warner III, AIA, LEED® APSenior Design Manager. Mr. Warner recently received LEED® accreditation from the USGBC, which illustrates his ability to facilitate the design process, to support and encourage integrated design, and streamline the application and building certification process. Sustainable design changes the whole paradigm of the built environment and reverses the trend of a "disposable society."