Cold Spring Finds LEED® Gold

The natural-stone quarrier/fabricator won a LEED® Gold certification from the U.S. Green Building Council for its 22,500 ft² head office, signifying a major effort in sustainable design.
“As a leader in our industry, Cold Spring Granite is always committed to going beyond the standard, just as we did in deciding to pursue LEED Gold certification,” said John Mattke, CSG president/CEO. “LEED certification goes hand-in-hand with our mission of being a strong corporate citizen, providing a good place to work and being a good steward of our environmental resources.”
The new building was designed to achieve LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design™) certification for energy use, lighting, water and material use as well as incorporating a variety of other sustainable strategies.
As part of the LEED specification for using regional material, all stone for the building came from CSG’s own quarries within 250 miles of the project site. The use of regional materials exceeded 46 percent, gaining a LEED innovation point for exemplary performance.
The building incorporates CSG’s Carnelian™ granite with a Diamond 100 finish as the main cladding; split limestone sills and medallions between the main window sections; and polished Rainbow™ granite as the accent band.
The structure also incorporates historical elements from the company’s downtown industrial site, including a front entryway with truss columns that formerly held up the old building’s exterior crane beams.
A variable frequency drive on the building’s rooftop fan’s motor also figured into the LEED score. The fan increases efficiency in recirculating air throughout the building, offering an energy savings of more than 36 percent, based on the American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE) standard.
The new headquarters also features a containment of outside-lighting glare, high solar reflection from white aggregate roof material and collection of stormwater runoff to infiltration ponds for pretreatment. Landscaping and irrigation systems are designed to reduce water consumption by 82 percent; irrigation water used on site is supplied by a non-potable source.
CSG’s new headquarters was designed by Miller Architects & Builders of St. Cloud, Minn., with extensive input from CSG employee teams.
“As is typical with our company’s open culture, employees were involved in every aspect of this new building’s creation,” said Ray Jaeger, CSG engineering manager. “Employee committees helped guide our efforts, providing feedback on office layouts, design features, stone selection, landscaping and even how far we went with the LEED process. We found that this involvement helped ease our employees’ transition to the new space, as we were making a significant change to the work environment.”
“Cold Spring Granite’s LEED certification demonstrates tremendous green building leadership,” said Rick Fedrizzi, President, CEO & Founding Chair, U.S. Green Building Council. “The urgency of USGBC’s mission has challenged the industry to move faster and reach further than ever before, and Cold Spring Granite’s new headquarters serves as a prime example with just how much we can accomplish.”