Shaw Industries Group Inc. — a Dalton, Ga.-based floor covering provider and subsidiary of Berkshire Hathaway Inc. — announces its Reclaim to Energy (Re2E) facility in Dalton has received Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED?) Silver certification for New Construction from the U.S. Green Building Council.
The 35,397-square-foot facility started converting carpet to steam energy in 2012 to provide an alternative power supply for two neighboring carpet-manufacturing facilities. Shaw estimates the operation will convert 84 million pounds of carpet annually into 50,000 pounds of steam energy per hour — enough to power approximately 7,500 homes annually — and will eventually co-generate enough electrical energy to help power its own operations.
Other green initiatives contributing to Re2E's LEED certification include cost savings that are 20-percent greater than buildings complying only with Georgia's energy code; a landscape irrigation system that reduces by half the use of potable water or other natural water resources on or near the project site; incorporation of building materials that achieve more than 28-percent recycled content; and use of low-emitting materials, including Shaw Contract Group's Site Lines Carpet Tile that comprises 44-percent recycled content, is 100-percent recyclable and is Cradle to Cradle certified (CM) to the Silver level.
"Our engineering and facilities staff worked diligently to identify opportunities to decrease our environmental impact as well as reduce operating costs at this facility," said Paul Murray, vice president of sustainability and environmental affairs, Shaw Industries. "Earning LEED points for an industrial facility in a non-metropolitan area requires more thought and planning than for an office building in a more urban area because such facilities can't readily take advantage of site-based points such as development density or transportation connectivity."
