Sunday, January 5, 2014

Welcome to the Chapter, Electric Film! A New Chapter Sponsoring Partner

We are celebrating our most recent Chapter Sponsoring Partner - Thank you for becoming a Bronze Chapter Sponsor, Electric Film, LLC.


Take a look at their website: http://www.electricfilmllc.com/



From Kevin Dibasitis at Electric Film:

ElectricFilm is a unique light harvesting technology that has been developed and advanced over the past quarter century. The lightweight, flexible film has been engineered to capture indoor, or low light (50 to 2,000 lux) with high efficiency. The film is manufactured of low cost materials with a roll to roll process that allows for custom sizes to work with multiple applications.

This harvesting solution converts light from anywhere into electricity that can power numerous Smart Building devices from automated, motorized window shade systems to block heat gain, to smart thermostats that reduce energy consumption to motion detectors/cameras and electronic door locks that can enhance building security. The ElectricFilm harvest solution allows these devices to be wireless, reducing the cost of hardwiring and allowing for greater installation flexibility.

ElectricFilm greatly extends the battery life for all of these devices reducing O & M costs for primary batteries (and having to dispose of those batteries in the environment), and the labor time and inconvenience of having to change batteries.

ElectricFilm is based in Newburyport, MA which includes all of our research & development along with our new production plant which is under construction and due to come on line by the end of Q1 2014. All production will be performed here in the USA, so while we are a Green building technology, we are also Red, White & Blue!

Wednesday, January 1, 2014

2013 Review - Reprint from the NEREJ

It [was] a great year for the green building industry. The state of Massachusetts was recognized as having the best energy efficiency and renewable energy policies and incentives in the country by ACEEE (the American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy) with Boston recognized as "most energy efficient city" on account of the many programs that have been implemented lately to encourage and achieve significant energy savings. This includes the Greenovate Boston community-engagement brand, the Renew Boston program, and the building energy reporting & disclosure ordinance. As these policies move through the market, they will enhance asset values and improve the end-user experience, attracting better businesses to our region.

124 buildings were LEED certified in Massachusetts this year, of a total of 829 overall. In the past two months, we've seen 15 more projects attain LEED, including 150 Second St. in Cambridge which earned LEED CS Platinum with the help of Chapter sponsor The Green Engineer. We've seen 117 firms renew or newly join the USGBC as national member firms, including RDK Engineers and Paul Lukez Architects. And the green building movement continues: the Chapter was proud to support Boston Properties' LEED-Platinum targeted Boston Garden Project at a recent Boston Redevelopment Authority hearing.

Thank you to our many sponsors and to our many volunteers. We will be hosting our annual Volunteer Recognition event during our Annual Meeting at EnerNOC on January 29th in Boston. We have lined up a smorgasbord of green building gurus to bring a variety of quick presentations to us that they delivered at Greenbuild in Philadelphia in November. You can find more details on our website's event calendar: www.usgbcma.org/events

There are many ways to stay abreast of the burgeoning green building industry through the USGBC. Take a look at our YouTube Channel (USGBC MA) to find a series of short videos describing exemplary projects in Massachusetts such as Grousbeck Hall at the Perkins School and the North Shore Community College - the State's first "Net Zero" academic facility. You can follow us on facebook & twitter. Are you keeping up with the discussions on Linkedin? We have a lot going on with our advocacy work and our events.

Thank you again for your work to make our region a better place for all by creating more green buildings.

Grey Lee, MSc, LEED AP, is the executive director of the USGBC Mass. Chapter, Boston and is a monthly contributing author for the New England Real Estate Journal's Green Building section.

Wednesday, December 11, 2013

Thank you to LDa Architecture & Interiors - a new sponsoring partner!

Thank you LDa - you rock!

LDa came into the Chapter Community during our LEED Project Showcase with three certified projects - two homes and a residential community at a college. Great examples of important green design work enabling Massachusetts to continue to be a leader in green building.

LEED Platinum - Weston Jesuit Community Housing at Boston College

LDa is committed to finding a meaningful balance between the traditions of New England architecture and the demands of contemporary living. For the last 20 years, their award winning projects have provided clients with thoughtful and inspired residential and interior design solutions rich in detail and craft with a focus on lasting value and sustainability. LDa engages clients in a process of collaborative, responsive design, resulting in comfortable, functional, and timeless spaces. LDa is a leader in sustainable design, having completed over a dozen LEED for Homes projects.

You can find more information about LDa at their website,

and on facebook,

and at their blog!


Thank you to Douglas Dick and Peter Nobile for connecting with us, and the Amanda Hanley for coordinating the relationship. We look forward to having you on board and working with us to make more green buildings in Massachusetts!

Riverfront Farmhouse in Concord, MA - LEED Silver


Thursday, December 5, 2013

The Green Giants Are Here!

Congratulations to the Green Giants of the green building community in Western Massachusetts.

The West Branch of the USGBC MA Chapter has recognized outstanding contributors to the growth of our movement.

The winners were recognized at a joint USGBC MA West Branch & AIA Western Mass. annual dinner event on Dec. 4th, 2013. Over 60 people came out to celebrate the Green Giants and to hear from a series of presenters on local architecture and planning successes.


The following is a synopsis by Laura Fitch, the organizer of the Green Giants program:

Green Giants - 2013 Green Building Local Hero Awards Program
Sponsored by the US Green Building Council Massachusetts – West Branch (USGBCMA-West)

Committee: Laura Fitch, Aelan Tierney Jon Birtwell, Lawson Wulsin
Jury: Grey Lee, Sandra Brock, Phoebe Beierle, Stephen Muzzy

The Green Giants Award Program was created by our chapter to honor the work of trades people, educators, and owners/program directors who help build, teach about, envision and fund the green buildings in Hampshire, Hampden, Franklin, and Berkshire counties. This program is intentionally distinct from other building design awards in its attempt to look at and honor a wider range of participants behind the sustainable building movement in our region.

Buildings consume a huge percentage of our energy and resources and create a tremendous amount of waste. In this time of global climate change, the USGBC is actively promoting green buildings as part of the solution. This goal however is largely implemented by Trades People, Educators or Building Owners – the true unsung heroes in this critical movement.



We chose to award 7 people in 3 categories. The following summarizes the presentation made regarding these recipients at the awards event:

  1. Trades Category
The Green Giants Program sought to recognize individuals from any building trade or maintenance program who have gone the extra mile to ensure that a building (or campus) meets its sustainability goals.

Green Giants - trades

Honorable Mention - trades
Michael Broad, Construction Supervisor

Honorable Mention - trades
Tom Rossmassler, President and CEO of Energia in Holyoke



  1. Educational Programs Category
Green Giants sought to recognize any teacher or organization behind an innovative green building program that inspires and actively teaches the next generation of designers, engineers, and trades people who will in their turn advance our green building revolution.

Green Giant - education
for her work in developing the Sustainable Practices in Construction curriculum at GCC

Honorable Mention - education
Westover Job Corps Center, Chicopee
and Gregory Briggs, Carpentry Instructor



  1. Owner Category
The Green Giant program also recognized owners and institutions that envisioned and funded an exemplary green project, knowing that without their vision and money none of this would happen.

for Private Owner
Riverstone Development
for Two Pond Farm Land Co-op and Sustainable Neighborhood.

For Institutional Owner
Bement School

For two dormitory projects (as yet un-named)