New England Regional Council of Carpenters (NERCC) Headquarters and Training Facility

The Carpenters Center

The renovation of an existing structure into the new 74,000 sf three-story Carpenters Center, which opened in February 2010, was designed not only to draw attention from the more than 280,000 commuters who pass by it on Interstate-93 each day but to blend into the residential neighborhood located on the opposite side. The building houses the Boston Carpenters Training Center and the Union’s Vision Center. The project was designed to showcase many of the materials used in the carpenters’ trade including a modern metal panel façade facing I-93 and a more traditional cedar-paneled façade facing the neighborhood.

Under the City of Boston’s Article 37 green building zoning requirements, the building was required to achieve LEED Certifiable status and submit all documentation to the City equivalent to the requirements for LEED Certification. 32 points were approved under LEED for New Construction v2.2 which achieved the equivalent of Certified, just one point shy of Silver.

In November 2008, I was a Guest Presenter in the New England Regional Council of Carpenters Apprentice Program LEED Course, Green Design and LEED at the New Carpenters Center.

In April 2011, the Carpenters Center was selected by The Association of Energy Engineers New England as a recipient of their annual Chapter Energy Project Award. This award honors projects with energy-conscious design and the Carpenters Center was recognized for its outstanding use of energy and energy savings. The building was projected to use 31.5% less energy than the ASHRAE baseline.