LEED CoreConcepts&Strategies_3rd edition - Page 041

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LOOK BEYOND FIRST COSTS TO LONG-TERM SAVINGS. This new process doesn?t typically cost more, but it does shift costs earlier. Increased efficiency and savings come later. Up-front goal setting, analysis, and evaluation of alternatives will assist in making decisions that result in savings over the long term through synergies and integration. Synergies are actions that complement each other, creating a whole greater than the sum of its parts. The savings are often reflected in life-cycle costing. Green strategies and technologies often have very short payback periods, but when organizations budget planning and design costs separately from capital projects and operations, savings in one category may not provide a persuasive argument for increased spending in another. It might be necessary to bring the stakeholders from these departments together to establish mechanisms for interdepartmental and collaborative decision making and funding.

INCLUDE AND COLLABORATE. Green building demands that a multidisciplinary team of professionals join with members of the community involved or affected by the project to look at the big picture, not just the individual elements that concern each of them most immediately.

Establishing an Iterative Process

All the activities described in this section take place in an iterative process that contains numerous feedback loops. An iterative process is circular and repetitive. It provides opportunities for setting goals and checking each idea against those goals.

An iterative process has a cyclical nature:

• Establish clear goals and overarching commitments
• Brainstorm and develop creative solutions
• Research and refine ideas
• Explore synergies between specific strategies
• Establish metrics for measuring success
• Set new goals based on the work that has been done

This is a way for project teams to apply systems thinking and integrative process. It differs from traditional processes in that it is not linear, as when one team member completes a task and passes the work off to the next person. Instead, the team works together, in small groups and as a whole, to develop the project design and plan collaboratively. Ideas are continually being developed by the entire team, researched and refined by smaller groups, and then brought back to the team to consider critical next steps and make final decisions.

In early project meetings, it is important to establish a common commitment to the planning and implementation process. Some team members might not be familiar with an iterative process. Even when the team is experienced, it is worth reviewing the steps to ensure that all team members understand it in the

Figure 3.1. Iterative Process. Development Iteration: Establish goals; Brainstorm; Research/refine; Synergize; Implement; Measure.

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