Make Your Commercial Building More Sustainable

Whether you’re in the business of building new commercial buildings, or you own one, sustainability is likely something you’ve been considering for a variety of reasons. For starters, today’s consumers want to know that the companies they’re purchasing from are as environmentally friendly as possible—and that includes measures to make facilities more sustainable. Sustainability helps you save money on energy and resources, too.

So how can you make your building more sustainable? There are many things you can do. If you’re a builder, for example, you can focus on steel or modular construction—and use a nailer like the ET&F® (a BECK member) AERICO® 90, which is designed for use with sustainable construction methods like steel and modular construction. But that’s just the beginning. Let’s dig deeper!

Sustainable Materials

Building sustainably often means choosing materials that can be recycled or that can be produced in a sustainable manner. For example, steel construction is sustainable because it can be recycled at the end of the building’s lifespan.

Certain types of lumber are sustainable, too. It’s all in whether a particular species can grow quickly enough to replenish building supplies. Hardwoods like maple, for example, even though they take a long time to grow, typically also have a long lifespan as a building and finishing material. For general construction, softwoods like Douglas fir and eastern white pine are fast growers that create strong structures.

Conversely, certain types of building materials aren’t sustainable. Concrete is a prime example of this since the components to make it are mined and can’t be replenished or recycled.

Innovative Materials

The sustainable materials that we discussed above have all been around for a while. There’s a whole host of new, innovative sustainable materials coming to market, too. For example, rather than relying on foam or fiberglass insulation, look for organic hemp insulation, which is chemical-free, biodegradable, and sustainably manufactured.

Mass timber construction is one of the most prominent examples of innovative new materials hitting the market today. Mass timber construction is a type of modular construction made entirely from wood, with panels and building assemblies created on a factory floor rather than onsite. Not only is it sustainable, but it works well with other sustainable products—like, for example, the patented LignoLoc® Wooden Nail System, which features sustainable, collated wooden fasteners specially designed for this type of construction.

Consider Passive Design

Passive design is a design principle that is getting a lot of attention lately—and that’s because it makes use of the climate in a given area to help make buildings more comfortable and energy efficient. For example, in cooler climates, you can use passive design principles or orient a building—and the building’s windows—such that it makes use of sunshine to help warm the building on cold days.

Sustainability in Pre-Existing Buildings

If you’re utilizing a building that has already been built, you can’t go back and opt for sustainable construction materials—but you can do sustainable retrofits while also encouraging sustainable practices among your workforce.

Here are some sustainable retrofits you can do:

• Rework your ventilation and HVAC system to make it more efficient.
• Upgrade the building’s windows.
• Install energy-efficient lightbulbs.
• Use architectural films on windows to keep buildings cooler.
• Shift to renewable energy sources through solar panels, wind turbines, and other renewable energy sources.

Sustainable practices include:

• Encouraging ride sharing.
• Making recycling a priority.
• Encourage the use of reusable supplies.

Choose Sustainable Fastener Systems for Commercial Building Construction

Sustainability isn’t just about the building materials or essential systems like HVAC and plumbing. Even the details, like the fasteners you choose for commercial construction, help make buildings more sustainable. And if you’re looking for a sustainable fastener option, the ET&F® AERICO® 90 fastener system is an excellent choice.

This system was designed to deliver the power you need for things like steel construction. It can drive fasteners into 3/16’ steel, and it’s capable of driving pins up to 2 ¼’ long, which means you can build not only sustainable structures but durable ones.

The AERICO® 90 system is also ideally suited for wood sheathing, wood structural panels, and engineered products like Hardie siding. This means that you can build steel structures—and use this fastener system to attach wall panels, subfloors, and much more! Click below to see everything this system has to offer👇