Ratings in construction - international certification program LEED.

LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) is an international rating system and a globally recognized building certification program that confirms the use of the most efficient and environmentally friendly design, construction and operation methods.

Buildings are consumers of energy and resources – this is a well-known fact. LEED standards call for the creation of buildings with an environmentally oriented life cycle in terms of operational characteristics.

"Green" standards foster a mutually caring attitude towards ecology in both business and consumers. For example, a client is more likely to consider buying an apartment in a building created using efficient and environmentally friendly design and construction methods than vice versa. And a developer strives to give the status of environmental friendliness and energy efficiency to its "product" because the market values this approach - many clients simply will not consider non-energy efficient and non-environmentally friendly construction for themselves.

This path of market transformation has already begun and continues to evolve towards more expensive construction in order to meet environmental and energy-saving standards.

The LEED standard obliges the developer to comply with the status of modern, high-quality, environmentally friendly construction, and guides the client to the fact that the object is in line with modern trends of the real market. Today, the LEED standard is mentally associated with modern, advanced construction, corresponding to the money that needs to be paid for it.

LEED-certified buildings save money, improve efficiency, reduce carbon emissions, create healthier living and working environments for people, and make a difference in addressing climate change.

To achieve LEED certification, a building project earns points by meeting prerequisites related to carbon emissions, energy loss, water and air quality, waste management, material sustainability, and environmental health.

Projects are reviewed and assessed by GBCI (Green Business Certification Inc.) and receive points corresponding to the LEED certification level:
- Certified (40–49 points);
- Silver (50–59 points);
- Gold (60–79 points):
- Platinum (80 points).

It is a holistic system that does not focus on one element of quality compliance, such as energy, water or health, but looks at the overall picture, taking into account all assessment criteria as a whole.

The goals of the LEED standard are:

- reducing the burden that influences global climate change;
- care for individual human health;
- protection and restoration of water resources;
- protection and improvement of ecosystem biodiversity;
- promoting sustainable and regenerative material cycles;
- improving the quality of life of society.

Of all LEED formats, 35% relate to climate change, 20% affect human health, 15% affect water resources, 10% affect biodiversity, 10% relate to the green economy, and 5% affect society and natural resources. Overall, LEED primarily focuses on the carbon footprint of the building industry.

LEED ratings apply to all building types and all phases of construction, including interior finishes, operations, and maintenance.

Rating components:

"Design and Construction of Buildings" (BD+C).
Standards for new construction or major renovations, including social construction, retail, hospitality, logistics, etc.

"Interior Design and Construction" (ID+C).
For complex interior fit-out projects. Includes commercial interiors as well as retail and hospitality projects.

"Operation and Maintenance of Buildings" (O+M).
Standards for new construction, major repairs, including social construction, retail facilities, hotel business, logistics, etc.

"Neighbourhood Development" (ND).

For new land development projects or redevelopment projects that include residential use, non-residential use, or a combination of both.

"At home".
For single-family homes, low-rise apartment buildings (one to three stories), or mid-rise apartment buildings (four or more stories). Includes homes, low-rise apartment buildings, mid-rise apartment buildings.

"Cities".
Rating for entire cities and city districts. LEED for Cities projects can measure, monitor, and manage a city's water consumption, energy use, and waste management.

Environmental and energy efficiency standards for the construction and operation of buildings are a trend in the construction industry today. LEED (or BREEAM, etc.) ratings received by objects create added value for the product (apartment, house, etc.), which is understandable to customers, moreover, they are ready and willing to pay for it. And vice versa - low ratings of objects that have weak indicators of environmental friendliness and energy efficiency in an integrated approach lose in the competitive struggle.

In 2022, VEB.RF and the National PPP Center decided to create a Russian system for assessing the efficiency and environmental friendliness of buildings, which in the future could replace the internationally recognized analogues LEED and BREEAM.

Russian structures have decided to develop national standards for environmental certification of buildings. The Russian methodology for assessing buildings for environmental friendliness will be developed taking into account the best practices of LEED, BREEAM and their analogues. The new system will include training of assessors, accreditation of verifiers, and methodological support from the system holder.

In the modern construction market, the issue of ratings is one of the first places. The topic of the international quality rating system is a good analogy for understanding why the rating of your profile has the same meaning in the job search on plandi.ru . If you meet the client's expectations and quality standards, you are worth more in a highly competitive market.