Goshen company an environmental leader in construction
Goshen, N.Y. (April 20, 2011) – New student housing at Sullivan County Community College (SCCC), built by The Ruby Group (TRG), a Goshen, N.Y.-based development, consulting and construction-management company, has received LEED for Homes Gold certification.
The Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certification is internationally recognized for green building and design technology. The Gold level is the second highest tier. Platinum is the highest achievement.
The Gold LEED certification is the highest achievement yet for the project, named EcoGreen Community Housing, which has already received Gold certification in the National Association of Home Builders’ National Green Building Standard.
An independent review proved the building to be extremely energy efficient. The inspector determined that the three units have very favorable Home Energy Ratings (HER) of 48, 49 and 48 (the middle unit tested a bit higher for air infiltration). This compares to an HER of 100 for buildings that meet state building codes and an HER of 85 required to receive Energy Star certification. (The lower the HER score, the more energy efficient the building.)
“To achieve LEED Gold certification on this project is a significant achievement for our company,” said Howie Berman, the Ruby Group principal who supervised the SCCC project. “Building at this extremely high level of efficiency was our goal for this building.”
The Ruby Group has been a pioneer in building environmentally friendly housing and is one of the few construction companies in the nation that has built a home that received the top-level, Platinum LEED rating for energy efficiency and environmental sensitivity.
“Having now achieved building both a LEED Platinum-level home and a LEED Gold-level student housing facility speaks to the variety of extremely efficient projects that The Ruby Group can do,” said Pete Berman, CEO of The Ruby Group. “These buildings will be extremely energy efficient, save money and have little carbon footprint forever.”
Some of the energy efficient enhancements were basement walls, foundation bays and first-floor rim joists sprayed with closed cell foam insulation; downsized Triangle Tube boilers; and 6 inches of blown fiberglass (R21) over the factory installed batt insulation (R41). The building has 43 percent less carbon dioxide emissions, 51 percent less energy consumption and 61 percent less indoor water use than if the building was simply built at code.
The new townhouses on the SCCC campus in Loch Sheldrake, N.Y., resemble traditional New England homes, with porches, pitched roofs and exterior walls with clapboard siding and shingles. The residences have living rooms, kitchens, dining rooms and a total of 24 bedrooms, three of which are handicapped accessible. The townhouses were built in 18 modules by Linthicum, Md.-based Haven Custom Homes at a factory in Pennsylvania and were installed in only three days during June 2010. The modules were positioned atop a Superior Walls pre-cast, insulated concrete foundation system.
The building cost about $1.5 million to design and build. The Ruby Group worked with Sullivan County Community College Dormitory Corporation to enter into a cutting edge public-private partnership that involved TRG leasing the land on campus and being responsible for everything from municipal approvals, financing and construction to long-term management of the housing facility. The Ruby Group has contracted with Longley Jones Management to handle the property management. The public-private partnership meant SCCC’s new housing was built at no cost to the college.
About The Ruby Group
The Ruby Group, based in Goshen, N.Y., is a development, project management, general contracting and consulting firm serving the residential and commercial sectors. Ruby Homes is dedicated to building feature-rich, high-quality homes with personalized service. Ruby Homes is among the small percentage of homebuilders to receive top-level Platinum LEED certification for a single-family home. Ruby Consulting provides expert speakers and full-service management consultation with a focus on construction operations, marketing and business development. Ruby Construction Services serves professional investors, financial institutions and land owners developing commercial, mixed use, or large scale residential projects. The Ruby Group also manages modular-construction projects, provides student-housing expertise and purchases, renovates and resells foreclosed properties. For more information, visit www.rubygrp.com or call (845) 651-3800.
