Robert P. Madison International's, (RPMI), sustainable or "green" approach to site planning and building design is a common sense approach which sees the project as a single system made up of interdependent architectural and engineering components.It necessarily recognizes the tremendous impact the design, construction and maintenance of buildings have on the environment and non-renewable natural resources, and requires a fundamental change in mind-set toward less consumption and environmental stewardship.The sustainable design process attempts to determine the relationships between site/program factors and how those factors will adapt to the existing climate and relative environmental conditions, taking into account energy use and environmental performance during the complete life cycle of the building including orientation, materials, equipment selection, operations and maintenance, renovations and demolition. Along with this integrated common sense approach, RPMI utilizes advanced software such as Autodesk Revit (BIM) to study and analyze environmental impacts of potential building solutions

RPMI has been designing "green" long before USGBC LEED (Leadership on Energy and Environmental Design) had been established. In 1997, RPMI had total responsibility for Architectural/ Engineering design for the new Langston Hughes Library in Cleveland, Ohio. Energy saving strategies were used, such as open planning, the use of natural and indirect lighting, southern roof overhangs, reflective roof surfaces and a "geothermal" heating and cooling system (one of the first in the Cleveland area) to reduce long term energy costs for this 8,400 square foot building. In 1998 RPMI followed this project with another first in the Cleveland area, a parking structure with a "green roof". RPMI was the architectural firm responsible for the design and construction documents for this 500 car, 2 level parking structure, adjacent to the Great Lake Science Center of Cleveland.

With the onset of the LEED rating system, RPMI has continued our green approach and incorporating the LEED system. RPMI provided engineering services for the Sinai Educational High School Campus, in Detroit, Michigan, completed in 2005. This LEED Silver Rated Educational High School Campus includes sustainable design characteristics such as daylight harvesting, rainwater catchment system, and sustainable building products. The 393,000 square foot educational campus embraces special education populations, a blue-ribbon high school, vocational high school and the Foreign Language Immersions and Cultural School. The campus also includes a 600 seat theater, 2,000 seat gymnasium, competition and therapy pools, and vocational training spaces.

Additional notable current projects include, the new Center for Innovation In the Arts which will be the first of its type in the City of Cleveland. Located on the Metropolitan Campus of Cuyahoga Community College (CCC) the four-story, 75,000 sq. ft. facility will house numerous student programs in music technology. Included will be a state-of-the-art Recording Studio, a Black Box Theatre, Acting and Dance Classrooms and several Interactive Class-rooms for video animation and video editing. Due to the unique requirements of the facility, special attention has been given to the exterior envelope and interior wall and floor systems with regard to sound attenuation and vibration. The Center will also be the new home for the Rock and Rock Hall of Fame Museum Library and Archive Artifact Storage, occupying approximately 25,000 sq. ft. of the facility. This project completion is scheduled for 2009.

Another current project is Fairview PK-8 School in Dayton, Ohio. Robert P Madison International Inc. was awarded this contract by the Dayton Public School System as Prime Architect due to the firm's success on the previous project with the district. The Fairview PK-8 School project included complete A/E Services including Interior FF&E and Construction Administration. RPMI also was awarded a master plan project to work with the community to provide a neighborhood plan for the entire city block which included City owned property, private property and school property. RPMI provided architectural and engineering services for the combined elementary and middle school in conjunction with this RPMI provided LEED services for this USGBC Silver registered school. Sustainable design characteristics include landscape bioswales and rain gardens to use as teaching tools in the school curriculum along with daylight harvesting, ice thermal storage and energy modeling. The building includes educational and community spaces to allow the building to function as a school and neighborhood community center during the entire year. This project is scheduled for completion in 2010.

As design architect, RPMI's goal is to develop a pragmatic design which: 

·                     Uses resources, materials and energy very efficiently.

·                     Is reliable, secure, simple to operate and maintain.

·                     Has a long, useful life expectancy.

·                     Provides a highly functional and healthy environment for its occupants.

·                     Minimizes pollution output from construction and operations.

RPMI will also seek to take into account external implications of design decisions, such as recycled materials content, reusable materials content, waste minimization, water conservation, reduced maintenance, and resource-efficient land-use (the preservation of green spaced. A conservation philosophy will permeate our team's design approach, analysis, material selection, energy use planning and construction. We have integrated numerous sustainable strategies into the design of buildings, including water harvesting, gray water retrieval, on-site biological treatment systems, use of recycle and reclaimed materials, and reuse of excavated/demolished material. We emphasize, however, that it is not the individual components, but their successful, practical integration into a larger system that makes them meaningful.

Indoor Air Quality, for example, will be addressed through a collaborative effort. Finishes such as paints, carpets adhesives, insulation and furniture systems will be chosen to the extent possible for minimal emissions of VOC (volatile organic compounds) and formaldehyde free materials, thereby eliminating pollutant point sources from the occupied spaces from the beginning. HVAC systems will then be further configured for Indoor Air Quality and ventilation effectiveness. RPMI will balance the design strategy to attain the most cost efficient 'green' product. These strategies include:

·                     Water use reduction

·                     Energy performance (Daylighting, Exterior Skin)

·                     Air quality control

·                     Materials recycling

It is critical to the success of a green project that meets or exceeds their environment and energy efficient goals within the owner’s established budget.  The design team must utilize its dedicated effort to energy efficiency and sustainable design oversight, review and implementation.  It becomes the responsibility of RPMI to ensure the energy and green goals are properly assessed and integrated.