OSHA center earns environmental design award

Gas-guzzling sport utility vehicles may be an easy target against a backdrop of skyrocketing oil prices, but commercial office buildings are among the nation's biggest energy users.

That has led to the design and construction of more energy-conscious buildings, like the Occupational Safety and Health Administration Salt Lake Technical Center in Sandy.

The $14 million OSHA center recently was awarded a Silver Certification for leadership in energy and environmental design, or "LEED," by the U.S. Green Building Council.

"Right now this is the best one we have in Utah," said Kenner Kingston, a principal with Architectural Nexus, a Salt Lake-based firm that designed the laboratory. "We've got an inordinate amount of recycled materials in the building. This is only one of a handful of labs to become certified across the country."

The center, which tests everything from toxic metals to organic solvents, is the second building in Utah to receive a LEED certification. The Utah Olympic Speedskating Oval was the state's first certified building.

The certification required a number of steps, including an erosion control program during construction. In addition, the building's steel frame, concrete, carpet and ceiling tiles contain a high-recycled content. The white-painted roof of the building reduces urban heat during summer months. The lab also includes an electric car-charging station and a recycling program for all waste materials leaving the building.

"Because this is a fairly wide building, we're trying to get as much daylight in here so we don't have to use a lot of electricity," said Stephen Petersen, a principal with Architectural Nexus. "The skylight is almost like a regular roof in its insulating value, and yet it brings light into the interior part of the building."

Jerry Schultz, division director of OSHA's industrial hygiene chemistry division in Salt Lake City, said the building is much better than OSHA's previous site.

"There's much more light, a much brighter environment," Schultz said. "Also, we have a much cleaner ventilation system. In our old facility it was very bad. I know a number of our staff have told me it's easier to come to work in the morning coming to this building."

All of OSHA's federal program testing occurs at the Sandy site, Schultz said. The center also performed testing on asbestos and silica debris from the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attack in New York City.