The Duro-Last® Cool Zone® Roof Helps With LEED-NC 3.0 Certification

The U.S. Green Building Council has developed the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED®) Rating System to aid in the design and construction of buildings that have minimum negative impact on occupants and the environment. LEED provides standards for choosing products based on environmental attributes. LEED does not certify materials or products. Several attributes of the Duro-Last® Cool Zone® roofing system can help with LEED ratings.

The Duro-Last Cool Zone membrane has a Solar Reflectance Index (SRI) of 110. To meet LEED requirements as a cool roofing membrane it is necessary to have an SRI of at least 78 for low-sloped applications for a minimum of 75% of the roof surface. (Sustainable Sites Credit 7.2)

A product must comply with ASHRAE Standard 90.1-2004 by having at least 70% reflectivity and .75 emittance to meet Prerequisite 2 of the Energy and Atmosphere section. At 86% and .95 respectively, the Duro-Last Cool Zone membrane exceeds the standard. By exceeding the standard, Duro-Last Cool Zone will also help reduce energy costs when compared to the energy cost budget of a building's design. (Energy and Atmosphere Credit 1)

The longevity of a Duro-Last Cool Zone roof will help extend the lifecycle of an existing structure and will reduce load on air conditioning units. (Materials and Resources Credits 1.1 - 1.2)

Custom pre-fabrication allows Duro-Last contractors to virtually eliminate waste at the jobsite. During manufacturing, nearly 100% of pre-consumer scrap and trim is recycled. With manufacturing facilities strategically located around the United States, a Duro-Last Cool Zone roof requires less than 500 miles of shipping to many states. (Materials and Resources Credits 2.1-2.2, 4.1-4.2, 5.1-5.2)

With the Duro-Last two-way vent system, negative air pressures and condensation are kept in check. And the high reflectivity helps keep the building cooler, thus allowing air conditioning units to operate more effectively. (Indoor Environmental Quality Credits 2 and 7.1)

The Duro-Last Cool Zone roofing system itself can directly achieve one point, and in combination with other design criteria can help with obtaining as many as 22 points toward the minimum LEED certification of 40 - 49 points.

For more information about LEED and the LEED-EB rating systems, go to the USGBC web site at www.usgbc.org.