As the demand for information technology has exploded, so, too, has the need for data centers housing servers, storage devices and networking gear. And though the financial crisis and ensuing credit crunch severely constrained data center construction with many projects put on hold or canceled, the sector is still seeing plenty of activity and is expected to surge as the recovery gains strength. Photo: Gilbane Building Work underway on an HVAC system for a recently completed data center project. Related Links: Buffalo Roost Despite the slowdown, 2 million-sq.-ft. of data center development is underway in New Jersey, says Michael Pembroke,

There is an old engineering adage that says you can’t have faster, better and cheaper all at the same time. Yahoo is out to prove this adage wrong with its new data center under construction in upstate New York. The facility, located 30 miles northeast of Buffalo in Lockport, N.Y., is being billed by the company as one of the greenest and most energy efficient building of its kind in the country. Powered by renewable energy from Niagara Falls, the data center’s design takes advantage of the region’s climate to cool the facility using 100 percent outside air. Photo courtesy

With new legislation passed in New York City late last year, all of New York's buildings totaling more than 50,000 sq ft are required to submit to benchmarking and retro-commissioning, essentially putting those buildings' efficiency ratings up against other buildings across the country. Photo courtesy of Hines Property Management Engineers working on building management systems at a Morgan Stanley building in New York. Related Links: Greening an Icon: The Empire State Building Retrofitting Residential Benchmarking essentially ranks a building’s energy and water efficiency against similar buildings. The legislation specifies the use of the U.S. EPA’s Portfolio Benchmarking tool as the

Open windows in January are a just one sign of the energy inefficiencies that plague many multifamily buildings in urban areas. Studies of multi-family structures show wide variations in energy consumption per square foot with the least efficient buildings using seven times more energy than the most efficient. “These wide fluctuations mean many buildings are candidates for energy efficiency upgrades that can reduce costs and improve cash flow,” explains Andrew Padian, vice president for energy initiatives, The Community Preservation Corporation, New York. Photo courtesy of Steven Winter Associates At Jennings Hall at 260 Powers Street in Brooklyn, a steam boiler

Developer Bruce Becker looked to the past to create his vision for 360 State Street, a cutting-edge green residential tower in downtown New Haven, Connecticut. Slide Show Photo courtesy of Becker + Becker The $150 million tower at 360 State Street in New Haven is being designed as a throwback to the once walkable and livable downtown New Haven in a now-sustainable environment. Related Links: Helping Hands Bright Spots in Connecticut The $150 million, 32-story project is located at the site of the former Shartenberg department store, which was razed in 1962 under a then-ambitious urban renewal scheme. Redevelopment plans

The financial meltdown and ensuing recession are forcing universities across the region to delay or scale back construction plans. Activity across the region in the higher education sector has slowed significantly since 2007. But there’s some good news. Despite the relative slowdown at both private and public institutions in New York, New Jersey and Connecticut, the Tri-State higher education market seems to have avoided the fate of other once-booming sectors such as residential and commercial building. Slide Show Photo courtesy of City University of New York Construction will begin this year on CUNY's Advanced Science Research Center at City College

With new legislation passed in New York City late last year, all of New York's buildings totaling more than 50,000 sq ft are required to submit to benchmarking and retro-commissioning, essentially putting those buildings' efficiency ratings up against other buildings across the country. The Empire State Building is undergoing one of the largest commercial green retrofits in the United States. Benchmarking essentially ranks a building’s energy and water efficiency against similar buildings.  The legislation specifies the use of the U.S. EPA’s Portfolio Benchmarking tool as the standard for calculating the ranking. The process is very simple.  Data on a building’s

When people talk about green building, construction waste management is rarely given top billing. But for contractors, it is a priority. According to McGraw-Hill’s SmartMarket Report, “Sustainable Construction Waste Management: Creating Value in the Built Environment,” 61 percent of contractors rate sustainable waste management as the second most important aspect of a green building, just behind energy efficiency. Related Links: Tracking Trash : Construction teams place higher importance on construction waste management “People do not see the immediate link to reducing your carbon footprint and wastes,” says Michele Russo, director of Green Content & Research Communications at New York-based McGraw-Hill

With the advent of LEED, construction managers are viewing the dumpster in a new light. Construction wastes, once relegated to landfills, are now recycled or reused to earn LEED credits and comply with sustainable construction initiatives. To meet waste management goals, project teams are employing new strategies and setting up tracking systems to document how wastes are recycled and reused. Photo: Croxton Collaborative Architects, PC Metal recycling area during the renovation of the New York offices of the National Resources Defense Council. The 8,800-sq.-ft. project, which is seeking LEED CI Platinum designation, utilized onsite separation to achieve a 96.5 percent

Related Links: First Impressions Professional Accreditation With the release of LEED v.3 came an upgraded version of LEED Online, a tool teams use to manage project registration and certification. Although it is still early in the process, initial experiences with the new online tools have been mixed. “The new system will be easier to navigate, once you get use to it,” says Jason Kliwinski, director of sustainable design, The Spiezle Group, Trenton, N.J.. “The interfaces are a little different but it certainly helps folks understand the process better.” But the system can be slow. “I have used it in terms