Dallas-based Turner Construction Company named #1 Green Contractor in U.S.
Turner has also established a new greenhouse gas emission reduction goal through EPA Climate Leaders Program – the first in its industry
DALLAS, November 20, 2008 – Engineering News-Record has named Turner Construction Company the #1 Green Contractor in the 2008 Top Green Contractors list, which ranks United States contractors based on the number of sustainable and green projects they worked on in 2007. Turner Construction has a total of 429 LEED-accredited professionals and $1.8 billion in construction volume from 2007 projects registered with or certified by third-party rating groups under objective environmental or sustainable development standards. In Texas alone, Turner Construction employs more than 29 LEED-accredited professionals, 32 Green Advantage professionals, and provided construction services for 16 green projects in 2007.
Company-wide green initiatives that contributed to the ranking include the “LEEDing by Example” employee incentive, which encourages Turner employees to become LEED-accredited and enables the company to better fulfill its commitments to deliver on green building projects. All Turner employees who become LEED-accredited are entered into a lottery to receive the use of a new Toyota Prius hybrid as their company-provided vehicle for three years. Turner has also taken steps to green its fleet of company cars by offering more high mileage and hybrid vehicles and has established an environmental purchasing policy for all office supplies.
Turner has also made a commitment to reduce the company’s carbon emissions by five percent over the next five years. Turner, the first construction management firm to set such a goal, plans on achieving this by reducing electricity consumption in all offices and reducing fuel consumption in company-owned and leased vehicles. While reducing Greenhouse Gas (GHG) emissions, Turner also expects to reduce vehicle fuel costs and utility bills.
Turner established this goal through its membership in the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Climate Leaders program. The Climate Leaders program is an EPA industry-government partnership that works with companies to develop comprehensive climate change strategies. Partner companies commit to reducing their impact on the global environment by completing an inventory of their greenhouse gas emissions, setting aggressive reduction goals, and annually reporting their progress to EPA. Turner was the first construction management firm in the United States to join the EPA Climate Leaders in 2006 and is the first to set a greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions reduction goal.
Recent Turner Construction Company “green” projects in the North Texas area include the headquarters for architecture firm Corgan Associates Inc. (certified LEED Silver); Pat Lobb Toyota (certified LEED Silver, first green auto dealership in the U.S.); the Embrey Engineering Building at Southern Methodist University (certified LEED Gold; first green academic building in Texas); the Haworth Showroom in downtown Dallas (certified LEED Gold); and Wal-Mart’s new green prototype store in McKinney, Texas (the first green Wal-Mart in the U.S.).
ABOUT TURNER CONSTRUCTION
Turner is the leading general builder in the U.S., ranking first or second in all major segments of the building construction field. During 2007, Turner completed $9.6 billion of construction. Turner is the only builder offering clients a nationwide network of offices across the U.S. Founded in 1902, the firm is a subsidiary of HOCHTIEF, one of the world’s leading international construction service providers. For more information, visit Turner’s website at http://www.turnerconstruction.com.
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Media Contact: Claire Bloxom
claire@coopersmithagency.com, (214) 329-9191
