Abstract

The purpose of this research was to design a two-story residential steel moment resisting structure and to compare its construction cost before and after implementing LEED features to the design. This project allowed senior civil engineering students to work together and utilize the knowledge they gained throughout their civil engineering courses, to design a building as part of their capstone design experience. The collaboration of students from different backgrounds and with different skill sets created a unique experience that required both responsibility and teamwork to function. The project also introduced students to sustainable building design and allowed them to recognize how the addition of LEED features to a building to make it “green” affects its overall costs and savings in the long run. A cost analysis was performed, where the construction cost of the building before and after adding LEED features was calculated and based on this calculation, it was concluded that there would be a 30% increase in construction costs after implementing LEED features to a conventional building.

Keywords: Steel structure; LEED; Green building; Engineering education

Abbreviations: LEED: Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design; CBSC: California Building Standards Commission; USGBC: US Green Building Council; ASCE: American Society of Civil Engineers