Green Hero of Chicago- Joe Silver: Supplying for the Green Demand

Liz Thullen | Jul 3rd, 2009 | No Comments »

Having grown up in a construction supply family, it was an easy decision for Joe Silver to take on the family business. However, Joe chose not only to uphold the business but more importantly he chose to modify his product to be more applicable to the times—the more environmentally responsible times. Joe Silver is a partner in one of the leading sustainable building supply companies in Chicago, and for this reason he is this week’s GreenWerks Green Hero of Chicago.

After having originally founded GreenMaker Supply Co., Joe recently made the move to merge with Green Depot allowing his business to flourish in not only Chicago but other states as well. Joe’s Green Depot sells sustainable building supplies, whether it’s paints, carpets, cabinets, or any materials needed to build or remodel your space in an environmentally conscious manner. Green Depot prides itself on selling products that fit its green criteria of air quality, conservation, local, energy, and responsibility. These five staples are displayed all throughout their store and website allowing consumers to actually see what makes these green products different from conventional products.

Joe urges consumers to look into using more sustainable products as it is a smart, easy decision, “These materials lead to better indoor health—we take out all the harmful chemicals. Like let’s take our cabinets: there’s no added formaldehydes.” He also points out the better sustainability of his products, “Our flooring is all renewable.”

Despite Joe’s success–his stores are doubling in number every year, he admits that there is somewhat of a green resistance among consumers who have only bought conventional products, “In the beginning, we were working mostly on education.” A major deterrent for Joe’s business is the misconception that the pricing for green products is much higher than conventional products yet he shoots down this theory, “Half of our store right now is down to conventional pricing—there’s little difference anymore.”

As far as the hesitation to build green because it may just be a fad, Joe believes that’s ridiculous. Having grown up seeing the trends of construction and remodeling he is confident that being more environmentally responsible in your home or building is the future, “It’s here to stay—it’s not green, I hate the word green because that sounds like a niche—this way of building should just be the norm.”

What can we, the individual, do to help make sustainable building supplies the “norm”? According to Joe, it’s all about our decisions, “Contractors are afraid of change, it’s the homeowners that are making the demand.” Let’s make the demand, Chicago!

Start of Construction for Hutchinson Residence

Chris Campbell | Jul 3rd, 2009 | 1 Comment »

We got some great feedback on the recent pictures we posted of the Oak Park project. I stopped out last week at the Hutchinson Residence where we are doing an entire home rehab. Our project manager Mark and site manager Santana has been doing a great job keeping this 8 week project on schedule. You can see from the photos below that in the first two weeks we did a successful deconstruction of the interior of the home and have begun framing out the new layout. The entire floor plan is being changed to open up this Chicago home, including relocation of the stairs which has been completed. Are you ready to have GreenWerks start your project? Give us a call today.

Framing, plumbing and electric are all working on site today!

The stairway was relocated and he built out the floor to cover up the area where the previous stair way existed.

Santana the GreenWerks site manager is reviewing the blueprints for this Chicago home remodeling project.

Green Building Standards

Chris Campbell | Dec 3rd, 2008 | No Comments »

The green movement first put down roots in the U.S. in the 1970s, in response to the energy crisis and decades of urban development that ignored climate issues and their effect on buildings and occupants. Yet it wasn’t until 1990 that the pioneering Austin Green Building Program formed in Texas, notably followed in 1993 by the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC). The remainder of the decade saw the formation of a number small green building groups – primarily on the west coast – and with it came a recognition of the need for uniform green building standards and guidelines.

To this end, a number of groups set out to develop programs – including the USGBC, which premiered its groundbreaking Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED®) Green Building Rating System™ in 1998. After the advent of LEED, the green building movement exploded, as municipal, state and federal agencies began to establish standards and guidelines, tax incentives, and governmental regulations to encourage green practices, and a host of other organizations followed suit – among them the National Association of Home Builders. Although there is no “national” standard, all strive for the same goal: the design and construction of high-performance green buildings that afford maximum quality of life, with minimal environmental impact.

Following is a list of noteworthy standards and guidelines, tax incentives, and governmental regulations that are in use today, as well as prominent green building organizations. Take a look state-by-state for an indication of how the local dialogue has evolved over the years.

National Standard & Guidelines:
U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC)
USGBC’s LEED Green Building Rating System
National Association of Homebuilders (NAHB)
NAHB’s Model Green Home Building Guidelines
Whole Building Design Guide
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
U.S. Department of Energy
The Green Schools Initiative
High Performance Green Buildings Act of 2006 (Pending)

(Source GreenDepot)

Discovery Channel- Renovation Nation with Steve Thomas

Chris Campbell | Apr 1st, 2008 | 2 Comments »

Today GreenWerks received a phone call from the producers at the Discovery Channel show Renovation Nation. This is a new show focusing on green building with one of the hosts of This Old House, Steve Thomas. They will be filming in Chicago in mid May and we are reaching out to our friends and customers. Do you want to be featured on the Discovery Channel? We are looking for a very cool project to pitch to the TV show. If you have a project that you have been waiting to do, now is the time. Not only will you get bragging rights to all your friends, GreenWerks will give you an excellent deal on your construction project. So let us know if you would like to have your home showcased on national television. We look forward to hearing from you, we will be submitting a few projects by the end of the week. Attached below is some information on the show. Please contact us at the office if you are interested in this once in a lifetime opportunity. Thanks.

Planet-Green-Launch-Information
Renovation-Nation-Press-Release