Walter Vernon

Building codes have a long history, first appearing in Babylon in the ancient Code of Hammurabi, an early set of laws created about 4,000 years ago. Those of us who work in the commercial building industry should be happy that codes continue to modernize, since the penalties for builders who constructed unsafe buildings under the Code of Hammurabi included death.

However, the function of such early codes was basically the same as it is today:  guaranteeing the safe (and sound) design and construction of the built environment.

Unlike the European Union, which is moving toward building code standardization called the “Eurocode,” the United States uses model building codes, which vary greatly by municipality, state and even fire district. In the past, most of these codes dealt with the safety of a structure (from fire, earthquake, safe evacuation routes, etc.) rather than the structure’s efficiency. As energy and water prices have climbed and awareness of climate change has grown, codes in some sectors are now moving toward more performance-based measures that push architects, engineers and builders to create buildings using resources more efficiently.

Industry examples
Some sectors, including the healthcare industry, have been slower than others to adopt more sustainable codes. Under ever-increasing financial pressure, patient protection and infection control has, for the most part, trumped innovative green building technologies more frequently seen in other types of commercial buildings. For example, requirements for items such as air exchange mean that hospitals are sealed and windows don’t open, precluding using any natural ventilation.

However, some healthcare organizations are beginning to use green technologies where they can. Kaiser Permanente, Partners Health and the National Institutes of Health are working on researching displacement ventilation, which uses much less energy than the overhead-air systems normally deployed in hospitals.

Local codes have also influenced more energy-efficient building design is in the construction of data centers. One of the fastest-growing energy users in the United States, data centers consume vast amounts of energy to run servers and require 24/7 power supplies in order to preserve society’s growing amount of electronic data.