Cemex USA’s headquarters in Houston has earned the US Green Building Council’s Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design gold certification. It is a designation for high-performance buildings that looks at reducing environmental impact during the planning, construction and occupancy stages.
Cemex says the building has more than 240,000 square feet of space and is comprised of 20% recycled materials. The building, owned and operated by MetroNational, accomplished a 52% power reduction. All electric equipment in the structure meets the Environmental Protection Agency's Energy Star Certification. Water consumption has been reduced by one-third with the use of efficient fixtures. Also, nine out of ten work areas in the offices receive natural sunlight.
The company worked with architects at Inventure Design of Houston to develop company offices on two floors of the six-story building in Memorial City. A spiral staircase designed to look like a poured in-place concrete product links the second and third floors in the office. It features a handrail made of rebar, and all hallways of the office feature exposed polished concrete floors.
Ignacio Madridejos, president of Cemex, says: “At Cemex, our operations work each day with sustainability in mind, and that is no different at our US corporate headquarters.”
