CHICAGO—The Willis Tower in Downtown Chicago has become the largest US building to earn Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design's (LEED) Platinum designation.

EQ Office, the US office portfolio company owned by Blackstone's real estate funds, reports the tower earned Platinum designation under LEED's latest v4.1 rating system, the U.S. Green Building Council's (USGBC) strongest and boldest rating system to date. Willis Tower earned LEED Gold in 2018, and in less than a year, made significant energy, sustainability and comfort improvements to achieve the Platinum status, building owner EQ Office states.

Willis Tower is currently undergoing a more than $500-million renovation, the biggest restorative transformation in the building's 46-year history. The renovations include 125,000 square feet of new tenant-exclusive amenities, as well as the addition of Catalog, the 300,000-square-foot retail, dining and entertainment space at the base of Willis Tower and the soon-to-open 30,000-square-foot outdoor deck and garden.

"Willis Tower is in the middle of an exciting evolution, transitioning from an office building into a neighborhood that delivers the best experiences of life and work in Chicago," says David Moore, SVP and portfolio director, EQ Office. "Our tenants and their employees are passionate about working in offices where sustainability is a priority, and we're proud that our commitment to sustainability, which extends throughout our portfolio, has earned Willis Tower the prestigious LEED Platinum certification."

In partnership with Rivion, a Wisconsin-based energy consulting firm, EQ improved the building's environmental quality through a number of building enhancements, including: revamping the HVAC system through the installation of state-of-the-art technologies, allowing the tower to heat and cool more efficiently, which is expected to reduce energy consumption by up to 20% and reducing heating water energy consumption by replacing electric hot-water generators with natural gas hot-water boilers.

Other improvements include upgrading the building's lighting control system and installing energy-efficient LED lights and the installation of low-flow high-efficiency sink faucets, toilets and urinals, which is expected to cut approximately 30% of the building's water consumption, which calculates out to 11 million gallons annually.

In addition to Willis Tower, EQ manages tens of millions of square feet of LEED and Energy Star Certified office properties across the country, including The Exchange Building (Seattle), which is LEED Platinum Certified; 350 N. Orleans St. (Chicago) and 1740 Broadway (New York City), which are LEED Gold Certified; and Griffin Towers (Santa Ana, CA), which is Energy Star Certified.

Instant Insights /

Willis Tower Earns Lofty Environmental Designation

Related Stories

Recommended For You