‘Green has been always a priority for Skanska. We have made a commitment that all Skanska buildings will be green meaning they will use at least 25% less energy. We also want to implement LEED certifications, which means that energy savings are not the only factor. We need to look at the whole cycle – recycle water, use biodegradable materials, make sure the materials come from the right sources’ Lindberg said.

The opening of the building signifies a new era in eco-construction in Poland. Skanska plans to incorporate the international environment certification system LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) in Poland. The first step is to certify Skanska’s own new office in Deloitte House and then to certify the entire building. LEED promotes environmental solutions for sustainable site development, water savings, energy efficiency, materials and resource selection and indoor environmental quality. The certificate can be attained at fours levels: Platinum, Gold, Silver and Certified. Renovation projects can be also certified. LEED was developed by the US green Building Council (USGBC). ‘Offices in Deloitte House will use less energy, less water, will pollute the environment less. They will use eco-friendly materials. Sustainable solutions include an air conditioning systems based on chilled beams, taps with movement sensors to cut 40% of water use and double flush toilets to cut 60% of water use, furniture made of wood and carpets of partially recyclable materials, separate bins for plastics, glass, metal and batteries’ Katarzyna Zawodna of Skanska Property Poland and a LEED Accredited Professional says. ‘We also focus on promoting ecological lifestyle among the employees – there are bike stands and showers available and we encourage ecological behaviour’ Zawodna adds.

Skanska has carried out about 70 LEED projects in the US. The local offices in New York, Atlanta and Seattle are LEED certified.

Deloitte House is the first and so far only Polish commercial building awarded the Green Building certificate by the European Commission. The EC Green Building programme was launched in 2005 in order to improve the use of potential energy savings in non-residential buildings. A certified building must meet the condition of at least 25% energy savings against norms in a given country. Deloitte House is estimated to have a 32.5% lower consumption of energy.

Deutsche Banks’ Green Branch is part of the group’s global programme called ‘Banking on Green’. One of the campaign’s showcases is the renovation of Deutsche Bank’s headquarters in Frankfurt Towers. The investment is designed to meet the requirements for LEED Platinum certificate. ‘It is worth mentioning that the costs of building green offices are in fact lower than in case of building regular branches if the right decision is made in the design phase. However, it also pays to renovate existing offices’ Leszek Bochen, DB PBC expert says.