ABSTRACT
This chapter explores the processes used to characterize stakeholder needs when planning a built facility, and the tools and techniques used to make decisions how to procure the project delivery. The facility lifecycle starts with an idea or concept during the planning or pre-design phase. Systems-based sustainability assessment can be used as a technique starting in pre-design as a way to identify and track potential sustainability impacts and improvement opportunities throughout the lifecycle of the facility. The first opportunity to consider sustainability in the pre-design process is during the fundamental identification of facility needs. The chapter introduces a case study of the LEED Platinum-rated Trees Atlanta Kendeda Center, located in Atlanta, Georgia, USA. With the completion of these background tasks, the pre-design phase concluded and the design phase began. The credit guidance explicitly identifies interdisciplinary opportunities that can be undertaken to improve overall performance at the earliest stages of design, before decisions have been made to constrain the design.
