Captioning and Video Description just got a lot GREENer!

le grand CaptionMax entrance!

On Thanksgiving Day, November 22, an addition to all the other reasons we have to give thanks will be the fact that CaptionMax's worldwide headquarters in Minneapolis will have just moved to a new building. And not just any building. Earlier this year, it was a massive built-of-brick hospital equipment repair plant and maze. Now, after a lot of hard work, our new office is an open, inviting office building that will be LEED certified at the SILVER level (www.usgbc.org/).

The LEED standard means that the building's design, renovation, and construction were conducted in adherence to stringent standards for minimizing the building’s impact on the environment.

How is this building green? Let's count the ways:

Green Construction

• 75% of
  demolished construction materials recycled
• All ductwork
  made of recycled steel
• All metals
  taken out were recycled or sold
• Architectural
  elements were salvaged and donated
• Electricity
  feeding operation is certified alternative (wind powered) energy
• All paints,
  glues, solvents, wires, etc. meet the low VOC (low volatile organic
  compounds) emission standards for LEED
• Walls sanded
  with vacuum sander to reduce dust
• Construction
  site cleaned daily
• Carpet made
  from 100% recycled materials
• Building
  Flush Out: 30 days of cycling high volumes of air through the
  building to flush out gases and chemicals given off by any new materials
  (carpet, tile, adhesives)

Green By Design

• Addition of
  full-height atrium and twelve new windows to bring natural daylight into
  the building
• Additional
  windows along sides
• Loading dock
  transformed into café with glass garage doors
• Rainwater
  collection on roof to irrigate landscaping and provide water for other
  uses, such as indoor plants
• All new,
  super-high-efficiency HVAC units with heavy-duty filtration systems
• White roof
  increases HVAC efficiency by another 40%
• Green roof
  ready: plantings next spring will further increase efficiency and reduce
  runoff
• Ultra-low-flow
  lavatory fixtures
• Lighting
  exclusively with compact fluorescent bulbs
• Bike room for
  bike commuters to park, clean up, store bikes
• Shower and
  changing area for bike commuters and runners

Green Operations

• Daily
  recycling of all paper, plastic, and metal products
• All
  cleaning products are biodegradable and nontoxic

Location –
Supports Green Transportation Access

• Three blocks
  from Midtown Greenway, a bike path that connects western suburbs with the Mississippi (we are
  a half mile west of the river)
• Multiple bus
  lines stop at all four corners of intersection adjacent to property
• Serviced by light
  rail line
• A quarter
  mile from Interstate 94
• Park and
  neighborhood center across street
• Multiple
  restaurants and coffeehouses within walking distance
• Sits on the
  border between residential and industrial zones

In addition to all this, the building makes for a relaxing, exciting, FUN place to work, from the indoor/outdoor café to the open floor plan to the kickball field in the park across the street.

Want to play sidewalk superintendent? Check out our building pictures at fasterbetternicer.com.