EDGE

EDGE brings international prestige to your project from the design stage onward. Whether you’re a home builder, commercial owner, or are building to sell, capitalize on the value of certification before your project has been built. Here are a few of the benefits.

EDGE empowers the discovery of technical solutions at the early design stage to reduce operational expenses and environmental impact. Based on the user’s information inputs and selection of green measures, EDGE reveals projected operational savings and reduced carbon emissions. This overall picture of performance helps to articulate a compelling business case for building green.

Rather than relying on complex simulation software and processes to predict resource use, EDGE has an easy-to-use interface that runs on a powerful building physics engine with region-specific data. Through user inputs, the data can be further refined to create a nuanced set of calculations that have greater accuracy when predicting future building performance. EDGE focuses intently on resource efficiency and climate change mitigation, recognizing that too wide a focus leads to disparate results.

EDGE certification is awarded if the required minimum efficiencies of 20% are achieved in the three EDGE categories -- Energy, Water, and Materials. A simple pass/fail system indicates whether the building project has demonstrated the minimum 20% savings in operational energy, water, and embodied energy in materials compared to the base case model. Actual percentage savings for each project can be seen on the EDGE certificate as well as in project case studies on the EDGE website. Beyond EDGE certification, EDGE also offers EDGE Advanced and EDGE Zero Carbon certifications. The entire certification process is conducted online through the EDGE software.

The certification process involves auditing of the project documentation submitted by the project team audit, followed by the award of the certificate. and Requirements for EDGE compliance, at both the design and postconstruction phases, are specified for each measure in this guide and include such deliverables as design drawings, manufacturers’ data sheets, required for preliminary certification, calculations, proof of delivery, and photographs. A design review and a site audit are required for the final EDGE certification, with both conducted by an accredited EDGE Auditor. Certification is awarded by a licensed EDGE certification provider. EDGE certification makes a statement of corporate excellence and environmental responsibility.