Sustainability and Capital Projects: 
Modeling the Emergent Property of Total Cost of Ownership Cost estimates for sustainable or “green” facilities in the public sector are presently developed just as those for traditional facilities would be, except a premium is often added to account for “sustainability costs”. The cost estimation occurs during the conceptual design phase when funding allocation is sought. This premium or cost margin creates a self-fulfilling prophecy that results in green buildings costing more, which reinforces the perception in the construction industry that green construction is not cost competitive. We propose to develop and test a scaleable, agent-based project-level facility model that can more accurately predict the Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) of a green facility, including both buildings and site development, at the earliest stages of concept development. An agent-based modeling (ABM) approach allows us to define both the social and engineering systems that characterize a facility’s lifecycle. During facility development, the interactions between the facility’s owner, designer, and builder will determine its technical and functional characteristics as well as its ultimate capital cost. Throughout the facility’s occupancy, its users and managers will significantly influence its performance and service life as well as its lifecycle cost. Thus, ABM will permit evaluating the impact of the institutional and industry environment upon facility designs and lifecycle performance while also capturing the cost impacts of tightly coupled facility systems that characterize green design. TCO has become the standard benchmark for assessing the value of facility development and management strategies; however, existing methodologies for measurement emphasize the parametric analysis of technological choices and managerial actions upon lifecycle costs. Our strategy is fundamentally different since it will explore how institutional policies and industry norms impact the behaviors of key agents – owner, designer, builder, user, and manager – involved in a facility’s lifecycle and the resultant TCO. Further, our approach will remain cognizant of the broader institutional and societal context in which every facility resides. In other words, we will account for factors outside the project-level boundary, which will permit scaling up to a portfolio-level analysis in the future. The project will include several partner public agencies with significant facility portfolios that wish to use policy measures (including additional investment) to increase both project sustainability and the overall sustainability of their capital project portfolios, but in ways that make economic sense. Our strategy will lead toward answers to the questions of how best to allocate scarce additional resources among all projects in a portfolio while enhancing sustainability in a way that ensures ongoing organizational functionality and support. Sustainable Investment in Facilities & Infrastructure to support 
Force Transformation, Global Repositioning, and Base Realignment and Closure As the requirements for supporting national security change over time, the facilities and infrastructure systems that support today’s military training and operations must evolve to meet the needs of tomorrow’s military without compromising society’s ability to survive and prosper over the long term. Toward that end, the National Defense Center for Environmental Excellence (NDCEE) is working with Dr. Annie Pearce and Virginia Tech to develop new methods for infrastructure development scenario planning that incorporate sustainability objectives and constraints as part of the decision making process for military installations. Sustainability Knowledge Base: 
A web-based community of practice for sustainable facilities & infrastructure systems The free online Sustainability Knowledge Base was developed to establish a community of practice among Department of Defense installation personnel, share lessons learned, and generate project-specific checklists of sustainability best practices by life cycle phase, stakeholder, project goals, and other project features. The Knowledge Base is presently used by architects, engineers, project managers, consultants, and installation personnel involved in military capital construction projects and is also openly available to other facilities personnel on the web. Creative Learning Environments for Construction Education Advances in technology are presenting new paradigms for teaching and learning that will transform the way in which universities shape student experiences and create the professionals of the future. Incorporating these technologies as part of creative learning environments is a key opportunity to prepare our students to change and enhance the industry into which they will go, using the tools and solutions these technologies allow us to develop in research. Immersive and service learning also afford opportunities to weave constructivist strategies for learning into planning, design, and construction education in new and meaningful ways. Tying together practitioners, real world opportunities, cutting edge technologies, and traditional academic learning and research will result in industry transformation to move toward a sustainable future. More projects...http://sustainabilityfacilities.org/skbhttp://www.sustainabilityfacilities.org/skbshapeimage_1_link_0shapeimage_1_link_1
 
Current Projects
Both on and off campus, opportunities abound to increase and enhance the sustainability of our built environment. Click on the titles below to learn more about current projects being undertaken by Dr. Annie Pearce and the sustainability research team at Virginia Tech.