Environmental Leader

Powered 100 percent by wind energy, Wyndham Worldwide’s new headquarters in Parsippany, N.J., highlights the company’s commitment to environmental sustainability with a number of green features. Wyndham says it has achieved between 10 to 30 percent in efficiency improvements due to the number of green features implemented at its new headquarters complex, reports Green Lodging News.

Opened in February 2009, Wyndham told Green Lodging News that it is pursuing the U.S. Green Building Council’s LEED certification for Commercial Interiors designation for the building, and expects to earn LEED Silver for its efforts to make its new home a highly efficient and healthy place to work. Here’s a schematic of the interior.

The 250,000-square-foot complex sits on 12.2 acres of land and consists of two buildings, one of which is the headquarters building pursuing LEED, said Green Lodging News. Faith Taylor, vice president, sustainability and innovation for Wyndham Worldwide, told the news site, “We really wanted to walk our green talk. We took the LEED initiative to heart. It was a collaboration of many groups.”

During its construction, about 80 percent of construction material was diverted from the local landfill, and after the complex was opened, single stream recycling was implemented throughout the facility to reduce waste to landfill, reports Green Lodging News.

The building is also designed with several energy-efficient features including energy-efficient lighting, motion sensors, and large windows to reduce power usage.

Other green features include low-flow toilets and faucets to keep water consumption down, low-VOC (volatile organic compound) paint, and office interiors consisting of 20 to 25 percent recycled steel, 15 to 25 percent recycled aluminum and 100 percent recycled particleboard. Carpet and furniture are also constructed with low-emitting materials.

As part of Wyndham’s green purchasing plan, the company purchases recycled paper products for bathrooms and a selection of FSC certified paper for directories, and in its food service operations, Wyndham works with ARAMARK to source as many local food items as possible through its Green Thread program, reports Green Lodging News.

In addition, to encourage employees to drive less, the complex houses amenities such as a gym, green dry cleaner (Green Apple Organic Dry Cleaning), credit union, cafe and cafeteria, and gift shop with items such as milk and eggs, according to the article.

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