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Florida hospital going for Gold LEED certification
The University of Florida has announced it will open the Shands Cancer Hospital, an environmentally friendly addition to its healthcare center, next month.
Using sustainable construction methods, the 500,000 square-foot building was built with a therapeutic design to offer a more patient-friendly healing center.
Located on the university's south campus, the new medical tower will hold 192 private beds and the Shands Critical Care Center to treat trauma and emergency patients.
The building will feature insulated windows intended to reduce solar glare, white rooftops designed to reflect heat, an energy-efficient air conditioning system and water-saving irrigation and drainage systems, said Brad Pollit, vice president of facilities for Shands HealthCare.
To encourage employees to adopt environmentally friendly habits, the building will also "provide showers for employees who bike to work and special parking for hybrid cars," Pollit added.
The tower has already received silver-level LEED certification from the U.S. Green Building Council and is being consider for gold-level recognition.
Associates, bachelors and masters programs in sustainable management or green architecture and building may help architects compete for similar opportunities in green design and construction. The demand for architects with such skills, whose annual earnings averaged $64,150 in 2006, is expected to grow by 18 percent over the next seven years. 
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