LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) has become the international reference standard for sustainable construction. An increasing number of corporate, institutional and public-use projects are incorporating it as a requirement — not just as a differentiator, but as a design criterion from the earliest stages of the project.

In that context, the choice of raised access floor system has a direct and measurable impact on a building’s LEED score — provided it is correctly specified from the outset.

Materials with recycled content

GAMAFLOR PAC and BANK systems incorporate high-density chipboard cores manufactured with materials that include recycled components, in compliance with LEED certification parameters. This makes them directly compatible with the materials credits of the LEED v4 system — specifically the Building Product Disclosure and Optimization and Construction and Demolition Waste Management categories.

The incorporation of recycled materials does not compromise the structural performance of the system in any way — core density, load capacity and dimensional stability all remain within the most demanding technical specifications on the market.

Energy efficiency: UFAD and energy credits

The energy category is one of the most heavily weighted in the LEED system — and raised access flooring contributes directly to it through UFAD (Under Floor Air Distribution) technology.

By distributing conditioned air from the plenum directly into the occupied zone, UFAD allows higher supply air temperatures in summer — reducing the load on the air handling unit — and concentrates climate control where it is actually needed. Comparative studies place the energy savings of UFAD systems between 15% and 30% compared to conventional overhead air distribution.

GAMAFLOR G perforated panels — available in 25%, 42% and 58% open area configurations — allow airflow to be adjusted in each zone of the building, optimising flow distribution according to the real occupancy and equipment needs of each space.

Indoor air quality: IEQ credits

The LEED Indoor Environmental Quality (IEQ) category specifically values air quality in workspaces and human-use environments. The UFAD system integrated with the raised access floor contributes to this category in three ways:

• Reduction of CO₂ concentration in the occupied zone — air is introduced at floor level and displaces contaminated air towards the upper extraction zones.
• Improved thermal comfort — low-velocity air distribution at occupancy level eliminates the draughts and thermal gradients associated with conventional overhead systems.
• Air quality control in technical areas — the accessible plenum allows filtration and air treatment systems to be maintained and updated without interrupting building activity.

Waste management and adaptability

During refurbishment or reconfiguration of a building with raised access flooring, panels are dismantled and reused without generating demolition waste. Compared to a conventional fixed floor — which in any refurbishment would generate tonnes of construction waste — raised access flooring contributes directly to LEED construction waste management credits.

This demolition-free adaptability also has an impact on the building’s lifecycle — one of the criteria that LEED v4 values increasingly in its Building Life-Cycle Impact Reduction category.

Specifying for LEED from the design stage

The impact of raised access flooring on a building’s LEED score is not defined on site — it is defined at the design stage. The choice of panel system, plenum height, UFAD integration and finish selection are decisions that must be made before construction begins, in coordination with the project’s sustainability consultant.

At Polygroup, we work alongside architects, engineers and sustainability consultants from the earliest stages of each project, providing the technical documentation required for the certification process and ensuring that the floor system is optimised to contribute to the maximum number of LEED credits.

Working on a project with LEED certification requirements? Our technical team can help you define the most suitable system from the very first sketch. Contact us.