Dunn-Edwards has been awarded the LEED Gold Certification established by the U.S. Green Building Council and verified by the Green Building Certification Institute for its new manufacturing facility. Located in Phoenix, Ariz., the 336,000-sq.-ft. plant was custom designed to be the greenest and most efficient in the coatings industry, the company said, and is the world’s first LEED-certified paint manufacturing facility. The ultra-modern building encompasses manufacturing, product development, quality control laboratories, a distribution center, retail outlet and office space. LEED is the nation’s preeminent program for the design, construction and operation of high performance green buildings.

“We have incorporated innovative, energy-efficient equipment and protocols, such as unique high-efficiency process equipment with integrated dust-suppression technology, so that no particulates are emitted to ambient air, and advanced wastewater recycling techniques to conserve water. Our systems are classified as ultra-low discharge, meaning that waste generation is virtually elminated,” said Karl Altergott, president, Dunn-Edwards.

The company also eliminated cardboard boxes for packaging one-gallon containers and now use heat shrink wrap. Dunn-Edwards is the only paint plant in the United States using heat shrink wrap, the company said. This amounts to a reduction of cardboard consumption by one million boxes, which equates to approximately 250 tons of cardboard per year.

Altergott reports that energy calculations on the new plant show a 50 percent reduction over its two existing operations; one was first built in the mid-1950s and the other in the mid-1970s. “Our innovative automation at the new plant is one of the most comprehensive systems in the industry and light years beyond what we had at the older facilities,” he said. “We are so much more efficient saving time, money and resources.”

With more than 50 percent more space than our two former plants combined, this new plant meets Dunn-Edwards’ needs for long-term growth and has room to expand another 40,000 sq. ft.