inici group’s Haiti Response Fundraiser

inici group has joined forces with the Mercy Corps to help fundraising for Haiti earthquake victims. inici group is committed to helping people, whether they are our neighbors or across borders. Please visit our Mercy Corps fundraiser site where you can read about the Mercy Core relief efforts and the latest news out of the Port-au-Prince. All contributions made through inici group’s site are handled directly though the Mercy Corps.

You can also check out DJC Oregon’s site to read about what other local companies are doing to help.

Our thoughts and prayers are with everyone impacted by this disaster

-inici group, Inc.

Adventist Medical Center Emergency Department Lobby Completion

Adventist Medical Center has been transforming greatly with the Pavilion expansion. The new Emergency Department Lobby reflects the Adventist vision of putting the patient, family and friends first. The design on the room was focused on the ones who will be using it the most. Open spaces, comfortable furniture, free wifi, a fireplace, large windows that let in natural light and televisions provide a calming and healing atmosphere. The project team did a great job delivering this lobby.

Karl Schulz’s visit to India

Karl, the Principal at inici group, is chaperoning Riverdale High School students’ visit to India on behalf of Hope Charities. This marks the fourth trip over to India for Riverdale students. Their main objective is to develop community service projects and fund-raise to implement them. The group’s concentration this year is to build an expansion to the existing Women’s Vocational Center to provide greatly needed facilities for training and office space. You can learn more about the trip by visiting the Bridges to India website. Also, make sure to visit the blog on the Bridges to India site to read their daily updates.

inici visits Habitat for Humanity

inici visited Habitat for Humanity along with Adventist Medical Center to help with the construction on a large housing project in the Northeast Portland area. The AMC crew along with four people from inici group helped out Friday with everything from fireproofing to siding. We worked on four units in total with a big list of things to get completed before four inspections were scheduled later on in the afternoon.

Adventist, inici and contractors working together

Everything went smoothly and it was amazing to see how well people were working together for one great cause. For more information to see how you can make a difference in your community, visit the local Habitat for Humanity website.

What’s your carbon footprint?

Carbon calculators have been out for a few years now but they are easier to use and more accurate than ever. Take a look over at Carbon Fund’s website for an accurate calculator for household, car, mass transit, flights and events. You no longer have to feel bad for not investing in a hybrid car when you can get that same “warm and fuzzy” feeling with carbon offsets.

My stats were:

• House:   5.33
• Car:        2.53
• Planes:   0.95
• Total:      8.81 tons/year

8.81 tons roughly equates to 17,600 pounds. According to the CarbonFund site, the average American produces 50,000 tons/year.

inici group project receives honors

The American Institute of Architects awarded the Providence North Portland Clinic and the OHSU Peter O. Kohler Pavilion for national health care design. An article in the DJC Oregon states that these medical centers offer better lifestyles for everyone who uses the building. Whether that be the staff who now have creature comforts to support their 12 hour shifts or the patients who will have better quality of life and shorter stays.

More on this award can be found on the DJC Oregon website.

Energy use at work and home

While some may not have the time or the resources to implement a recycling or purchasing plan at an organization, buying energy efficient office equipment the can be made easier thanks to EPEAT. EPEAT is a fairly easy to use website that can give you valuable and easy to find information about how efficient your electronic devices are. The site only computer related products currently but will be expanded to contain TV’s, servers, and other popular electronics.

New building efficiency rating system

The two biggest standards on energy efficiency ratings have been Energy Star and LEED. However, a new rating system developed by the American Society of Heating, Refrigeration, and Air Conditioning Engineers that could be the new standard. The ASHRAE rates buildings on letter grades concerning only energy efficiency. Possible grades range from an A+ (totally self-sustaining building) to a C (building that uses 30 percent less energy than one that meets the general code). Some building owners and designers are not excited about the new rating system as it could create more complications to an already sophisticated design area. However, by having more specific certifications that take the whole buildings life cycle into account could push us to reach the 2030 goal even quicker.

More about the ASHRAE can be found on their website and an article in the DJC Oregon

Adventist Medical Center new accreditation

Adventist Medical Center, an inici group client, announced that they have received the Cycle II Chest Pain Center Accreditation. AMC has been working hard and investing in the latest technologies to provide the highest quality of care to their patients. The AMC Heart Center is only one of two medical centers in all of Oregon to receive this accreditation from the Society of Chest Pain Centers.

More information about this accreditation can be found in this press release

How much can you sell your LEED building for?

Cascadia recently released an interesting study that deciphers the true value of a green building. More specifically, it raises topics whether the additional costs outweigh the environmental savings and how these energy saving features are evaluated in comparison to a standard building.
While its a fairly lengthy article, its worth the read.

Cascadia Report