EwingCole Now a Signatory of MEP 2040 Commitment

Philadelphia, PA (June 2022) – EwingCole, the design team behind one of the world’s largest verified, commercial Zero Net Energy buildings, recently signed on to the MEP 2040 Commitment set out by the Carbon Leadership Forum (CLF). This is the fourth commitment the firm has signed, further strengthening its broader mission to bring the built environment into alignment with the health of our communities and the planet – to create spaces where all of nature can thrive.

By taking on the MEP 2040 Challenge, EwingCole is committing to:

• Establish a firm-wide plan to reduce operational and embodied carbon across MEP systems on all projects, targeting zero by 2040 and measuring and reporting progress against that plan.
• Request low-GWP refrigerant availability when designing systems to reduce or eliminate GHG emissions from refrigerants.
• Request Environmental Product Declarations (EPDs) in project specifications for MEP system components.
• Participate in quarterly MEP 2040 Forum and a CLF Community discussion group to share lessons learned and contribute to a growing body of knowledge.

“As architects, engineers, designers, and planners, it is our professional responsibility to protect the health, safety, and welfare of the people in our buildings and the communities in which they inhabit,” said EwingCole President Robert McConnell, AIA. “Part of that responsibility includes supporting the success and continuation of future generations by reducing waste, energy consumption, and carbon output.”

EwingCole is a signatory of three other sustainability-driven commitments, each of which is a key pillar of the firm’s upcoming Sustainability Action Plan: the AIA 2030 Commitment, the SE 2050 Commitment and the AIA Materials Pledge.

“While the four commitments are all interdisciplinary, MEP 2040 focuses further on the materials and equipment specified by our engineers,” said Maria Papiez, AIA NCARB, director of sustainable design at EwingCole. “It brings together something we have been tracking for a long time – operational energy use reduction – with something very new in the industry – understanding the embodied carbon impact of MEP equipment and refrigerants.”