New Headquarters for Atlanta Ambassador Force Receives LEED Certification

October 15,2009

Skanska Donates 850 Man-Hours for Renovation

ATLANTA – Skanska USA Building Inc. provided free construction management services to renovate the Atlanta Downtown Improvement District (ADID) headquarters, which houses the 68-member Ambassador Force of Downtown Atlanta®.

Skanska, a Central Atlanta Progress (CAP) member, was selected by CAP to renovate the 6,000-square-foot space in the historic Olympia Building Downtown with the goal of LEED-certification in mind.

“CAP wanted a LEED-certified space for the headquarters of the Atlanta Ambassador Force and asked for our help in making it happen,” said Skanska Senior Vice President Al Gogolin, PE, LEED AP. “We achieved LEED Silver certification by reducing water use by 30-percent and energy use by 25-percent, while completing an adaptive reuse of this historic building.”

Skanska donated 850 man-hours to the project, but achieved something more important, Gogolin noted. “Our culture of sustainability is being instilled in our sub-contractors and trickles down to our owners and projects. With this culture in place, building green doesn’t cost more than building projects the old way. The long-term benefit of reduced energy bills and doing business the right way far exceeds any up-front cost differences.”

By donating its time and talent to worthwhile causes like the ADID headquarters, Skanska is furthering its three-part mission of environmental, social and economic sustainability.

“Conservation is as important as construction,” Gogolin continued. “When you do both the right way, you have a very powerful combination.”

Subcontractor partners donating to the ADID project include Fitzgerald & Sons Plumbing Company, Metro Interior Demolition LLC, Southern Door & Plywood Inc., Donco, Inc., Atlanta Bin & Shelving Corp., Marek Interiors Systems Inc., Rosing Painting & Wallcovering Contractors Inc., LMI Electrical Contractors Inc., Southeastern Caseworks Enterprises, Atlanta Contract Glazing Inc., Atlanta Flooring Design Centers, McKenney’s Inc., Integrated Fire Protection, Williams Welding Inc. and Hardrock Concrete Placement Co., Inc.

Other companies donating to the project include local architectural firm ASD; idea | span; Georgia Pacific; Cousins Properties Inc.; PM Realty Group; Chad Aron and Stephanie Friese; Flood Brothers; Georgia Building Authority; Southface Energy Institute; The Community Foundation for Greater Atlanta; Corporate Environments and Milliken. Additionally, The Home Depot Foundation donated $10,000 in gift cards to the project.

“We are extremely grateful to Skanska and the other member companies that donated their time and expertise to make this impressive facility a reality,” said A.J. Robinson, President of Central Atlanta Progress. “Skanska’s commitment to sustainability helped us reach our goal of LEED certification. We are all happy with this result.”

Construction began in December 2008 and was completed in February 2009. Construction costs for the project totaled $420,000.

The Ambassador Force is trained to provide residents, tourists, conventioneers, employees and business owners with a variety of information and assistance. The Atlanta Downtown Improvement District is a public-private partnership that strives to create a livable environment for Downtown Atlanta.

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For further information please contact:
Jessica Murray, Skanska, Jessica.Murray@skanska.com, 404.946.7468
Patrick Hill, Jackson Spalding, PatHill@JacksonSpalding.com, 404.724.2506

This and previous releases can also be found at www.skanska.com

Skanska USA Building Inc. is a leading national and local provider of construction, pre-construction consulting, general contracting and design-build services to a broad range of U.S. industries including science and technology, healthcare, education, high-tech, aviation, transportation and sports and entertainment. Skanska USA Building also provides pharmaceutical validation services to clients. The company, part of the Skanska AB global group of companies, is headquartered in Parsippany, New Jersey, and has approximately 4,700 employees.
Skanska is one of the world’s leading construction groups with expertise in construction, development of commercial and residential projects and public-private partnerships. The Group currently has 56,000 employees in selected home markets in Europe, in the U.S. and Latin America. Headquartered in Stockholm, Sweden, and listed on the Stockholm Stock Exchange, Skanska’s sales in 2008 totaled $21.8 billion.