Labovitz School of Business and Economics

The Labovitz School of Business and Economics (LSBE) opened in 2008 and was the first building in the University of Minnesota System to be LEED certified at the gold level.

Sustainability goes way beyond a building's construction and is an issue throughout its life; LSBE was built with resource conservation in mind:

• The building was designed to harvest daylight; 90+% of the building is illuminated with natural light.

• Most of the artificial light in the building is produced through high efficiency T5 fluorescent lamps. Light sensors detect light levels within the building to ensure light fixtures are not generating excess light. Dimming and stepped daylighting controls also help to conserve energy.

• The building's heating and cooling systems are serviced through the campus steam and chilled water loop. Sensible heat recovery techniques are used in conjunction with efficient pumps and supply/return fans that maintain a constant static pressure to ensure energy efficiency throughout the building.


• Potable water use is reduced by 27% through the installation of low-flow urinals, lavatories and sinks as well as dual-flush toilets.

Other Buildings

Sustainability was a major area of consideration during construction:

• Waste was reduced by 78% during construction, mostly through practices of re-use and recycling
• 19% of the total building materials were manufactured using recycled material, including Marmoleum and Interface Flooring carpet tiles
• 59% of the materials were manufactured within 500 miles of the site
• 2.2% of the materials used are rapidly renewable, including bamboo and doors with wheat-core filling
• 65% of the wood building materials from FSC certified forests

Two bio-retention areas store stormwater and display native prairie vegetation. Plants adapted to our climate require no irrigation and little maintenance.

Built-in recycle bins ensure a dedicated area for proper waste disposal in LSBE.