ASHRAE has announced the release of the 2018 International Green Construction Code. The 2018 IgCC is a joint initiative of the U.S. Green Building Council, International Code Council, ASHRAE and the Illuminating Engineering Society.

The 2018 IgCC aligns the technical requirements of ANSI/ASHRAE/ICC/USGBC/IES 189.1-2017-Standard for the Design of High-Performance Green Buildings Except Low Rise Residential Buildings, with ICC’s multi-stakeholder IgCC. Goals of the updated code are to help governments streamline code development and adoption and improve building industry standardization by integrating the two previously separate guidance documents. As a result, the 2018 IgCC is now a unified code that emphasizes adoption, ease of use and enforcement for building projects.

“The 2018 IgCC leverages ASHRAE’s technical expertise to offer a comprehensive tool that has a direct effect on how green building strategies are implemented,” said Sheila J. Hayter, 2018-2019 ASHRAE president. “Improving energy efficiency, building performance and indoor air quality are at the core of ASHRAE’s mission and we are encouraged by the impact of this landmark model towards realizing more a sustainable future for us all.”

As a standing project committee, ASHRAE SSPC 189.1 updated the technical aspects of Standard 189.1-2014 using ASHRAE's continuous maintenance procedures. The final set of changes to the 2017 edition of Standard 189.1 provided the foundation for ICC to develop the administrative procedures for the technical content and codify of the document into the 2018 IgCC.

“Building safety codes help our communities prepare for the future,” said Dominic Sims, CEO of International Code Council. “Taking into account the latest technologies and cost-effective strategies for dealing with resource scarcity, the IgCC helps cities, states and countries build stronger, smarter, sustainably and more resiliently.” 

“Our hope is that building professionals and policymakers alike adopt better, greener building strategies that help them better implement LEED and achieve higher performance in sustainability,” said Mahesh Ramanujam, president and CEO of USGBC.