Sustainable Healthcare Infrastructure: Design-Phase Evaluation of LEED Certification and Energy Efficiency at Istanbul University's Surgical Sciences Building

AKÇAY C., Sari M.

BUILDINGS, cilt.15, sa.14, 2025 (SCI-Expanded) identifier identifier

  • Yayın Türü: Makale / Tam Makale
  • Cilt numarası: 15 Sayı: 14
  • Basım Tarihi: 2025
  • Doi Numarası: 10.3390/buildings15142385
  • Dergi Adı: BUILDINGS
  • Derginin Tarandığı İndeksler: Science Citation Index Expanded (SCI-EXPANDED), Scopus, Aerospace Database, Agricultural & Environmental Science Database, Applied Science & Technology Source, Communication Abstracts, INSPEC, Metadex, Directory of Open Access Journals, Civil Engineering Abstracts
  • İstanbul Üniversitesi Adresli: Evet

Özet

The rapid growth of the global population and associated increases in resource consumption have accelerated environmental degradation, making sustainable design and construction processes increasingly essential. The construction sector holds significant potential for reducing environmental impacts, especially through sustainability-focused certification systems such as LEED. This study evaluates the projected energy efficiency and sustainability performance of the Surgical Sciences Building at Istanbul University's & Ccedil;apa Campus, which was designed with the goal of achieving LEED Gold certification. The assessment is based on design-phase data and conducted prior to construction. Energy performance analyses were carried out using DesignBuilder software, supported by the LEED Assessment Report and Energy Audit Report. According to simulation results, approximately 30% savings in energy consumption and water usage are expected. In addition, the process-oriented LEED approach is expected to result in a total CO2 emission savings of approximately 570 tonnes, while renewable energy systems are expected to meet approximately 13% of the building's primary energy demand and reduce CO2 emissions by approximately 151 tonnes per year. Waste management strategies developed for both the construction and operational phases are aligned with LEED criteria and aim to achieve up to 80% recycling rates. The findings demonstrate that LEED certification, when employed as a process-oriented design and decision-making tool rather than a result-oriented label, can enable sustainable strategies to be integrated from the earliest stages of project development. Particularly for complex healthcare buildings, embedding LEED principles into the design process has strong potential to enhance environmental performance. Although based on a single case study, this research provides valuable insight into the broader applicability of LEED in diverse building types and geographic contexts.