OR&L Construction Co.
2 Summit Place
Branford 06405
203-643-1000
orlconstruction.com
President: Todd Renz
No. employees: 20
OR&L Construction Corp. has played an active role in popularizing environmentally friendly design and construction since the commercial building company was founded in 1990.
“Green building has been our core philosophy even before sustainability awareness arose,” says company President Todd Renz. “We’ve always appreciated open space, and we do everything we can to maximize our buildings’ efficiency and minimize environmental impacts.”
OR&L has long been active in the U.S. Green Building Council, and Renz is currently chairman of the group’s Connecticut chapter. He first served as president of the chapter starting in 2006, and since then the chapter has grown from 50 to 400 members.
Tanya Cutolo, an architect who is director of design and business development for OR&L, says the company incorporates green building strategies into all of its projects. “We promote an integrated design and construction process,” she explains.
OR&L provides its clients with an energy-efficiency assessment and seeks both utility incentives and federal tax rebates; employs the most up-to-date technologies for heating, cooling and lighting; uses recycled construction materials and construction waste management practices; and buys 100 percent green power. Other services include energy-use modeling, cost analysis, envelope upgrade options, renewable energy rebate research and LEED construction management.
Renz says paying attention to environmental concerns pays off in the long term for OR&L’s clients. “It’s beneficial to take a long-term approach, to build durable buildings with superior insulation, energy-efficient windows, digital controls, and efficient mechanical units and energy units,” he says. “We reduce the upfront costs with utility incentives, energy-conscious blueprints and federal tax credits.”
Renz says his company also emphasizes designing space with lots of daylight and comfortable indoor air quality and lighting, along with alternative energy sources such as solar and geothermal energy systems.
Recent projects include the new Zane’s Cycles building in Branford, the Hartford Medical Group building in Wethersfield, the new YMCA in Branford, and Lakebrook Medical Center in Westbrook.
The 12,000-square-foot Zane’s Cycles building, which opened in 2008 at 330 East Main Street in Branford, incorporates solar panels, a windwheel electric power generator and high-performance insulation and mechanical systems.
“We built in sensitivity to the site by keeping as much vegetation as we could, in order to avoid creating a ‘heat island,’” Renz says. “The building is well integrated with the landscape.”
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