Put the Owner Back into the OPR: How LEED has led the OPR astray

Tom Paladino, PE, LEED AP, Paladino and Company
Brad Greeff, LEED BD+C, CEM, CCP, Paladino and Company

As its name suggests, the Owner Project Requirements (OPR) is the designated channel for the voice of the owner. But if you look at most OPRs for sustainable buildings, the owner’s goals are rarely addressed – the OPR simply dictates to the owner what is required to achieve LEED certification. This reality is contrary to the spirit in which LEED commissioning was created.

The OPR forms the basis from which all design, construction, acceptance, and operational decisions are made – and for the document to deliver meaningful business value the Owner must be put back into the author’s seat when identifying project requirements.

This session will present an objective approach to aligning owner needs with a decision support structure and third-party validation whether it’s LEED, LBC, WELL or others. The approaches reviewed in this session will benefit owners and Cx teams, providing skills advancement and examples of good, better, and best OPRs.

Learning Objectives:
(Re)define the purpose of an OPR
Identify good, better, and best approaches to drafting OPRs
Understand how the Cx agent can deliver greater value to the ownership
Identify techniques to link owner values to Cx practices