Chattanooga, TN, May 15, 2012 – SSOE Group (www.ssoe.com), a global engineering, procurement, and construction management (EPCM) firm, is proud to announce that the Volkswagen Chattanooga Assembly Plant has been awarded the prestigious Gold 2012 Edison Green Award, the highest honor among Green Award winners. The award recognizes “excellence personified by Thomas Alva Edison, inspiring the drive to remain in the forefront of innovation, creativity and ingenuity in the global economy.” The Green Award specifically recognizes the environmental and sustainability achievements at Volkswagen Chattanooga. SSOE performed architecture, engineering, and construction management for this $1 billion+ production facility which produces the 2012 Passat. SSOE also functioned as the Project Team Administrator (PTA) and Design Lead for all LEED credits.
Recently Volkswagen’s Chattanooga manufacturing plant received platinum certification from the U.S. Green Building Council’s (USGBC) Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED®) green building certification program. The facility is the first and only automotive manufacturing plant in the world to receive the Platinum certification.
Representatives from both SSOE and Volkswagen accepted the honor at the 25th annual Edison Awards Gala in New York City on April 26.
Edison Award nominees were judged by a panel of more than 3,000 individuals, including members of the Marketing Executives Networking Group (MENG), an organization comprising America’s top marketing professionals and academics. The panel also included professionals from the fields of product development and design, engineering, science and education. Award nominees were judged against evaluation criteria that included concept, value, impact, and delivery.
Prior to receiving the 2012 award, Volkswagen Chattanooga’s paint shop was named a finalist for the 2011 Edison Green Award. Paint shops are particularly difficult to design sustainably due to the complexity of the manufacturing process. In 2011, the factory also received the Tennessee Governor’s Environmental Stewardship Award.
For more information regarding the Edison Awards visit www.edisonawards.com.
About Volkswagen Chattanooga
Volkswagen will invest $1 billion in the local economy for the Chattanooga plant and create more than 2,000 direct jobs in the region. According to independent studies, the new Volkswagen plant is expected to generate $12 billion in income growth and an additional 9,500 jobs related to the project. The Chattanooga manufacturing facility builds the all-new 2012 Passat sedan, specially designed for the North American market and winner of the Motor Trend magazine 2012 Car of the Year award.
