The Oshman Engineering Design Kitchen at Rice became the first renovated building on campus to win the prestigious LEED Gold rating. The 12,000-square-foot building features state-of-the-art education space, including a large classroom, a machine shop, a wet lab, a computational lab, rooms for a 3-D printer, PC milling machine and laser cutter, a plotter and copy room, conference rooms, office space and a student lounge. Some of its green aspects include:

• Energy-saving, vegetated roof to reduce energy use, prevent water runoff/ flooding, and lower outdoor temperatures around the building.
• An adaptable roof-top that will serve as an ecosystem to support birds and other native animals/insects.
• Half of the materials used in renovation were composed from recycled sources.
• 66 percent of the construction and demolition waste was recycled.
• 19 percent less energy use and 31 percent less water waste than a typical design kitchen.