KFC-Taco Bell Restaurant Earns LEED^® Gold Certification

Yum! Brands, Inc. (NYSE: YUM), Louisville, Ky., the world’s largest restaurant company and parent of KFC, Pizza Hut, Taco Bell, Long John Silver’s and A&W All-American Food Restaurants, is committed to corporate social responsibility including its environmental impact. Yum! constructed the company’s first building under the United States Green Building Council’s LEED program, a KFC-Taco Bell restaurant in Northampton, Mass.

New Green Technologies
From the start of the design process, Yum Brands’ KFC Project Architect Jonathan Balas, AIA, LEED AP aimed to achieve LEED Gold Certification for the new KFC-Taco Bell restaurant. Balas wanted this restaurant to be a testing lab to study the performance of green technologies and approaches to reduce Yum! Brands’ environmental impact.

HVAC System to Reduce Carbon Footprint
In addition to drawing on numerous cutting-edge, energy-saving technologies, including a solar wall for preheating outdoor air, Balas asked his engineering consultants to recommend an HVAC system that would help reduce the building’s carbon footprint and contribute valuable LEED credits in the areas of energy, atmosphere and indoor environmental air quality control.

VRF System Helps Earn LEED Gold
Brian Austin, Schnackel Engineers, Omaha, Neb., knew there was an HVAC system that would deliver all the environmental performance demanded by the United States Green Building Council’s LEED certification system. Variable Refrigerant Flow (VRF) zoning systems from Mitsubishi Electric Cooling and Heating Solutions, Suwanee, Ga., would help Balas earn valuable points towards LEED Gold Certification for his Northampton green building “testing lab.”

Schnackel collaborated with Marty Cusick, Yum! Brands’ HVAC expert and national account manager for Harshaw Trane, Louisville, Ky. Working closely with Balas, Austin and Cusick recommended the Hyper-Heating (H2i^®) INVERTER technology – an exclusive from Mitsubishi Electric and available in select VRF zoning models. Knowing that winter days and nights in Northampton often fall into the single digits, they felt that the innovative H2i heat pump system would deliver exceptional 100 percent heating capacity, even at five degrees Fahrenheit  outdoors. The H2i unit would also bring unequaled comfort to the customer side of the restaurant all year long.

Sets Green Example for Restaurant Business
“We’re thrilled that the Northampton KFC-Taco Bell has been granted LEED Gold certification,” said Balas. “The certification fuels our passion and commitment to researching green building solutions and sets an example of what is possible for the restaurant industry. This building is our first step in this important effort.”

Balas added, “The Mitsubishi Electric system used in the project is very effective because it requires less ductwork, the small outdoor unit tucks in easily on the rooftop, provides good indoor air quality, is energy-efficient and is extremely quiet.”

A Definite Industry Leader
Scott Nellis, founder of Sunshine Heating and Air Conditioning, Schenectady, N.Y., has been installing HVAC systems all over New England – exclusively in fast food restaurants – for the past 32 years. The Northampton unit was his first experience with Mitsubishi Electric VRF zoning systems. He attended a Mitsubishi Electric training class in Dallas. “A fantastic class,” Nellis said. He likes the INVERTER technology, believes the H2i is a great unit, and calls Mitsubishi Electric “a definite industry leader.”