ISI Rating Tool available in July for public comment

The ISI sustainability infrastructure rating system EnvISIon™ is now available for public comment on this website. The public comment period, which will last until December 9, 2011, is designed to provide an opportunity for practitioners and interested parties to critically review the tool and its assumptions and make comments or suggestions prior to its actual release for commercial use early in 2012. All comments will be reviewed and considered in confidence by the ISI Technical Committee.

EnvISIon™ is unusual in a world of ranking and assessment planning tools in that it can be applied to all civil infrastructure other than buildings and can be used to assess the sustainability of an infrastructure project at any point in its life cycle–from inception on. The tool is multidisciplinary and provides measures by which a community can asses not only whether a project is done right, but whether it is the right project. Especially important to communities with special and unique needs and requirements, envISIon™ does not mandate proscribed steps, but helps decision makers evaluate options in the context of available resources. EnvISIon™ addresses these challenges through a rating system that stretches traditional design boundaries and assesses projects not only by how they are delivered, but how long they last, accounting for durability, flexibility and utility of the constructed works.

Importantly, envISIon™ is not just an engineering tool ... it is a public administration tool that will help firms and communities discuss infrastructure and sustainability in ways that citizens and public officials can understand and relate to community values. In a very real sense, envISIon™ is a "good government" tool because it will help build and retain confidence in civil infrastructure investment in a time of scarce resources and conflicting needs.

Following the public comment period, which will last as long as six months, envISIon™ will be made available as a commercial product. In the meantime, ISI and its Founding Organizations, the American Society of Civil Engineers, the American Public Works Association and the American Council of Engineering Companies, will be focusing on identifying and certifying assessors to evaluate the success of individual projects rated using envISIon™. By the end of 2012, projects assessed as "sustainable" will be eligible for public recognition by the Institute for Sustainable Infrastructure.

"This is a good time to join ISI" says Chairman of the Board Tim Psomas, PE. In the next several months we will be refining envISIon™, preparing it for the marketplace, and readying our assessor cadre. Every local, state and federal governmental agency, every engineering, design and construction firm involved in civil infrastructure, and every non-profit organization concerned about assuring the sustainability of this nation's infrastructure should want to be a part of this process".

The Institute for Sustainable Infrastructure is a membership organization and information about membership is available on this website.