The new HMTX Industries world headquarters in Norwalk, Connecticut, was honored at the Connecticut Green Building Council (CTGBC) annual awards program at a Dec. 8 ceremony in Branford, Connecticut.

Since 2006, CTGBC has recognized excellence in design and construction practice that supports the broader goals of accelerating the equitable, healthy, resilient, and sustainable transformation of the built environment in the state of Connecticut and beyond. “The House Up On The Hill” was the first project in 16 years that garnered more than one award. The building project was honored in two categories – Health and Energy Commercial.

“We envision a Connecticut that is healthy, resilient, and inclusive, where the built environment mitigates climate change and promotes social equity," said CTGBC Executive Director Alicia Dolce. "HMTX’s ‘House Up On The Hill’ is a true embodiment of our mission.”

HMTX Chief Sustainability Officer Rochelle Routman and Senior Director, Community Engagement Rick Taylor accepted the awards on behalf of HMTX Industries, receiving handmade trophies crafted from local fallen trees given new life.

In presenting the HMTX Award of Honor - Health, Nora Rizzo, CTGBC board member, Co-Chair of NESSBE and the Living Future community and the Sustainable Materials Director at Grace Farms Foundation, noted that the new HMTX headquarters will serve as a place to design and develop the latest and innovative building products for the flooring industry.

“As a leading flooring manufacturer dedicated to reducing the social, environmental, and health impact of its products, the materials in the HMTX building have been specified to avoid worst-in-class chemicals,” Rizzo said. “The jurors were especially impressed by their commitment to eliminate toxins from the project’s building materials, commenting that ‘you have to recognize meeting the Living Building Challenge Material Petal as a special achievement and it needs to be applauded.’

In accepting the Health award, Taylor commented, “Watching the various phases of construction from site analysis, to preparing the site for pouring the foundations, watching the steel being delivered and staged and then erecting the steel superstructure, and all the trades that followed was truly inspiring work. Add in the challenges and hurdles to overcome because of the pandemic, supply chain and staffing issues the project faced, only gives me a greater appreciation for the finished product.”

HMTX Award of Honor – Energy Commercial was presented by Melissa Kops, a CTGBC Board Advisor, Co-Chair of the Advocacy, NESSBE, and Living Future community and Architect for the City of New Haven. 

 “This project has the ambitious goal of being the greenest building in the state of Connecticut, and it boasts all the metrics to claim that title," she said. "Because of our new awards format that recognizes the holistic attributes that define a green building, this is the first project ever to receive two green building awards in one year."

In accepting the Energy Commercial award, Routman said, “In terms of energy efficiency, this building is an excellent example of our corporate efforts toward our climate neutrality goals of a 50% reduction by 2030 and climate neutrality by 2035. We are so proud of this building for so many reasons. In fact, we love this building, and we have named it ‘The House Up On The Hill.’ I’m sure you will all agree that a building of this stature deserves its own name.”

Rochelle then introduced Jason McLennan of McLennan design, the founder of the Living Building Challenge and design architect for the product, who appeared via video to pay his tribute to the world headquarters. 

True to its purpose of community engagement, HMTX will host tours, special events and nonprofit outreach in the building.