Contact:
Sarah Erdman, Marketing Director
515.965.3403
serdman (at) www.qagraphics.com
March 19, 2013
QA Graphics, the provider of the award-winning Energy Efficiency Education Dashboard®, is helping New York City’s first LEED Gold-certified restaurant showcase its green initiatives.
Apple-Metro, Inc., the New York Metropolitan Area franchisee for Applebee’s Neighborhood Grill & Bar®, has opened a new Applebee’s restaurant in Harlem at East River Plaza on 117th Street and is using QA Graphics’ Energy Efficiency Education Dashboard to educate on the green features in place. About 5 years ago Apple-Metro began implementing more sustainable features into their restaurant designs and found that they were on the right track for LEED restaurants if they took their designs to the next level. This new restaurant is anticipating Gold certification under the U.S. Green Building Council’s® LEED®. Apple-Metro looked to QA Graphics not only because the display helps earn a LEED credit but also for a creative way to share these achievements.
“It’s our responsibility to help inform our staff and customers on the sustainable actions that have been taken,” said Mike Berry, Director of Constructions & Facilities, Apple-Metro, Inc. “People want to know about it. And this is a great way to share the information.”
The Energy Efficiency Education Dashboard is an interactive application displayed on a 55-inch touchscreen near the entrance that shows why this restaurant is green. Viewers can take a 3D tour and see a photorealistic building render of the exterior and interior of the restaurant. On the tour, hot spots are identified, providing information on the more than 40 green features in place. Interactive demonstrations show how some of the sustainable features work and a checklist explains how LEED guidelines were followed. Users can test their green knowledge with a quiz, and the display also shows current weather conditions and a map of local transportation and area attractions.
“The level of detail that QA Graphics provides is outstanding. There aren’t any flaws in its performance and graphics are surreal,” said Berry. “Our staff absolutely loves it. While waiting for a table, our guests and their children play with the display and take the quiz.”
“We knew we were aiming for Gold and worked with QA Graphics to develop this solution during the construction of the restaurant. It was never an issue to make changes or updates as we changed building plans. It was such a smooth process,” said Berry.
Apple-Metro is continuing its sustainable efforts and has another green restaurant in the works in Brooklyn. In addition to this project, QA Graphics’ Energy Efficiency Education Dashboard solution is used by organizations of all types across North America.
About QA Graphics
QA Graphics is an Iowa-based creative design company, specializing in 3D design and interactive marketing solutions. QA Graphics is a leader in the building automation and green building industries, providing HVAC graphic development services and energy dashboards to help organizations educate occupants about building performance and sustainability. QA Graphics provides comprehensive design solutions for restaurants, quick-serve restaurants, convenience stores, grocery stores, retail outlets, and others, including nutritional kiosks, digital menu boards, mobile applications, and other multimedia.