For David Bowles, a former IBM corporate facility in Charlotte, NC was much more than an abandoned eyesore. It was an opportunity.

Bowles, owner of Environmental Services of Charlotte, Inc., purchased the empty 70,000-sq-ft building in 2009. A mechanical and electrical contractor, Bowles saw the shell of a building as the perfect place to carry out his vision: the creation of a multifaceted showcase of green building capabilities.