As communities across the U.S. race to conserve energy in pursuit of a $5 million prize, they are discovering what it takes to motivate energy-saving changes. One of the keys: Know your audience.
© Warren Jagger Photography The aggressive project schedule and integrated design-build process created the opportunity, and the necessity, for collective wisdom and a continuous feedback loop among the owner-architect-contractor team. This was fundamental to the success of the BRB. For…
© Warren Jagger Photography Building Team Building Owner/Representative National University of Ireland, Galway Architect Payette, Reddy Architecture + Urbanism General Contractor J.J. Rhatigan & Co. Mechanical Engineer Homan O'Brien Electrical Engineer Homan O'Brien Energy Modeler Roger Preston Environmental Structural Engineer…
© Warren Jagger Photography Building Envelope Roof Type In situ concrete with vapor control layer and 150 mm thermal insulation with three-coat mastic asphalt roof finish, finished with reflective paint finish and 20 mm pea gravel surface protection Overall…
© Warren Jagger Photography Building at a Glance Name Biosciences Research Building Location Galway, Ireland Owner National University of Ireland, Galway Principal Use Research lab Includes Vivarium, wet bench, BSL-3 research, chemistry, biology, medical Gross Square Footage 86,112…
Phase 2 of midtown Atlanta’s Technology Square project, known as Coda, includes a 21-story collaborative building developed by Portman Holdings for Georgia Tech, and will feature a unique elevator system installed for the first time in the Americas.
AIA COTE jury member Margaret Montgomery shares top trends seen in this year's winners.
Houston's recent floods demonstrate the disastrous consequences of putting people, pavement and buildings in vulnerable places.
Resilient design is gaining traction, but costs and predicting future climate change effects pose barriers.
Photo by David Chance Rainwater is intrinsically soft and corrosive, potentially reacting with distribution or storage systems, resulting in water quality issues and impacting the service life of copper pipes. After observing unusually high copper levels in the water supply,…
Photo by Scott Wertz Building Team Building Owner/Representative Chesapeake Bay Foundation/Skanska (owner's representative) Architect SmithGroupJJR General Contractor Hourigan Construction Mechanical Engineer SmithGroupJJR Electrical Engineer SmithGroupJJR Energy Modeler Baumann Consulting Structural Engineer A&F Engineers Civil Engineer WPL Site Design Landscape Architect …
Photo by David Chance Building Envelope Roof Type Standing Seam Metal Overall R-value 51 Reflectivity 0.3 Walls Type 2 × 6 wood stud wall with batt insulation, with continuous foam insulation installed in rain screen assembly Overall R-value 31 Glazing…
Photo by David Chance Building at a Glance Name Brock Environmental Center Location Virginia Beach, Va. (14 NE of Norfolk) Owner Chesapeake Bay Foundation Principal Use Office for staff and partners, meetings rooms for events Includes Conference Center Employees/Occupants …
A sampling of products designed to save energy and reduce environmental impact.
Mike Rowland, facilities director of Georgia’s Education Department, discusses how insufficient funding for school facilities impacts student learning.
Caption Photo credit. a;sldfjasdlkfjas;lf Check out the full case study here.
Nothing closes down a school like the lack of access to water, yet the value of water is often not appreciated—even by Californians in the midst of a drought. So Sacred Heart Schools pursued net zero water for the Stevens…
Building Owner/Representative Sacred Heart Schools Architect WRNS Studio General Contractor Herrero Contractors Mechanical, Electrical Engineer, Energy Modeler Interface Engineers Structural Engineer Hohbach-Lewin, Inc. Civil Engineer Sherwood Design Engineers Landscape Architect Bellinger Foster Steinmetz Lighting Design Interface Engineers LEED Consultant …
Building Envelope Roof White TPO roofing (white) Type Flat roof with high-efficiency roof-top solar photovoltaic panels Overall R-value R-38 Walls Gyp board Type Metal stud framing centered at 24” with 1-inch thick rigid insulation added to the batt…
Building at a Glance Name Stevens Library at Sacred Heart Schools Location Atherton, Calif. (22 miles NW of San Jose and 30 miles SE of San Francisco) Owner Sacred Heart Schools Principal Use Library for K-8 School Campus Includes Office,…
Metropolitan Atlanta has become emblematic of 21st century water issues, with its 20-year legal battle between Georgia, Florida and Alabama over its drinking water source (known as the “Tri-state Water Wars”); $4 billion consent decrees with EPA mandating improvements to…
Know what’s going down your drains, and when. We have a lot of lab space tied to the sewer shed from which we’re pulling, so invest the time up front to interview the researchers and understand what types of chemicals…
How does a building team deal with energy efficiency in an old building while maintaining its historic integrity? Author Carmen R. Evans details how this challenge and others were overcome.
Scott Heckel, P.E., describes how the building team helped the developer mitigate financial risk.
Photo courtesy Urbanica Building Envelope Roof Type Wood frame, black EPDM (95% of roof is covered by PV panels) Overall R-value R-69 Walls Type wood double stud Overall R-value R-41 Glazing Percentage 18.5% (average) Windows Effective U-factor for Assembly 0.105…
Sam Oberter Photography Building at a Glance Name Roxbury E+ Townhomes Location Boston Owner Private Principal Use 4 townhomes Occupants 13 Expected (Design) Occupancy 16 (4 per home) Percent Occupied 81% Gross Square Footage 7,883 Conditioned Space…
Photo courtesy Urbanica The Home Energy Rating System (HERS) Index is a relative measure of a home’s energy usage and efficiency, where the lower the number, the more efficient and less energy that home uses. According to the U.S. Department…
Photo Sam Oberter Photography Building Owner/Representative Urbanica Architect ISA (Design Architect), Urbanica (Architect of Record) General Contractor Urbanica Construction Mechanical, Electrical Engineer Engineering Design Build, Inc. Energy Modelers Conservation Services Group, MaGrann Associates Structural Engineer DM Berg Consultants, PC Civil…
Photo courtesy Urbanica Determine Cost-Benefit Analysis Around Big-Ticket Items to Identify Critical First Costs Versus Life-Cycle Costs. Between the time the homes were conceived and the time the homes were built, photovoltaic technology changed enough that the team was able…
Gloria Paul Evaluating Envelope Upgrades for an Existing Building. The existing structure remained in place, so all improvements had to work around any existing features. To ensure proper installation of the specified insulation, infrared thermography was used toward the…
Epsten Group, Inc. Building Envelope Roof Type White thermoplastic polyolefin (TPO) membrane/vegetated roof area Overall R-value R-32 Solar Reflectance Index 110 Walls Type Concrete block Overall R-value R-22 Windows Solar Heat Gain Coefficient (SHGC) 0.28 Visual Transmittance 42% Location Latitude…
Epsten Group, Inc. Building at a Glance Name The Edge, Epsten Group Headquarters Location 399 Edgewood Ave, Atlanta Owner Epsten Properties, LLC Principal Use Offices Includes Server room, training room Employees/Occupants 50 Expected (Design) Occupancy 50 Percent Occupied…
Gloria Paul Building Owner/Representative Epsten Properties, LLC Architect, Energy Modeler, LEED Consultant Epsten Group, Inc General Contractor Deruki Construction Mechanical, Electrical Engineer Covalent Consulting, LLC Structural Engineer Nielson-Harrell Structural Engineers Commissioning Agent LEED-NC v2009 Total Systems Commissioning, Inc…
Seventhwave is the energy analyst for 749 University Row and a tenant in the building. As a nonprofit firm specializing in energy consulting, research, and education, Seventhwave’s mission is a good fit for the sustainability goals of the building. Being a…
Variable Refrigerant Flow. Tuning immediately following start-up required a bit more time and more parties than planned. The thermostat is deceptively simple, but actually can require significant tuning. Due to the newness of the system type, the contractor had to…
Building Owner/Representative University Crossing Investors Architect, LEED Consultant Potter Lawson, Inc. General Contractor Krupp General Contractors Mechanical Engineer General Heating and Cooling Electrical Engineer Specialized Electric Energy Modeler Seventhwave Structural Engineer Pierce Engineering Civil Engineer D'Onofrio Kottke and Associates, Inc.…
Building Envelope Roof Type Built-up roof on metal deck Overall R-value R-30 Reflectivity Non-reflective (white roof not effective in this climate) Walls Type Metal panel and masonry over steel-frame backup; rigid insulation and liquid applied air barrier Overall R-value R-18 Glazing…
Building at a Glance Name 749 University Row Location Madison, Wis. Owner University Crossing Investors and Krupp General Contractors Principal Use Office Includes Dentist office, small enclosed parking Employees/Occupants 190 Expected (Design) Occupancy 190 Percent Occupied 100% Gross…
Definitions of key terms applied to the zero energy building definitions. Annual: Covering at least one period of 12 consecutive months for all energy measurements. Building: A structure wholly or partially enclosed within exterior walls, or within exterior and party…
Developer: Catalyst Development Co.; Patti Owens, Vice President & managing director Owner: Catalyst Development Co. #7 Architect/Designer: TowerPinkster Architects | Engineers; Jason Novotny, Design Architect; Steve Loney, Project Manager, Construction Manager, CSM Group; Todd McDonald, President Structural Engineer: Nehil • Sivak Consulting Structural Engineers;…
Determine your building's potential energy efficiency with an As Designed evaluation. Powered by ASHRAE.
