Green BuildinG & desiGn
gb&d Green BuildinG & desiGn nov 2010
interior
motive
The essential guide for sustainable projects and ideas nov 2010 gb&d_4_NOV10_ cover.indd 1
How the iidA is facilitating widespread creation of healthier spaces, P. 54
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When you think “green” your first thought isn’t boilers.
Think again.
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BOBCAT Gas Boiler NOV 2010
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EUTECTIC Oil Boiler
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High efďŹ ciency residential & commercial boilers available at
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NOV 2010
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You want sustainability? We’ve got it. The Inside Advantage™ team presents an easy way to integrate sustainability: the Whirlpool
®
Eco-Efficient Kitchen, featuring the industry’s most energy-efficient side-by-side refrigerator, a water-saving dishwasher and two energy-saving cooking appliances. insideadvantage.com ENERGY
WATER
INDOOR AIR QUALITY
®Registered trademark//TM Trademark of Whirlpool, U.S.A., KitchenAid, U.S.A. Jenn-Air, U.S.A. or Maytag Corporation or its related companies. ©2010. All rights reserved. All other trademarks are owned by their respective companies.
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contents
gb&d GREEN BUILDING & DESIGN NOV 2010
11 16 16 17
up front commodities bookshelf agenda defined design
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profile BILL BONSTRA
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On how an educated staff has propelled his firm to being one of DC’s most successful
new spaces for a new school p. 48
HUGH STEARNS
New York-based Lyn Rice Architects browses the menu of architectural possibilities for myriad solutions that—through a client-oriented process of open exchange—allow pragmatic and conceptual issues to mix, mingle, and form distinct, nontraditional results.
On the necessity of considering relationships over building science
24
discussion board CTS GROUP ARCHITECTURE/PLANNING Resolving the conflict between historic preservation and sustainability
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COLONIALWEBB CONTRACTORS Virginia’s premier commercial builder discusses its strategies for the future
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launch pad LEAP adaptive A luxury home architect unveils a line of four small, modular, energy-efficient homes
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SMART LIVING HOMES The young company uses SCIPs to protect against the natural disasters inherent in Southern California
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inner workings LAFAYETTE TOWER Making history as Washington, DC’s first LEED Platinum building
34
community PYATOK ARCHITECTS Engaging local residents allows the firm to improve communities without sacrificing values
36
COWIE ASSOCIATES PC Residents get active in projects ranging from adaptive reuse to ground-up green design
38
MASS SERVICE & SUPPLY, LLC A woman-owned business builds itself through green practices and government projects
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FEATURES
URBAN SITES
expansion theory p. 54 The International Interior Design Association has thousands of professional and student members committed to the vision of better and healthier spaces. Executive Vice President and CEO Cheryl Durst, Honorary FIIDA, LEED AP, leads a dynamic professional network dedicated to the highest standards.
in good hands p. 63 Driven by competitive market conditions, operating expenses, and regional legislation, three of the world’s largest commercial-portfolio managers are aggressively pursuing Energy Star ratings and LEED certification for existing commercial office buildings in the United States.
Helping revive one of Cincinnati’s poorest neighborhoods—the historic Over the Rhine
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taking shape GLJ PARTNERS Integrated residential builders assert the importance of water conservation with STELLA
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CASA BELLA VERDE The 7,500-square-foot net-zero house showcases the latest green technology
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contents
spaces 70
95
residential LUMENHAUS J.L.S. ARCHITECUTRE Arkin Tilt Architects McDonald Construction & Development / Margadio Group The LaPorte Group Campaigne Kestner Architects Odyssey Builders Sea House Development Greenmore Homes, LLC Catalano Architects commercial 175–185 Wyman Street Harenlaughlin Construction Cerminara Architect CJW Architecture Green Construction US GCCM Construction Services, LLC
solutions 147
Finding the most cost-effective path to sustainability
150
152
155
135
industrial & municipal Watsonville Water Resource Center Bridge Homeless Assistance Center XL Construction Sabatini Architects
THERM FLO, INC. Mechanical systems that keep the world going
156
PETRI PLUMBING & HEATING, inc. Green-certified company renews the industry image
157
SERVI-TEK JANITORIAL SERVICES The fifth fastest-growing company in San Diego
architect to watch
CINDY GRANT On the convergence of beauty and sustainability and how to dive deeper into both
162 institutional Georgetown University Science Center EneA tree museum The Architects Buchar, Mitchell, Bajt, Architects Cass Sowatsky Chapman + Associates The United Group of Companies, inc. Warner Construction Shickel Corp. CAS Architects, Inc.
KINETIK INDUSTRIAL GROUP At the forefront of sustainably designed fuel storage
office Animal Welfare Sabatini Architects Offices Bruce Ronayne Hamilton Architects, Inc.
115
3D SMART STRUCTURES inc. Building with materials 10 times stronger than wood
159 110
OLIVER & COMPANY
last look naming the unnamed A visual glossary of interior-design typologies
*correction... In the October issue of gb&d, the designer for Clínica Verde (p.42) was misprinted as Andrew Bylund. Bill Bylund is the correct designer for this project. Our apologies.
*on a good note... 141
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recreational Shanghai Houtan Park Sanctuary Baines’ Camp The Green House ARC International, Inc.
Democracy Now! broadcast studio, featured in gb&d’s July/August issue (p. 120), whose construction was managed by Brooklyn Interiors, Inc., has achieved LEED Platinum certification—making it the only LEED-CI Platinum broadcast studio in the nation. Congrats to Brooklyn Interiors and Democracy Now!
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gb&d editorial
research
EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Christopher Howe
DIRECTOR OF EDITORIAL RESEARCH
MANAGING EDITOR
Jeffrey Powell jeff@bgandh.com
Amie Kesler amie@bgandh.com
ASSOCIATE EDITOR Timothy Schuler
CORRESPONDENTS Chris Allsop Thalia Aurinko-Mostow Zach Baliva Meghan Boyer Daniel Casciato Joyce Finn Peter Fretty Scott Heskes Jennifer Hogeland David Hudnall Jennifer Kirkland Russ Klettke Sarah Lozanova Eugenia Orr Jamie Ludwig Anita Paul Matt Petrusek Zipporah Porton Julie Schaeffer Yvelette Stines Suchi Rudra
art CREATIVE DIRECTOR Karin Bolliger
SENIOR DESIGNER Bill Werch
PHOTO EDITOR Zach Huelsing
ASSOCIATE PHOTO EDITOR Courtney Weber
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EDITORIAL RESEARCH MANAGERS Dawn Collins Carolyn Marx
EDITORIAL RESEARCHERS Holly Begle Genevieve Bellon Liz Boyd Ashley Brookes Ashley Brown Amanda Bush Charlie Calvin Deidre Davis Scott Ferrier Jackie Geweke Laura Heidenreich Shelley Hickey Dan Hopmann Ryan Jones Ellie Kim Amanda Kirvan Joe Madurski John McDonough Bronwyn Milliken Matt O’Connor Hayley O’Hara Brian Panezich Zach Patterson Molly Potnick Issa Rizkallah Dan Schaeflein Tom Swierczewski Natalie Taylor Ben Warren Erin Windle Katie Yost
EDITORIAL RESEARCH ASSISTANTS Adam Castillo Justin Davis
INTRODUCING THE ALL-NEW
GBDMAGAZINE.COM • View the latest issue of Green Building & Design in a full-sized readable format • Get inspired by featured projects, builders, architects, and designers • Discover what’s in store for upcoming issues, and how your company can get involved • Find out what events the Green Building & Design staff will be attending and more!
NOV 2010
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editor’s note
the human component
T
here is inspiration to be found in every design, and that is what we celebrate here at gb&d. But even more so, inspiration comes from the people behind the design, even a glimpse into the journey of the world’s movers and shakers can inspire a change. Cheryl Durst is one of these who was inspired and now motivates others, inside the interior design industry and out.
Durst’s first footsteps were on a path toward economics and journalism, but through furniture-design firm Knoll and the Washington Design Center, her trajectory changed. In 1997, she joined the International Interior Design Association (IIDA)—which was only three years old at the time—and soon was recognized as an extraordinary leader. She took the reins of the organization, which currently boasts 29 chapters and 13,000 members worldwide, in 2000 and has served as executive vice president and CEO ever since. People like Cheryl Durst and the IIDA, continue to inspire others just by being who they are, leading by example through passionate commitment to excellence, environmentally and economically. Durst’s story— and the IIDA’s efforts to foster growing, long-term relationships—can be found on p. 54. Similarly committed to excellence are three of the nation’s largest realestate managers: Jones Lang LaSalle, CB Richard Ellis, and Cushman Wakefield. With a combined total of two billion square feet of commercial property in their portfolios, the companies’ efforts to green their holdings are part of a transformation of enormous scope. At the dawn of the last decade, performance of existing buildings was a piece missing from the sustainability puzzle, but, as Scott Heskes brings to light in “In Good Hands” on p. 63, these green initiatives are pushing the envelope and pulling the rest of the industry with it. As always you’ll find the most groundbreaking projects that are just taking shape (p. 43), professionals discussing their philosophies (p. 20), and architects, designers, and contractors at the cutting edge of green. And don’t miss the extraordinary design work of Lyn Rice Architects on the Sheila C. Johnson Design Center in New York (p. 48) and Cindy Grant shows us her own home in Sherman Oaks, California (p. 159). “It’s about human beings, and it’s about humanity.” This quote from Cheryl Durst, on the profession of interior design, sums it up. A home isn’t a home without the human component, which is why we’ll always celebrate the design and the designer and thank our readers for being a part of such inspiring work. Enjoy,
Amie Kesler Managing Editor amie@bgandh.com
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CALL FOR ENTRIES Registration Deadline: January 24, 2011
APPLY TODAY: ELigibiLiTY: The ABQ Building Excellence Awards recognize achieve1) Projects must have been completed between ments in architecture, design, and community planning. December 31, 2007 and December 31, 2010. Winning projects will receive featured coverage in the 2) Entries are limited to construction firms headquartered in November/December 2011 issue of American Builders the United States; however, projects constructed abroad will Quarterly速, in addition to prize packages available exclusively be considered. to Building Excellence Award winners. CATEgOriEs: One residential and one commercial project will be designatFor more information, a complete list of categories, ed as the Project of the Year, and awards and honorable menand downloadable entry forms, visit: tions will be given in over 15 categories across all residential americanbuildersquarterly.com/awards and commercial building sectors.
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up front 11 COMMODITIES 16 AGENDA 16 BOOKSHELF 17 DEFINED DESIGN
THE YEAR OF THE CHAIR
After attending NeoCon 2010 in Chicago and with the announcement of the 2010 Red Dot award winners, a constant theme gb&d kept running across were the creative and ergonomic designs for seating. Whether used in the office or home, these designs are not only made with some aspect of sustainability in mind, but are also ensuring the user’s physical wellbeing.
< Ac 4 Anotion Citterio has always understood design as a synergy between form and performance. Vitra’s (vitra.com) AC 4 chair, designed by Citterio, was created with structural sophistication in the backrest, allowing for a flexible range of movement. Meeting industry standards in environmental management, the AC 4 contains 51% recycled material and is 94% recyclable when fully separated. Photo: Marc Eggimann © Vitra (www.vitra.com)
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up front/commodities
Enea Lottus Stacking chair
Pluto bench
fLIP
Coalesse’s (coalesse.com) new Enea Lottus stacking
Winning the Silver award in the Benches category
The newly founded West Michigan-based Sparke-
chairs, designed by the Barcelona-based design trio
in The Best of NeoCon 2010, Leland International’s
ology (sparkeology.com), who launched its first
Lievore Altherr Molin, have a unique spoon-like shell
(lelandinternational.com) Pluto Bench is designed to
products at NeoCon 2010, strives to offer innova-
and are available either armless or with cantilever or
define personal space in public seat environments—
tive products for public spaces that are adaptable
aluminum loop arms. Stackable up to 10 chairs high,
scaled for one, or a cozy seat for two. Pluto’s pod
for many uses. The FLIP is a prime example of this
they are easy to store and clean, and fit in seam-
concept is created with 100% post-industrial MDF
company’s adaptive goal, with the ability of being a
lessly with a wide range of décor styles.
Board and 100% CFC-free foam.
stool or table, the piece can simply be “flipped” for use as a storage unit.
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up front/commodities
crepe chair
Orizuru chair
A fresh face for a familiar chair category, the Crepe
Winning the Red Dot’s 2010 Best of the Best for Prod-
Stryde collection Designed by Michael Wolk for Lowenstein (loew-
Chair by Leland International (lelandinternational.
uct Design, the Orizuru Chair was inspired by the art
ensteininc.com), the Stryde Collection is reminiscent
com) has a flowing shell surface, which is exquisitely
of Origami, more specifically the paper crane. Made
of popular international lounge chairs from the mid-
tapered from the center to the top of the back and
from a single piece of plywood using a special single
20th century. Characterized by clean, simple design,
front of the seat. Many environmental aspects make
moulding technique, this highly durable chair was
Stryde’s interesting angles and mix of wood and
this chair, including it’s FSC-certified plywood shell,
complexly designed by Ken Okuyama to seem as if it
upholstery give it a classic style. A gradual tapering
faux exotic veneer, 100% CFC-free foam, post-con-
were floating in mid-air when viewed from the side.
sumer recycled steel.
seat, streamlined silhouette, and solid Black American Walnut legs create the perfect modern lounging experience—an experience that won the design the 2010 IIDA/Hospitality Design Product Design Award and NeoCon’s People’s Choice Award.
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up front/commodities
Kruze Lounge
ErgoErgo
LORAE
Originally designed by David Fox in 2006, Boss
Combining the benefits of dynamic sitting with a bold
Constructed with only FSC-certified North American solid woods, the LORAE by the Bright Chair Com-
Design (boss-design.co.uk) released the latest edition
contemporary design, the patent-pending ErgoErgo
of this award-winning creation at NeoCon 2010.
(ergoergo.com) is made from recyclable technopoly-
pany (brightchair.com) is a fully customizable lounge
The lounge chair takes the collection to the next level
mer and is UV-resistant. With the ability to be used
chair that can be designed to any seat depth, back
through the choice of a classic fully upholstered chair
indoors and out, ErgoErgo is based on the principle
height, or configured to a designerâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s specific needs.
or a contemporary slim-line option.
of an exercise ball, helping create strong core muscles that are essential to proper body alignment.
Bright uses only water-based adhesives and catalytic finishes with no VOCs in itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s products and all foam-fill used is a byproduct of the petrol-chemical process.
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up front/commodities
Layla Landscape Collection
Nucleus
Jun Zi Chair
Building on the commercial success of the Layla col-
What makes Nucleus seating unique is its ilira®-
Completely composed of bamboo slats, the Jun Zi
lection by Boss Design (boss-design.co.uk), Layla
stretch M4 fabric—a mesh fabric with a four-way
Chair was designed to make a statement about rejoin-
Landscape achieves a sophisticated aesthetic through
stretch that automatically adjusts to fit the user’s lum-
ing craftsmanship into contemporary life and rethinking human’s relation to nature. Designed by Dragonfly
the use of simple linear forms. The geometric upholstery
bar. Certified by SCS as Indoor Advantage Gold,
design is complemented by a choice of two base
meeting specific indoor air quality emission require-
Gallery Co. Ltd in Taiwan, this functional piece of art
options, a steel tubular frame or individual polished
ments, The HON Company (hon.com) has taken of-
won the Product Design 2010 Red Dot award.
aluminum legs.
fice seating to the next level with Nucleus.
As a carbon-neutral company, Boss is committed to reducing, reusing, and recycling materials during the production process. In addition, Boss offers a unique service allowing all of its furniture to be either reused or recycled.
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up front/agenda/bookshelf
NOV 2010 web forum AIA Virtual Convention
Architecture Exchange East
aia.org With 33 seminars and the keynote addresses from 2010’s National Convention, this yearlong virtual convention provides visitors access to highlights without leaving home. All content is archived until June 2011, and access to the material is free for those registered for next year’s National Conference.
Greater Richmond Convention Center, Richmond, VA Julie VandenBerg Snow, of Minneapolis’ Julie Snow Architects, provides the keynote presentation for the largest architectural design expo in the mid-Atlantic. The conference features more than 60 educational sessions and twice that number of vendors, as well as additional special events. virginiaarchitecture.org
11.5– 6 FORUMCities Urban Divide Symposium Jackson Community Design Center, Mississippi State University, Jackson, MS The symposium will cover the 21st-Century issues inherent in mid-sized cities in the United States, focusing on overcoming barriers that have been set up along the lines of race, income, and class. The public conference will also include a jury for a design competition.caad.msstate.edu/jcdc/
11.9–10
11.8–9 Sustainable Innovation 2010 RDM Campus, Rotterdam, The Netherlands A platform for the future opportunities and challenges of sustainable design and development. Entrepreneurs, CSR officers, and other leaders come from across the globe for education, networking, and a practical discussion of green design. cfsd.org.uk
11.13–16
GOVgreen
Healthcare Design.10
Walter E. Washington Convention Center, Washington, DC A bipartisan effort to provide resources to government officials and their teams, this two-day conference is designed to help contractors and suppliers learn the ins and outs of meeting the new green standards in government projects and policies.govgreen.org
MGM Grand, Las Vegas, NV The Center for Health Design and Vendome Group co-produce this event, the largest and best-attended conference on evidencebased healthcare design. The multi-disciplinary, educational event will focus on the safety, operation, and financial success of healthcare facilities. hcd10.com
11.17–19
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11.3–5
11.30–12.3
Greenbuild 2010
CitiesAlive 2010
McCormick Place West, Chicago, IL This year, Chicago is the host city for one of the most vital green building events of the year, which offers professionals access to education, products, networking, tours, and prestigious speakers. Special events include a special summit on residential building and an international film festival. greenbuildexpo.org
Vancouver Convention Center, Vancouver, BC The 8th year of this green roof and wall conference will showcase the latest in green technology, design, and development. With tours of local projects, attendees can learn strategies for greening modern cities and network with other green professionals. citiesalive.org
NOV 2010
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New Read Rematerial, by Alejando Bahamón and Maria Camila Sanjinés, features projects and pioneers that rescue discarded materials—from paper cups to cargo containers—and transform them into imaginative, attractive, efficient buildings and projects that are sustainable, innovative, even daring from a conventional perspective. Rematerial brings to light a movement of diverse professionals from around the world who address this fundamental theme: the reuse of materials with architectonic purpose. Norton Professional Books, Published: 06.12.10, $49.95.
recommended reading Top designers and architects on what you should have on your reading list Lois Vitt Sale, AIA, LEED Faculty, is the chief sustainability officer for Wight & Company (wightco.com), adjunct faculty at Northwestern University, and former chairperson of the USGBC’s Chicago chapter. books Greening Our Built World: Costs, Benefits, and Strategies by Greg Kats Blessed Unrest: How the Largest Social Movement in History is Restoring Grace, Justice, and Beauty to the World by Paul Hawken Biomimicry: Innovation Inspired by Nature by Janine M. Benyus blogs Technology and product news site: buildinggreen.com Environment & Energy Publishing’s Green Wire: eenews.net/gw/ Independent political news site: truth-out.org
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defined design Greenhouse Nightclub New York City, NY
Sustainability has inundated the club scene. The 6,000-square-foot, two-level Greenhouse Nightclub in New York is proving partying can be eco-friendly as the first LEED-CI certified nightclub in the United States. Bluarch Architecture + Design won the IIDAâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s 36th Annual Interior Design Award in 2009 for its work on Greenhouse. Completed in 2008, the nightclub features various sustainable aspects, including: couches made using recyclable material, waterless urinals, low-flow toilets, and bamboo wall coverings. Evoking the feeling of being in a rainforest, the ceilings are majestically decorated with glass raindrops, while the walls are covered in real leaves and moss, lit by LED lighting. To offset the energy used by the sound system and the rest of the club, Greenhouse purchases 100 percent wind power credits. architect Bluarch Architecture + Design lead design architect Antonio Do Orzono
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up front/defined design
LYNN STEVEN BOUTIQUE
Vancouver, BC
The mentality that “less is more” paid off for Vancouver-based mgb ARCHITECTURE + DESIGN, Inc. in its design for the up-and-coming LYNNsteven Boutique, located in Vancouver’s historic Gastown neighborhood. Transforming the historic space into an oasis of chic cool that paid homage to the boutique’s location and its owner’s focus on sustainability, mgb left the landmark nature of the space largely untouched by incorporating bright, crisp, and modern lines with the exposed rustic brick walls. The most distinctive aspect of this project is the 10-foot tower of books housing the boutiques dressing room and washroom, which was created by using 5,600 recycled pocket novels sourced from Craigslist. The book tower was designed with the books’ pages facing outward, creating a color palette of white, grey, and yellow—so as to not compete with the clothing. Adding to the aesthetic of the modern store is the custom-designed racking system that stretches the length of the boutique. Mgb received two awards at the 37th Annual Interior Design Competition sponsored by the IIDA, one for the LYNNsteven project and the other for mgb’s work on the Rennie Art Gallery and Offices in Vancouver. Photos: Arnaldo Rodriguez. architect mgb ARCHITECTURE + DESIGN, Inc. lead design architect Michael Green design team Caroline Embling, Jennell Hagardt, and Anabella Alfonzo
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WPA10
2001
Introduced energyand water-saving Duet® washer and dryer pair
2008
2007
2007
Established The Green Touch™ Program and Excellence in Sustainability Awards saluting sustainable building projects
Introduced The Digital Green™ Portfolio of online design tools and The Green Appliance Collection of energy- and water-saving appliances
Announced a revised greenhouse gas reduction target of 6.6 percent by 2012
Induction cooktops set a new benchmark in cooking control; the technology is 90% energy efficient
2009 and beyond
Continuing to develop products that contribute to a sustainable future
1970–1990S
From the first Earth Day, through the decades green got its roots, we were already working; in 1970, we opened a Corporate Office for Environmental Control; in the 70s, 80s and 90s, we helped craft energy and recycling laws in the U.S. and Europe
2008 2008
Won our ninth award from ENERGY STAR®; nearly 300 ENERGY STAR® qualified appliances offered
Whirlpool Gold® Resource Saver™dishwashers are Whirlpool brand’s most efficient ever, using 1/3 less water and energy;they also have an eco-friendly CEE Tier II energy rating
Then. Now. Always. Join us in taking sustainability to the next level. Looking back, there’s a lot to be proud of. Looking ahead, there’s so much more to do. Together. We’ve gotten a great start by making sure appliances that save energy, conserve water and safeguard indoor air are a part of more homes. Now it’s time for Green 2.0, where mutual responsibility meets shared effort. Where expertise, ideas and opportunities jump boundaries, resulting in real-world design and building projects that delight today’s homeowners. To see it in action, check out Profiles in Sustainability at insideadvantage.com/profiles.
Working together to make a sustainable difference.
ENERGY
WATER
INDOOR AIR QUALITY
® Registered trademark/TM Trademark of Whirlpool, U.S.A., KitchenAid, U.S.A., Jenn-Air, U.S.A., or Maytag Corporation or its related companies. © 2010 All rights reserved. All other trademarks are owned by their respective companies.
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profile
Bill Bonstra of Bonstra | Haresign Architects Managing partner discusses his firm’s inward focus and its award-winning results
“We now have definitive data that supports the premise that sustainable buildings sell and rent faster while saving money for their occupants through the reduction of utility costs and improved worker productivity.”
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and methodical and we believe our clients value our creative input. Clients deserve our personal involvement and having a direct connection with experienced principals.”
Bill Bonstra considers the continual training of his staff to be the best investment he can make. Allowing his architects to be the most productive they can be and ensuring their understanding of current sustainable materials and construction methods comes first for Bonstra’s 10-year-old Washington, DC, firm Bonstra | Haresign Architects. The practice is a full-service architectural design firm specializing in mixed-use and historic preservation, as well as commercial, multi-family, institutional, and large-scale design. More than 20 employees work on an average of 35 projects per year ranging in size and complexity; at any given time projects may range from a 20-unit multi-family residential renovation to a 220,000-square-foot mixed-use transit-oriented development (such as Benning Station and Wheaton Town Center). In total, the firm has designed and planned more than six million square feet of urban development.
Part of the investment Bonstra and Haresign have made in their staff is an attempt to provide every employee with the latest information on the newest green technologies and the opportunity to become LEED accredited. Sustainability has been a priority for Bonstra from the beginning, when he hired consultants to help with green design, something they now do in-house. “Sustainable design initiatives have changed the way we design, manage, and implement our work and the decisions that we make as architects,” Bonstra explains. “These initiatives are responsible for developments in architectural vocabulary along with innovative building materials and construction methods to establish a new design paradigm that clearly distinguishes the work of the last decade from past periods. We continue to experiment with double skins, innovative green roofs, as well as energy-conserving HVAC systems and more.”
Bonstra, FAIA, LEED AP, and managing partner at Bonstra | Haresign, started the business in 1999—after working at a number of notable DC design firms—with the desire to provide clients with sophisticated contemporary design to strengthen, compliment, revitalize, and sustain urban environments. There was also the hope to plan and implement mixeduse transportation centers based on long established urban design principles—a goal Bonstra has achieved. When David Haresign joined the team in 2004, it put the finishing touches on what is now Bonstra | Haresign Architects. “My partner, David, and I are involved in each and every project, working with a talented staff of 15 hand-picked architects who have been with us for a long time, Bonstra says. “We have a minimum of administrative and support staff. We are practical
For a recent project, The Shelton, a multifamily residential building with structured parking, Bonstra kept sustainability in mind for every one of its 103,000 square feet. The four-story, U-shaped building in Arlington, Virginia, includes a community room as well as a computer lab for residents. The building was constructed using LEED Silver standards as a benchmark and features green elements like low-flow toilets and shower fixtures, designated recycling areas, Energy Star windows and appliances, and high-efficiency HVAC systems. Vegetative pervious cover on more than 25 percent of the site was also restored using indigenous plant materials that don’t require an irrigation system. Bonstra Haresign Architects is looking forward to a future full of sustainable projects,
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Bill Bonstra of Bonstra | Haresign Architects
profile
• high-efficiency HVAC systems; including the upcoming, 15,500-square-foot, architectural journals. But according to • storage and collection of recyclables; Lower Georgia Avenue Job Training CenBonstra, a thriving architecture firm isn’t just • use of certified wood from environmentally ter, which draws on the environment of its about awards; it’s about doing what’s best responsible forests; previous meeting place. “The intent of the for the environment. “I credit the USGBC, • outdoor air delivery and carbon-dioxide architectural design is to inject the intimate AIA, and our federal and local governments monitoring systems; and atmosphere from this grassroots basement for effectively disseminating quality informa• green housekeeping guidelines for ongoing program into a much larger and improved tion in this regard,” he says. “We now have building maintenance. facility,” Bonstra says. The Job Training Center, definitive data that supports the premise that which will target a minimum of LEED Silver, sustainable buildings sell and rent faster, while —by Thalia Aurinko-Mostow will be able to accommodate more than 125 saving money for their occupants through the students at a time and include a resource lireduction of utility costs and improved worker brary, a large computer center with about 40 productivity.” Combine that with Bonstra’s workstations, a small library/conference room, dedication to his staff and you have the mak3 large classrooms that can flexibly accommoings of a better built environment. A MESSAGE FROM ELLISDALE CONSTRUCTION date 50–60 students each, 4 meeting rooms, Ellisdale Construction is a firm specializing in Planned green features of the Washington, a commercial kitchen, an adjacent multipurpre-construction consulting for multi-family general DC, community building include: pose room, and open workspaces for 6 staff contracting. Our expertise is in helping our clients members. • a 2,600-square-foot green roof; limit their project liability exposure and construc• controlled storm-water management; tion costs, while realizing the benefits that a smart Bonstra and his team have received a great • combination vegetated and high-albedo development can bring to a community. Decisions amount of recognition for their work: 41 naroof; that are made in the early stages of any project tional and regional design awards including • water-efficient fixtures; are always critical to that project’s success. Ellis3 AIA|DC Presidential Citations for Sustain• water-efficient landscaping, including irrigadale works with architects and designers like Bonable Design. Its work has also been pubtion techniques and plant selection; stra Haresign who deliver imaginative approaches and highly-functional, cost-efficient projects. lished in more than 34 national and regional • enhanced refrigerant management;
ELLISDALE CONSTRUCTION & DEVELOPMENT
www.ellisdaleconstruction.com
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AFFORDABLE HOUSING NOV 2010
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profile
Hugh Stearns of Stearns Design-Build On the importance of the inhabitant’s relationship to the natural and built environment
“Making the homes that we live in green is a small part of sustaining our troubled planet. Lucky for me, it is also a heck of a lot of fun.”
Stearns Design-Build (SDB) may have started off as a way for its founder and president to avoid graduate school, but now Hugh Stearns is enjoying his business too much to ever go back. He began by doing carpentry work as a means to pay for college and in 1993 founded SDB while waiting for his wife to finish school. “Now that I was running projects unencumbered by school, I was really enjoying it,” Stearns says. “Though I loved school, I was enjoying what I was doing too much to want to return right then.” SDB began as a one-man show but has grown to a team of eight employees that takes on about 30 projects per year. “We are still growing in measured steps that occasionally take us a step back to try to maintain quality and make sure that policies are in place to handle new scales of business,” the owner confides. Having taken his first greenbuilding workshop in 1976 at the age of 18, Stearns has been committed to sustainability since SDB’s beginning, and although times have changed since then, the company has adjusted. “Part of a green commitment is a commitment to fostering a learning environment,” he says. Based in College Station, Texas, SDB will not take on business more than 20 miles from the office. “As part of our commitment to being
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green, we try to work on projects that are within 10 miles of our office,” Stearns says. “There are times that we stretch that for a particularly desirable project, but never more than 20 miles.” Though SDB implements green features in every project, the focus is slightly different than other contractors. “It is easy and even appealing to see design as the relationship of a building to its natural environment, which is what building science is all about,” Stearns says. “But really the primary relationship is that of the inhabitants to their natural and built environments. If we let design be driven only by building science, we will end up with windowless cubes. We have developed a design paradigm that we call ‘transitions’ that gives us a lexicon for talking about these other relationships.” A key consideration with the transitions philosophy is the idea of permeability. “Much of the focus of design is about creating walls to separate a building’s inhabitants from the elements and to provide privacy,” Stearns explains. “While these are crucial elements, we also want to create transitions that create wellcontrolled permeability into the natural and design worlds. By creating these connections, we can help them remain mindful of important environmental and social relationships beyond the walls of their house.” Though sustainability is important to Stearns, the definition can be difficult. “Quantifying what green is continues to be a big problem,”
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he says. “Nonetheless, we can set up standards and practices that help define where we are in the green continuum. We make sure that our clients are aware of our philosophies and that they have lots of information that can help point their project in a greener direction, but we do not force them to do anything.” Coming up, SDB is about to embark on a rebuild project of Stearns’ own home. The goal is take the 1950s tract house to net zero through four phases over four years. Located on a half-acre in the middle of town, Stearns plans to harvest 25 percent of his food from the edible landscape and backyard chickens. Other features include greywater and rainwater harvesting, solar hot water, and photovoltaic systems. Regardless of who is defining the term green, the sustainable concepts are what drive Stearns to success. “Making the homes that we live in green is a small part of sustaining our troubled planet,” he says. “Lucky for me, it is also a heck of a lot of fun.” —by Zipporah Porton
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discussion board The Presbyterian Church of Chatham Township A $2.8 million, 14,000-square-foot addition joined existing colonial revival structures (built in 1951 and 1971) with a “sympathetic style,” principal Bill Slack notes. “The materials in this addition are in context, but used in a new way. It is usually inappropriate to make new elements look old.” High-ceilinged sanctuaries naturally defy heat conservation, but roof insulation, reworked lighting, and new HVAC systems can spell significant savings, Jim Greener, another principal, says. With another church project, the congregation didn’t have the funds to fully replace an original slate roof. The steeple faced possible demolition, but CTS stepped in to save it with a similar-look asphalt shingle. “We got them to stabilize the structure, allowing for a future time when the money will be available,” Slack explains.
to preserve and protect CTS Group Architecture/ Planning melds history with present-day demands—and within sustainable budgets a conundrum for many architects and building owners is how to bring historic preservation together with sustainability principles? Sure, you have a leg up when you renovate an existing structure versus building from scratch—but how do you take cathedral ceilings (as in religious structures) or old masonry walls (think New Deal post offices) to achieve 21st-century energy efficiency? That’s the task of CTS Group Architecture/ Planning, a Chatham, New Jersey-based firm that often expands or renovates landmark structures. Its portfolio includes post offices, churches, and industrial structures, in addition to new educational facilities and commercial buildings. Add the challenge of working with restricted budgets typical of non-profits and you get a clearer idea of what the six architects at CTS have mastered.
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Under challenging economic conditions, CTS believes that pragmatic and temporary solutions best answer the preservation-sustainability conundrum.
Their work demonstrates the power of ingenuity. “We now have wonderful technologies that enable us to do many things,” says Bill Slack, principal, whose work includes pursuing LEED certifications. “LEED is not always the goal. But we can do a lot to reduce energy costs for our clients. And we can save a lot on natural resources by working with existing buildings.” It starts with what another principal, Jim Greener, calls building forensics. They have to look at why a roof is leaking or why a brick wall is deteriorating, learning what has been done to these components since original construction. In the case of brick structures, extant insulation is rare. Misguided efforts in intervening years employed sealants that trapped moisture, causing deterioration. “A building has to breathe,” Slack says. “The movement of air and moisture needs to be understood and accounted for.”
“A building has to breathe. The movement of air and moisture needs to be understood and accounted for.” —Bill Slack, Principal
A good example is the work the firm is doing with an assembly hall and conference center in the Old Great Falls Historic District in Paterson, New Jersey. Alexander Hamilton himself recognized the economic potential of the town’s natural 77-foot waterfall, which was used for a century to power silk and train-engine industries but has been largely unused since the 1950s. The decrepit district is being revitalized, and CTS was awarded the 8,000-square-foot conversion of a building on the former Rogers Locomotive and Machine Works campus. CTS’s talent for achieving green goals while preserving the original character and façade of the building plays out well in this project. “We weren’t allowed new fenestrations for historic reasons,” says Greener. “So we were able to install skylights for daylighting.” They also incorporated materials with recycled building content—such as reused wood floors—sourced new materials locally, insulated the roof, and used high-efficiency Energy Star-rated HVAC and lighting systems. Solar energy panels are not practical, but the architects and the building owner are confident they will get LEED Gold certification upon completion in spring 2011. —by Russ Klettke
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21st-century strategists
has always been interested not only in saving money, but in conserving energy as well. “I’ve always wanted to save energy,” Battani says. “I’m a little bit of an energy nerd.”
ColonialWebb Contractors employs unique strategies and a new ‘green energy solutions’ program to pave a promising path into the future
After relocating to Virginia, Battani landed a job as operations manager for ColonialWebb. “Back then, my job was really unrelated to the energy-management field,” Battani says. “Then about a year ago, when they started to talk seriously about emphasizing their energy services—saving energy for their customers, and at the same time saving the environment—I made a play to my boss, saying, ‘Hey, I’m the guy to head that group.’” At the time, Battani was involved on an energy-services committee, so with that, and because of his background in energy management, his boss was convinced.
save money or save the environment? Even with clear evidence on the importance of the latter, it can be a hard choice. Ray Battani, director of green energy solutions at ColonialWebb Contractors (CWC), says that this decision no longer has to be an “eitheror” choice. And he decided that a long time ago. Growing up and working alongside his father in his mechanical-contracting and energy-management company in south Florida, though the company was more successful with traditional mechanical services than energy-management services—due to the low utility costs at the time—Battani
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CWC is the premier mechanical, electrical, and energy-services company in the midAtlantic region and the largest in the state of Virginia. The company is split 60/40 between a construction group and a service group. The company offers preventive-maintenance contracts, repair services, building-system
upgrades, and smart building choices to their customers. “We offer all these services with the goal of saving energy and the environment. We call our approach to these systems ‘green energy solutions,’” Battani explains. Though the company has been helping customers save money and energy since its founding in 1972—they’ve always installed new AC systems that have saved customers energy, put in boilers and boiler systems that have reduced gas usage and reduced emissions, and done lighting retrofits that reduce consumption and yield big energy and money savings—standing out from the competition can be demanding. Two of CWC’s strategies have helped push them to the position they now hold, as a leader in the mechanical- and electrical-contracting arena. Firstly, CWC is an Energy Star Partner, one of only a handful of service contractors in Virginia and the Carolinas that have earned the status. “We think the Energy Star program gives people a lot of great advice,” Battani says. “It says, ‘Wait a minute. You don’t have to install fancy systems. You don’t have to replace everything.
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ColonialWebb Contractors
“We think the Energy Star program gives people a lot of great advice. It says, ‘Wait a minute. You don’t have to install fancy systems. Take a look at what you have, and make sure what you have works right.’” —Ray Battani, Director of Green Energy Solutions
Take a look at what you have, and make sure what you have works right.’ If you can do that part, you’re going to save energy.” Secondly, CWC has a unique audit process, which the company calls Energy Dig. The first goal is to find low- or no-cost opportunities that the customer could implement immediately. “This could be something as simple as adjusting a thermostat,” Battani
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CASE STUDY PROJECT: Renaissance Apartments LOCATION: Richmond, VA The Challenge: Two air-cooled chillers and 10 modular, triad boilers were all getting too old to work at the conditions needed for the apartments to operate
explains. “Our Energy Dig is a collaborative process. We almost insist that the customer participate in it. We often get a lot of our energy savings from the people who helped us do the Energy Dig, and we want to dig for the gold.” CWC’s motto is “Today’s savings, tomorrow’s future.” If it continues to apply that motto going forward, helping customers save energy and money today will sustain the company’s future as well. “We’re
The Solution: Replace the old boiler system with a costeffective, energy-reducing one The Results: ColonialWebb completed the entire project within 6 months, on time, and within budget. Through the first year alone, gas consumption dropped by nearly 16 percent. total savings: $43,109
hoping to replace some of our construction activities with our green energy solutions work,” Battani notes. “The construction market is not ever going to be what it was a few years ago. The volumes just aren’t going to be there. So this is the approach we want to take—to have green energy solutions be part of everything that we to do.” —by Jennifer Kirkland
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launch pad LEAP ADAPTIVE A new product line of sustainable homes draws from the efficiency required in Central America location: San Diego, CA founded: 2007 employees: 3
darnell and scrivner architecture Inc. was working on multimillion-dollar estates when the housing market hit rock bottom. Adapting to conditions, Brian Darnell, director of design, and his business partner welcomed two resort projects in Central America. These two jobs would go on to inspire Leap Adaptive, a green-home design company and Darnell’s newest venture.
Back home, the housing market continued its decline, and Darnell realized the benefits of the approach they’d been forced into in Belize, which had eventually been a success. “We had designed a stronger, faster, more efficient, and lighter building type. I realized that we could expand this purpose using LEED principles coming to light in the United States,” he explains.
But to reach the happy ending, there is always conflict. Darnell began work in Belize, which sits adjacent to the Caribbean Sea, and he realized there would be several challenges. Distant proximity to resources required light materials for fast and easy transport, and an unskilled labor pool required intuitive and simple design that also maintained a resort aesthetic. Additionally, economic realities called for lasting and sustainable properties.
Darnell repurposed and redesigned the systems used in Central America to create Leap Adaptive’s product line for homes. The company started in 2007 and now offers four basic designs created to reduce energy and resources. “We are focused on reduction, and that starts with commanding a smaller piece of land for the structure,” Darnell says. All Leap Adaptive designs are relatively small, with most measuring just 24 feet wide, yet the firm can achieve 2,000 square
A
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Leap Adaptive
THE LEAP LINE
launch pad
A
A. The Dragonfly The 2,000-square-foot Dragonfly includes three bedrooms on two stories and a rooftop sky room. B. The Acacia The Acacia was made for a young and growing family. Large, flowing areas joined by folding door systems, allowing for flexible use.
C
B
C. The Nano The Nano, the smallest option, starts at just more than 800 square feet and is perfect for clients living amid a dense population. D. The Cypress Because its width measures 16 feet, the Cypress model works well in row-type lot settings. D
“We had designed a stronger, faster, more efficient, and lighter building type. I realized that we could expand this purpose using LEED principles coming to light in the United States.” —Brian Darnell, President
feet of residential space on a 3,500-squarefoot lot. “By reducing building mass and maximizing land, we reduce materials, energy, labor, and more,” he notes.
the Dragonfly model features a sliding roof panel on a solar sensor that tracks the sun, providing maximum shading for a two-story window wall.
Darnell’s 22 years in the business informed his design of the minimalist structures, which feature increased ceiling and window heights to create open and airy spaces.
All four Leap Adaptive models include passive-solar design and utilize rooftop PV panels that have a topographic skin that make them 1.5 times more efficient than traditional PV panels. These panels can contribute up to 70 percent of the home’s energy use, and
It is Darnell’s extensive experience designing multimillion-dollar estates that has helped him perfect Leap Adaptive. “You can only exact something so many times before you recognize the inherent efficiencies and deficiencies of a particular layout,” he says.
This not only helps with comfort but aids efficiency through “draw-up ventilation.” Utilizing a four-foot-principal dimension script makes efficient use of building materials, minimizes waste, and increases fabrication and construction predictability.
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Furthermore, light-gauge steel SIPs are used in place of wood wherever possible, and cementitious siding is used in place of cementplaster along with seamed metal roofing, thus substantially reducing threats from mold, fire, and termites.
think. adaptive.
Leap Adaptive’s method can offer convenience, efficiency, style, and affordability—those in the California market are often built at $250–400 per square foot but can be built for between $120 and $180 per square foot, depending on the owner’s selection of finishes and amenities. As sustainable elements creep further into the mainstream, Darnell expects his customer base to grow. Many people are attracted to the company for its progressive and beautiful Earth-friendly designs. “These aren’t $400-per-square-foot trailer homes pawned off as the newest thing in Green Pre-Fab dwelling,” Darnell says, but rather homes that are site-actuated and maximize design, innovative materials, and ecological performance, while utilizing an in-place labor force. Though LEED certifies building projects and not architecture, the company uses LEED-supportive specifications in its plans. A Leap Adaptive-designed home has LEED systems and principles built in to almost every aspect. “If a client wants to seek LEED certification, a Leap Adaptive design gets them about three-fourths of the way there,” Darnell says. The rest is up to site dynamics, contractor, and owner. Leap Adaptive believes in efficiently sized homes, and the approach is also fixed internally. Over the next few years, Darnell plans to evolve, augment, and perfect his current four designs instead of racing to add volume to the line. In doing so, he’ll continue to offer a sustainable alternative to owners looking to embrace green design. —by Zach Baliva
www.leapadaptive.com
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SMART LIVING HOMES Deservedly optimistic about the synergy between SoCal’s geography and structural concrete insulated panels location: Carlsbad, CA founded: 2009 area of specialty: SCIP construction
“so many things that builders do to address issues are just bandaids,” says Donald E. O’Connor, owner of Smart Living Homes. O’Connor has been a general contractor since the late 1990s and started looking for new building methods throughout the past five years after experiencing repeat problems during his first decade in the industry. “I keep noticing the same pattern,” he says. “Wood burns and dry rots, termites eat it, and drywall molds when it gets wet, yet we’re content to keep building with inferior products. Why can’t we build a solid structure that lasts hundreds of years?” O’Connor started Smart Living Homes last year to address that exact question. Spurred forward by the desire to find an alternative building method, he met with several industry experts hoping to find an answer. That answer, however, was slow to develop because all the new products and systems the builder found still included a traditional roof. “Almost all fires start on roofs and eaves, and I wanted to build a house that would withstand many disasters,” O’Connor says. He kept looking and eventually found Structural Concrete Insulated Panels (SCIPs). SCIPs are panels made of recycled polystyrene-insulation foam enclosed by recycled, reinforced steel with a “W” truss system. After installation, panels are encased with pneumatically applied concrete or shotcrete and receive a Kalmatron additive that provides waterproofing. Additionally, SCIP homes feature R-40 values in all exterior surfaces, STC ratings above 50 for
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soundproofing, and can withstand wind speeds of over 200 MPH and carry a seismic rating of 8.3. The most important feature, O’Connor says, is the ability to use SCIPs to create roofs. “We don’t use a stick of wood on any of our homes,” he remarks. Although SCIPs were developed in 1949, O’Connor believes the industry will finally embrace them as costs rise and materials grow scarce. “SCIPs never took off because lumber was abundant and cheap. Now it’s not as cheap as it once was,” he explains. Like then, cost is a factor now, but Smart Living Homes helps its customers take advantage of tax breaks and incentives to make SCIPs viable. In fact, O’Connor says he can complete a SCIPs house with a solar installation for the same cost as a traditional home. Other builders may offer SCIPs, but O’Connor’s company sets itself apart by offering what the contractor calls a “Smart Room.” The area functions as the “brains of the home,” and holds all mechanical, electrical, plumbing, and security systems in a central hub that can also be developed as a safe room. Some clients may add digital displays and computer programs for monitoring and remote control from any authorized laptop, PDA, or smart phone. O’Connor, a native of the San Diego area, has been building in Southern California for the past twelve plus years. He plans to stay in the region, hoping to attract clients concerned about the area’s risk of wildfires and earthquakes. Although the company is new, O’Connor has been mentored by veteran SCIPs builders like Eco Tech and has toured structures that have stood for years without problems. “People are going to get excited about this kind of building,” O’Connor says, adding that many buildings in Chile that survived its recent earthquake were SCIP structures. O’Connor’s optimism seems well earned— Smart Living Homes recently signed its first residential contract and is in negotiations to work on a $25 million SCIP-based green development in Arizona. While O’Connor builds his company, he has three architects marketing SCIPs to their clients, and engineers are working to ensure future projects
“Wood burns and dry rots, termites eat it, and drywall molds when it gets wet, yet we’re content to keep building with inferior products. Why can’t we build a solid structure that lasts hundreds of years?” —Donald E. O’Connor, Owner
meet California standards. Smart Living Homes is designed as part of a bigger company called Smart Build America that will pursue commercial, municipal, and multiresidential jobs. While his construction company still handles traditional jobs, O’Connor is excited to move forward with his sustainable endeavors. “This is the only green alternativebuilding method I’ve found that doesn’t use a traditional roof. It’s fireproof, and it’s waterproof. Why would you build any other way?” he asks. Furthermore, a SCIP home is easy to build. Clients can save about one third on time over conventional construction and eliminate several trades by using one supervisor with unskilled laborers. The advanced building method is fast, green, and economical. As he gains experience, O’Connor is committed to adding other sustainable components to his designs and is always looking for new technologies, products, and materials. By staying current, he hopes to meet customers’ lifestyle needs and partner with them to build what is truly a smarter home. —by Zach Baliva
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inner workings three layers provide better sound attenuation so the floors closest to street level are very quiet. The glass is laminated and performs as tempered glass, and there is a blast mitigation, which allows the glass to break like a car windshield. Even with the building being transparent, still being able to achieve Platinum certification is a huge feat.”
lafayette tower The first leed Platinum office building in Washington, DC location Washington, DC rentable square footage 327,600+ developer/owner Louis Dreyfus Property Group engineer Wheaton & Sprague Engineering designer Kevin Roche John Dinkeloo Associates LEED consultant GreenShape LLC general contractor Clark Construction Group
lafayette tower in washington, dc, is the District of Columbia’s first LEED Platinum-certified office building. “We designed the building anticipating Gold certification, yet due to the USGBC’s process of being able to submit and receive our design scores early, the design was so close to the Platinum level, we decided to go for the rest. We were able
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to achieve Platinum because of the measurement and verification portion [of the certification process],” explains Sean Cahill, vice president of Louis Dreyfus Property Group, who owns and manages Lafayette Tower. The Building There are 327,688 rentable square feet over 11 stories, and each floor has nine-foot, threeinch ceilings, a new standard in Washington, DC. The design of Lafayette Tower maximized the floor area ratio by building to the property line. The previous building had stood 12 stories high, but a decrease in floors allowed for taller ceilings, providing tenants with a more open office. The unique design adds corner offices on the upper floors through cut-outs in the building, ideal for companies that require a more traditional office layout as well as open workstations. The open floorplan is also attributable to the innovative use of glass as the exterior skin of the building. “In 2004, with the development of 1101 New York Avenue, Louis Dreyfus was the first developer in the district to construct a clear-glass building…with no perimeter columns,” Cahill says. Lafayette Tower’s glass skin has three layers of low-iron clear glass, which allows the building to meet the energy-efficiency standards of LEED certification. “The glass looks perfectly clear from the outside and the inside [and] is e-coated for energy efficiency,” Cahill continues. “The
This type of innovation was an integral part of the design of Lafayette Tower—the cutting-edge use of glass and other elements helped the project receive all the innovation credits in the LEED certification process. Another important aspect for Louis Dreyfus was the recycling of the existing building. Despite adding nearly six months of additional time to the project schedule, as well as additional cost, the existing building was separated and recycled, a process that eventually resulted in having 98 percent of materials recycled. The existing below-grade perimeter walls were reused on all four sides of the new tower. Inside, the building temperature is reduced through a green-roof system that also collects rainwater for storm-water management and reuse. Other sustainable features include a high-efficiency chilled water system, bicycle storage, shower facilities, and designated fuel-efficient vehicle parking. Lafayette Tower is situated at the core of the Central Business District of Washington, DC, and boasts unique views of Lafayette Park and the White House. With only a handful of commercial buildings in the vicinity of the White House, the building is an irreplaceable asset for the city. “The building was made for those tenants that want to be at the top of the market in a showplace building—in an allglass…LEED Platinum building with views of the White House. The other corners of the building have urban views of 17th Street towards National Airport and H Street through to Pennsylvania Avenue,” Cahill explains. The design and construction of Lafayette Tower was a concerted effort, with many experts involved in the process. The architect on the project was Kevin Roche-John Dinkeloo and Associates, of Hamden, Connecticut; the LEED consultant was GreenShape, LLC, of Washington, DC; and Clark Construction Group, of Bethesda, Maryland was the general contractor. The curtainwall design, engineering, and detailing was done
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Lafayette Tower
inner workings
OPPOSITE: The Layfayette Tower project is located at the core of DC’s Central Business District. RIGHT: It takes advantage of its proximity to DC landmarks with outdoor decks. FAR RIGHT: Dinkeloo and Associates designed the office environment to meet the highest indoor air standards. BELOW: Plan of Lafayette’s ground floor. Photos: Louis Dreyfus Property Group.
“[Lafayette’s] glass is laminated and performs as tempered glass, and there is a blast mitigation, which allows the glass to break like a car windshield. Even with the building being transparent, still being able to achieve Platinum certification is a huge feat.” —Sean Cahill, Vice President, Louis Dreyfus Property Group
by Wheaton & Sprague Engineering, of Stow, Ohio, working in conjunction with Trainor Glass, the glazing subcontractor, who together were integral in ensuring that the curtainwall met the specified performance standards. Vericon manufactured and applied the e-coating to the glass walls. The Owner & Manager For more than 30 years, Louis Dreyfus Property Group has been acquiring, developing, and managing office buildings in North America. The firm has been active in the Washington, DC, area since the 1970s and currently controls 3.5 million square feet of
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space in Washington, DC, alone. Working as a sustainable developer, Louis Dreyfus builds for the long term and engages the community in ensure a foothold in the area. For 35 years, it owned and operated the Four Seasons Hotel, the only five-star hotel in the area. Other notable projects include Station Place, a 1.6 million-square-foot Union Station development in Washington, DC. The Engineer Wheaton & Sprague Engineering (WS) is a full-service consulting and engineering firm with three distinct divisions specializing in building-envelope engineering,
building-envelope consulting, and building forensics. Its trademarked phrase, “Creating Structure,” includes not only consulting and engineering for building-envelope systems but also building lasting client relationships and providing value. WS formed in 1994 under the direction of John Wheaton, P.E., LEED AP and president, and Richard Sprague, vice president. The specific divisions were formed in the years of the new millennium to meet growing needs of their clientele. WS is a client-centered firm, with a staff of experienced professionals that have worked on numerous projects in the US and around the globe. —by Eugenia M. Orr
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community Oakland, CA
the evolution of a design process Pyatok Architects, Inc. uses community collaboration to design handsome, sustainable, affordable housing—and circumvent mistakes made by past developers mike pyatok doesn’t take on small tasks. Both an academic—he currently teaches at the University of Washington—and a practicing architect—his firm, Pyatok Architects Inc. of Oakland, California, has approximately 2,000 units on the boards—he takes on global challenges as well as those of neighborhoods. With 35,000 units of built housing to his firm’s credit, you might say he’s quite a taskmaster. Because Pyatok Architects work almost exclusively in urban affordable housing, its projects are “99 percent green already—near public transportation, retail, schools, parks, jobs, and using existing infrastructure,” Pyatok says. The economics of urban infill developments, with 60 units per acre, generally do not allow for solar energy or geothermal (yet), but sustainability is achieved in other ways. “We design for low utility costs,” Pyatok says. “The kinds of windows, sun orientation, appropriate shading—each of these help.” Other features include materials and paints that eliminate off-gassing of toxic materials along with natural through-ventilation and rainwater-retention systems that clean water before releasing it. Often, conduits for photovoltaic panels will be stubbed out on the roof, waiting for when the panels are affordable. The firm couldn’t build anything if it didn’t know how to work with extant communities. The introduction of higher-density, lower-income housing comes with inherent resistance, but Pyatok’s approach has evolved since he began working in the 1960s. Back then, he says, planners and architects
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Pyatok Architects, Inc.
community LEFT, OPPOSITE: Fox Courts is a sustainably designed affordablehousing development in downtown Oakland, CA. Upon its opening in 2009, it was the second-highest rated multi-family building in the state of California. It was designed by Pyatok Architects and developed by Resources for Community Development.
“Architecture is not an art that can exist in a cocoon, independent from the social order or the urgent conditions of the planet.” —Mike Pyatok, Principal
• The firm and partners identify local clergy who can host meetings in their homes regarding a potential development. • At those meetings, demographics of eventual occupants are discussed. Pyatok also introduces photographs and maps of the existing neighborhood, allowing participants to articulate what works, why, and how.
• The process extends over several meetings, including workshops where several groups imposed development upon a neighborhood. of ten work with 3-D modeling kits to design Now, participatory engagement processes new structures built around open space, are proving to be much more effective. To soften opposition, the firm educates commu- parking, and other on-site amenities. nity leaders on the nature of affordable hous“Within an hour’s time, each team comes up ing. “Residents are not deadbeats,” Pyatok with their best ideas,” Pyatok says. “Each says. “They work, they may need childcare delivers a five-minute presentation, then all services, they sometimes live in multi-generparticipants identify what they do and do ational families. Their income is around 30 not like. It’s refined over time, and generally to 60 percent of the area median income.” what we get is a pattern of distribution that fits the neighborhood in scale and density.” Engagement means the neighbors get involved in the actual design process. It begins with a conversation and ends with a thriving, Pyatok next works with these broad directives to develop dwellings according to improved neighborhood via a number of the needs of future residents. For example, methods:
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recent immigrants value shared family space such as living and kitchen-dining rooms, large bedrooms less so. Also, it is not unusual that one or several family members will earn a living making things in the home. To accommodate that, a first-floor bedroom might convert to such purposes and include an exterior door to facilitate deliveries and shipments. Not that view from the street is any less important. “The exterior of buildings—form, skin, color, and landscaping— have to be handsome,” Pyatok explains. “It is a billboard.” Not surprisingly, Pyatok is resolute about the ultimate role of the built environment and society. Widely published, he wrote in a Fall 2009 article for AIA Seattle’s Forum magazine, “Architecture is not an art that can exist in a cocoon, independent from the social order or the urgent conditions of the planet. … If we can use design as our means within culture to rectify the shortcomings of law and the economy, we may find an arena that brings us that much closer to the yearned-for ideal of economic and social equity.” —by Russ Klettke
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community Hughesville, MD
LEFT: Rendering of the Lancaster Shopping Center for Federal Realty Investment Trust in Lancaster, PA.
all in favor of sustainability Cowie Associates PC nurtures a competitive edge through its commitment to community support for more than 25 years chris cowie has been building his competitive edge. In 1998, he founded his own firm, Cowie Associates PC in Washington, DC, to specialize in the design, planning, and development of commercial properties. “I started Cowie Associates over 12 years ago with the idea of not just being another architect by just doing what I’m asked but really being proactive to understand the end result of what a client is asking and getting there as efficiently as possible,” Cowie says. With a staff of six, Cowie Associates is smaller than some but boasts a national reach. The firm’s architects are registered in more than a dozen states and active projects are scattered throughout the country. They’ve grown by word of mouth, repeat business contributing dramatically to the firm’s success. “Our clients recognize that the qualities and values that we bring to their development are unique,” he says. Energy-efficient design has always been a part of the firm’s philosophy. “There is a lot about being green that is just good common sense that I’ve been applying for as long as I’ve been an architect,” Cowie says. “Working in a commercial environment, being efficient and affordable has always been an extremely important.” Since sustainable design is now in the spotlight, Cowie Associates is finding that its dedication is appreciated more than ever. One of the standout qualities of Cowie’s team is its willingness to work with and listen to the local community. The team often spends up to a year attending community meetings, answering questions, and addressing concerns about proposed developments. They feel this adds to their competitive edge—designing sustainable spaces that are supported by the community.
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“I don’t know what the future of green design is going to be, but I know we are going to be an active part of it.” —Chris Cowie, Founder
Hughesville, Maryland, is one community in which Cowie Associates has invested a tremendous amount of time. Nearly 12 years ago, the firm volunteered to conduct a streetscape study for the village. Photographs were taken and perspective images were superimposed with design ideas meant to promote a revitalization plan. Then, a highway bypass was built, which circumvented Hughesville and led potential visitors away. So five years ago, Cowie Associates partnered with area business owners to purchase a significant piece of land to develop into flex commercial office and warehouse space. This area, named Hughesville Station, is intended to set the tone for future projects in the area and develop a sense of community in the city now surpassed by many travelers. “In designing Hughesville Station we’ve committed ourselves to incorporating LEED guidelines that would incorporate best management practice with recycled materials, reflective roofs, energy-recovery systems, and efficient building envelopes,” Cowie says. Within the heart of Hughesville, a historic tobacco barn stood empty and underused for years. Cowie Associates and local partners came up with the idea to convert the barn into a performance center—it would
serve as a music venue for musicians, provide space for community events, and host art shows. Cowie says the space was designed to be extremely flexible, accommodating a few hundred or up to a thousand guests. “An adaptive reuse project, the project provides the community and local businesses with a sense of place,” he adds. “The character and quality brings the old back to life yet the community can see a new and current use for the facility.” Other Cowie Associates projects draw inspiration from similar principles. A retail center, Stonehouse Square in Maryland, began as an old stone house on a suburban property. “We retained the character and quality of the old stone building, refurbished it, and created an open mezzanine for visitors to see the shell of the house,” Cowie explains. “It is really a dynamic space.” And for the Lancaster Shopping Center for Federal Realty Investment Trust in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, Cowie Associates created a BIM model to most efficiently design and coordinate the renovation, using the asset to also analyze solar studies. The firm developed a tool to explore how various façade features would impact the solar gain and provide natural light to the stores in a positive way. For Cowie Associates, sustainability goes beyond the design and development of commercial properties. Located in an urban environment, Cowie Associates strives to keep a small carbon footprint. One of the most significant features in terms of minimizing its impact on the environment is that most of the firm’s employees live within a 5-mile radius of work. “We live where we work and work where we live,” Cowie says. —by Jennifer Hogeland
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E-mail: mass@massgc.com www.massgc.com
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community Pueblo, CA
from contacts to contracts Mass Service & Supply, LLC networked itself past gender discrimination and into the forefront of government contracts—now it’s bringing military families ‘home’ in 1996, mohammed ghamdi suggested to fellow recent college graduate Cathy Grasmick that they start a small business to meet the construction needs of their growing hometown of Pueblo, Colorado. Visualizing a unique business, Grasmick and Ghamdi worked nonstop to create Mass Service & Supply, LLC. Getting started wasn’t easy, since at the time a woman-owned business wasn’t readily received in the male-dominated construction industry. In the first year the firm was comprised solely of the two founders and brought in about $20,000. Mass Service & Supply has since grown to 20 employees with a three-year average revenue of more than $12 million. Despite the inherent discrimination Grasmick and Ghamdi faced, they were determined to find the success they’ve since received. “We did any project we could find to gain experience and grow the business,” Grasmick says. “Whether it was building fences, landscaping, or remodeling bathrooms—we did it all.” The Pueblo Chemical Depot provided Mass Service & Supply with its first government job and offered an undefined contract to perform small construction projects like concrete and playground repairs. Mass Service & Supply continues to work on large and small projects for the depot. In 1998, the entrepreneurs attended the SBA’s Small Business Conference where they met Hubert Carter, the small-business advocate for the Omaha District Corps of Engineers. Mass Service & Supply submitted a proposal and was awarded a $3,000,000 US Army
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Corps of Engineers (USACE) IDIQ task-order contract serving military bases throughout Colorado and Wyoming. The firm’s well-received performance led to larger and more complex projects with the USACE and other federal-government entities. “We were especially fortunate to work with the Corps of Engineers during the early stages of our business,” Grasmick explains. “As a result, our policies and procedures were developed to meet the USACE’s construction and safety standards, which are the most challenging in the industry. That opportunity made us a strong company from the start.” As the business continued to grow, Mass
“Mass is committed to minimizing the negative impact that construction has on the environment and continually strives to make its projects part of a sustainable future.” —Cathy Grasmick, Operating Manager
Service & Supply started to explore sustainable options. In the past five years, this focus has grown due to demand. “Mass is committed to minimizing the impact of construction on the environment and continually strives to make its projects part of a sustainable future,” Grasmick says. In August 2009, the firm completed its first true green project, the Design Build HQ Band Training Facility at Colorado’s Fort Carson. The proposal had a LEED Silver requirement, which the company exceeded by achieving LEED Gold certification. Additionally, Mass Service & Supply recently completed the Soldier Family Assistance Center (SFAC) at Fort Carson. The SFAC was again required to be LEED Silver yet has also been submitted to the USGBC for LEED Gold. The SFAC serves as a community center for the Warrior in Transition program, providing a home-away-from-home for soldiers and their families. The design incorporated strategic placement of glass throughout the building for daylighting and included geothermal wells, which will be utilized for energy-efficient heating and cooling. Moving forward, about 90 percent of Mass Service & Supply’s upcoming projects have sustainable qualities. “The federal government is placing more emphasis on their projects being built in accordance with LEED standards. Since the government is our customer, it has become imperative for Mass to educate its staff and adapt its policies to green-building standards,” Grasmick says, mentioning that in order to expand the firm’s green capabilities, it employs a LEED AP project manager. “We are prepared to increase utilization of sustainable construction. Mass has completely embraced the green-building movement.” Though being woman-owned company brought its challenges, Mass Service & Supply has since found remarkable success. “Our strong and steady growth can be attributed to the hard-working people that make up our workforce,” Grasmick says. “From the Mass management to the field personnel, each individual works toward the common goal outlined in our mission statement: to provide a quality product which meets our customer’s goals and exceeds their expectations.” —by Zipporah Porton
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community Cincinatti, OH
wrinkles in time, space, and culture Over-the-Rhine is one of many decimated urban neighborhoods, but Urban Sites is helping history, culture, and sustainability converge in a tightly focused revitalization in nearly every city throughout the United States, the past 70-plus years have played out more or less the same: their once vibrant urban cores where bled of life by the automobile, the freeways, and the lure of the suburban lawn. In Cincinnati, Ohio, the region worst hit by this urban blight is a place called Over-the-Rhine (OTR), a 3,625-acre neighborhood, just a few blocks north of Cincinnati’s central business district. OTR is composed mostly of three- and four-story, brick-faced walkups that were built in the late 1800s. In 1983, the entire neighborhood—encompassing more than 940 buildings—was added to the National Registry of Historic Places. But, like many urban cores, OTR suffered from severe mid-century neglect. By the 1990s, the population of OTR had dropped from its peak at the turn of the 20th century of 44,000 to around 7,000, and the average per-capita income hit near third-world lows—$5,000 a year, according to existing census data. Throughout the tightly packed, narrow streets of Italianate-style row houses and ground-floor shops, nearly threequarters of the buildings stood boarded up. Drugs and violent crime spread throughout the neighborhood, and bolstered by three days of riots in April 2001, OTR gained the dubious reputation as the most dangerous place in America. All its beauty and the history, many feared, would soon be lost forever, abandoned and neglected. A few forward-thinking developers, however, envisioned a different future for Over the Rhine, one of them being Urban Sites, a development and property-management firm responsible for rehabilitating property in the neighborhood since 1985. Donald
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OTR By the Numbers 3,625/acres 1983/year added to the National Register of Historic Places
4,900/population as of 2007 500/number of vacant buildings in 2001 55/number of buildings owned and managed by Urban Sites
Mouch, the property manager for Urban Sites, says that the company’s efforts in OTR have faced some serious ups and downs over the past quarter century, but its commitment to the neighborhood has remained consistent. In the mid 1980s, Urban Sites was mostly rehabbing apartments, but by the mid-’90s, redevelopment in the community had begun to flourish, and Urban Sites added condominium development to its mix. Nightclubs moved into the neighborhood in the late ’80s, followed by art
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community BELOW: Located at 1202 Main Street, The Belmain is one of many recent redevelopments in Cincinnati’s Over-the-Rhine neighborhood. RIGHT: The high ceilings, refurbished wood doors, and exposed mechanical systems all contribute to The Belmain’s juxtaposition between old and new. OPPOSITE PAGE: Copper-clad bay windows and a glazed-brick veneer provide a historic presence along The Belmain’s street front.
“When the riots happened, it kind of made people a little more uneasy, and then after about a year or so, when everything settled down a bit, it was time to rebuild things—yet again.” —Donald Mouch, Property Manager studios and specialty retail shops that catered to a trendy market in the 1990s. Then came the riots, and nearly all development ground to halt. “When the riots happened,” Mouch recalls, “it kind of made people a little more uneasy, and then after about a year or so, when everything settled down a bit, then it was time to rebuild things—yet again.” Not all had been lost; the earlier renaissance efforts of the 1990s provided a base for the renewed efforts
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that followed the riots, Mouch says, “which was helpful in the past five to six years in taking this to the next level of redevelopment.” Urban Sites now owns and manages 55 buildings in OTR, including 300 apartments, owned and/or under management, and 150 condominiums, with approximately 70 percent of those condominiums sold. Most of the OTR redevelopment presently underway is in Gateway Quarter, along the southern edge of the neighborhood and centered on the north-south retail vein of Vine Street. According to one report, 33 percent of all 2009 real-estate sales in Cincinnati took place in Gateway Quarter, bucking both the city and national trend of declining sales. “The goal of the development effort,” Mouch says, “has been to concentrate on a certain area from which it could work its way further away from downtown, and deeper and deeper into the neighborhood.” In mid 2009, Urban Sites completed work on The Belmain, a 16-unit condominium development at 1202 Main Street in the Gateway Quarter. The units range in size from
570 square feet to 900 square feet, with prices that run from $100,000 to $160,000. The primary market for the housing, Mouch notes, is young, urban professionals, who are looking for proximity to downtown and who can meld well with the existing fabric of the neighborhood. With this market in mind, Urban Sites rehabbed The Belmain to LEED standards and received a LEED Silver rating in 2010. While the history of OTR is a decidedly local one, it shares that history with cities across the county, and its rejuvenation speaks to more than just a local concern. More than just reviving a derelict neighborhood or preserving history, revitalizing OTR is about environmental stewardship, global warming, and being green, with urban renewal standing as our best defense against automotive dependence and the ever-creeping spurge of the suburbs. In OTR, Mouch notes, many of the young urbanites moving into the city are doing so—in part—out of a wish to live a more sustainable, less energy-dependent life, and a development like The Belmain, he says, helps fulfill that wish. —by James Askew
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Case Knowlson & Jordan LLP is a leader in real estate law. The members of our firm offer a broad spectrum of experience in a variety of real estate related fields. As a result, for over twenty years, we have assisted our clients in acquiring, entitling, developing, leasing and financing real estate projects both large and small. We proudly join with Green Building + Design in recognizing our clients’ accomplishments. 2029 Century Park East Suite 2500 Los Angeles, CA 90067
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Blue Ridge Advisory Services Group congratulates GLJ Partners and Merlone Geier Partners on their commitment to thoughtful and sustainable development. We are pleased to have provided telecommunications and technology planning services for the Marina del Rey and Montclair projects.
Green is Smart. Residential communities through resource-efficient methods and sustainable design. Pictured Above: Stella - Marina del Rey, CA – Another high quality, green residential community by GLJ Partners, in partnership with Merlone Geier Partners. Construction on this LEED Silver, $110,000,000, 244 unit luxury apartment community began June 2010.
Blue Ridge Advisory Services Group congratulates GLJ Partners and Merlone Geier Partners on their commitment to thoughtul and sustainable development. We are pleased to have provided telecommunicatons and technology planning services for the Marina del Rey and Montclair projects.
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Blue Ridge Advisory Services Group www.blueridge-group.com
760.431.3366 www.gljpartners.com 5780 Fleet Street Ste. 130, Carlsbad, CA 92008 | F: 760.431.3377
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Principals: Robert Picchi Craig Harrison Ed Godshall
www.blueridge-group.com Principals: Robert Picchi • Craig Harrison • Ed Godshall
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taking shape
Stockholm artist Stina Persson was commissioned to capture the vibrant Marina lifestyle for “STELLA.”
STELLA For a new Marina del Ray mixed-use project, GLJ Partners is in a green world all its own location Marina del Ray, CA multi-family units 244 retail space 9,000 square feet development cost $110 million
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garth erdossy and tony ditteaux, partners at Southern California-based GLJ Partners, are both avid surfers. “Clean water is something that’s important to both of us as a result,” Erdossy says. As two of the three leaders of a residential-development and -construction company (the third, Leonard Wood, operates out of the company’s Atlanta-area office), they’re now incorporating the process of improving water quality into their business via storm-water drainage systems. A recent mixed-use project the firm spearheaded in Marina del Ray, California, STELLA, which is tracking LEED Silver certification, is a good example. By virtue of the fact that it is a $110 million, 244-unit multi-family community space, there was significant opportunity to build progressive water infrastructure and make a real
difference. GLJ convinced the California Department of Transportation to change its streetscape standards for the area to allow it to implement a greener storm-water treatment on the property. “We created a system whereby all drainage is pretreated first through our planters on the site,” Ditteaux says. “And we’ve incorporated a linear wetland, which is a pre-manufactured storm-drain system that filters through different plant materials before reaching city or county storm-drain systems. It’s very efficient, plus it’s nice to look at. In an urban environment, any and all landscaping you can add to your development is welcome.” GLJ formed in 2007, though Ditteaux and Erdossy had worked together at Nexus Residential since 2003. Along with Leonard
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taking shape
“Sub-meters are incredibly helpful in decreasing water usage in community environments, because it rewards the individuals who are sensitive to those issues and forces the water hogs to pay their fair share.” —Tony Ditteaux, Founder
Wood, their goal was to create a firm where quality was valued over quantity. “The three of us agreed from the outset that we’d only work with people we really liked and on projects that interested us and that met our financial objectives,” Erdossy explains. As such, GLJ is a fully integrated real-estate operating company, acting as principal, developer, and construction manager on
STELLA all projects. “Building all our own projects helps us maintain quality and lets us change plans on the fly for jobs that aren’t making the transition from two dimensions to three dimensions well,” Erdossy says. All jobs are at least anchored by a residential focus: from single-family detached homes to four-story rental apartments over subterranean parking to mixed-use projects like STELLA in Marina del Rey. As LEED has inched more and more toward being a standard among California builders, GLJ has adjusted; as company policy, it seeks LEED designation or Building Green specs for every project. Title 24, California’s mandatory energy code, is one of the strictest in the nation in terms of efficiency standards, and for STELLA, GLJ exceeded it by 15 percent. It accomplished this through a highly efficient LED-lighting system; airtight insulation; Energy Star appliances; low-E glass; and solar heating for the pool. (Other LEED-friendly qualities included zero-VOC paints, Green Label Plus carpeting, and the diversion of 90 percent of project waste from landfills.) Additional water savings came
about via dual-flush toilets and the installation of sub-meters for each unit. “Sub-meters are incredibly helpful in decreasing water usage in community environments, because it rewards the individuals who are sensitive to those issues and forces the water hogs to pay their fair share,” Ditteaux says. “And especially for those of us out West, water conservation is a big deal.” Not all of GLJ’s business is centered around its Carlsbad, California, office; Wood runs the office in Atlanta as part of a strategy to take advantage of high-growth areas in the Southeast. Currently, the accounting and human resources arms of GLJ are based in the Atlanta office. “Ultimately, we will probably populate a development office there, too,” Ditteaux says. In the meantime, the firm is ramping up to break ground on new energy-efficient projects like the 312-unit Oak Springs Ranch in Wildomar, California, which will be built under Building Green standards. “We’ve completed over 160,000 units over the years all told,” Erdossy says. “We’re eager to build green more and more as we move forward.” —by David Hudnall
GLJ’s LEED Silver STELLA, located in Marina del Rey, will feature live-work units and 9,000 square feet of retail space.
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taking shape
casa bella verde Briana Alhadeff turns the expertise she’s gained through a successful design firm toward her own net-zero home location El Dorado Hills, CA estimated completion early 2011 size 7,500 square feet (including a 1,500-square-foot guest house)
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interior designer and green conIn building Casa Bella Verde, which means sultant Briana Alhadeff spent years helping “beautiful green home” in Spanish, that all other people design green homes before she changed. “This was my chance to select the decided it was time to build her own. The perfect site for the home, as well as incorresult of that decision was Casa Bella Verde, porate all of the green features that I’ve a net-zero home that Alhadeff will both live ever wanted,” she says, mentioning that she in and use as a demonstration of what’s posworked closely with architect Nicholas Nikisible with sustainable design and technology. foruk on the house’s design. Even here, with its basic design, Alhadeff wanted to take the “I’ve always been interested in sustainable home to a new level and incorporate every architecture, design, and construction and possible aspect of green design and building have spent the past 17 years looking at the technology. technology that could help us preserve our planet’s natural resources through sustainShe chose a site for Casa Bella Verde that proable homebuilding,” says Alhadeff, owner of moted the use of solar and wind power. “The California design firm Bella Verde Consult40-acre parcel is situated on one of the highing, based out of El Dorado Hills. “When est peaks in the area, which is perfect for I’ve designed projects for clients in the past, solar and wind power generation,” she says. there have always been restrictions, so I “I positioned the house in a natural clearing, couldn’t include all of the green features that free of obstructions, in order to maximize I would have liked.” the solar and wind potential.”
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taking shape
Casa Bella Verde PREVIOUS PAGE: Artist rendering of the soon-to-be-completed 7,500-square-foot house. RIGHT: Steel reinforcements for the floor joists have been custom cut and assembled on site. BELOW: Bracing is added to provide the opportunity for straightening and leveling of the walls, to provide the scaffolding during construction, and to provide support while the walls are being filled with concrete.
“Because Casa Bella Verde was my own home, I had the freedom to incorporate every aspect of green-building technology into the design, which allowed me to take sustainable design to a whole new level.” —Briana Alhadeff, Homeowner & Project Director, Bella Verde Consulting
Then there’s the construction. Entirely woodfree, the house will be built of IntegraSpec insulating concrete forms (ICFs), which perform at an R-50 factor (compared to traditional homes, which perform at R-12 to R-20 factors). ICFs aren’t just about energy efficiency. “Not one tree has been cut down to build this house, and due to the durable nature of concrete and steel this house will still be here over 1,000 years from now,” Alhadeff says. “Now that’s true sustainability.” Casa Bella Verde’s heating and cooling will be provided by a geo-exchange system tied to a Watts radiant floor system. Energy will be provided by 95 rooftop solar panels and a WE Power vertical-axis wind turbine. Casa Bella Verde’s water system is also unique. Well water is supplemented by an 80,000-gallon ICF cistern used for harvesting rainwater, which will then be used to replace evaporated water in the swimming pool and water
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plants in the rooftop garden. Moreover, every drop of water, after being used in the house, will be purified through a sophisticated water-treatment facility and sent out again to irrigate the property. “In some instances, we’ll actually use the water three times, thanks to Sloan’s new Aqus product, which we’re installing in our bathrooms,” Alhadeff notes. “After we wash our hands, the water will be filtered and sanitized, then sent to the toilet’s tank for flushing, at which point it will be purified again and sent out to be used to irrigate the plants on the property.” Other green features include a Broan HRV unit, which replaces fresh air in the home every three hours; whole-house HEPA filtration; Energy Star appliances and windows; LED lighting; paperless drywall; VOC-free finishes; a rooftop garden; and recycling receptacles. Alhadeff notes that it was also important to incorporate home controls to facilitate the functioning of Casa Bella Verde’s
green features. “Controls play an important role in making a home more energy efficient,” she says. “Our Vantage controls will actually tell us how much electricity our home is consuming at any given moment and, with the touch of a button, gives us the ability to instantly make modifications throughout the house to lower our energy consumption.” When Casa Bella Verde is finished—likely early 2011—Alhadeff will offer architects and homebuilders the opportunity to tour the home and talk to manufacturer representatives about the technology used in it. “My goal with Casa Bella Verde is to physically demonstrate to architects, engineers, and homebuilders the various green features that are available to them and how they can incorporate these sustainable features into the homes that they design and build,” she says. “Because the whole idea is to promote a new era of sustainability.” —by Julie Schaeffer
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features 49 NEW SPACES FOR A NEW SCHOOL 54 EXPANSION THEORY 63 IN GOOD HANDS
P. 54 Winner of the IIDA’s 2009 Smart Environments Award, ZGF Architects won for the design of Twelve | West, which houses it’s own Portland offices. Twelve | West is also the first urban, high rise to have a wind turban array installed on the roof. Photo: Nick Merrick, Hedrich Blessing. gbdmagazine.com
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design spotlight
new spaces for a new school Lyn Rice Architectsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; integrative design approach creates mesmerizing public spaces and raises the bar for future students of Parsons the New School of Design by Daniel Casciato
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W
ith each project, award-winning Lyn Rice Architects (LRA) wants to do one thing: engage the public with contemporary, sustainably built works that emerge from fresh, programmatic, and formal speculations and that integrate new construction techniques and materials. Simple.
“We have limited resources on the planet, and we now have mechanisms to more closely monitor the sustainability of the products that we specify,” says Lyn Rice, the founding principal of the New York-based architecture practice. “We need to start creating an awareness of how even small changes in what we specify and how we think about architecture can collectively have a great impact on the environment. Buildings are the worst culprits in using energy and contributing to global warming—worse than transportation or industry. We want to participate in the rethinking of how we make buildings.” One of the firm’s key design projects over the years was the Sheila C. Johnson Design Center, part of the eccentrically named Parsons The New School for Design in New York. This particular project was the winner of several prestigious awards in architecture including the top awards in both the 2009 Chicago Athenaeum/European Centre’s International Architecture Award and the 2009 National AIA Honor Award. The creation of this center established a 32,800-squarefoot campus nexus for The New School by uniting and comprehensively reorganizing the street-level spaces of the school’s four buildings around a new glazed-roof urban quad. According to Rice, the center now acts as an expansive urban threshold that draws together the school’s creative programs and their vibrant Greenwich Village context.
The Sheila C. Johnson Design Center’s 5th Avenue entrance with graphic canopy. Photo: Lyn Rice Architects.
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New entries on Fifth Avenue and West 13th Street connect internally for the first time in the quad and provide access to new state-of-the-art galleries and archives; an auditorium, orientation center, and student-critique zone; and seminar spaces. “It is a combination of lowand high-tech interventions operating at both urban and bodily scales to reinforce ties to the street,” Rice says, noting the continuous thin-window lounge, which allows students and faculty to occupy the complex’s perimeter in a series of deep frames that open up views out to the city. “This is where our passion lies: to create >
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Sheila C. Johnson Design Center architects Lyn Rice, principal, with Astrid Lipka, associate principal project manager Kimberlae Saul design team Leif Halverson, Kai Hotson, Julie Torres Moskovitz, Pamela Torres, Erik Carver, Jonathan Garnett, and Joanna Gulik structural & mep/fp engineering Buro Happold, New York glazing consultant Front, Inc. lighting consultant Richard Shaver Architectural Lighting A/V & acoustics Cerami environmental consultant Art Preservation Services construction manager Richter+Ratner specifications Construction Specifications code consultant JAM Consultants, Inc. elevator consultant Van Deusen & Associates
PHOTO CREDITS: THIS PAGE: Richard Barnes (above), Michael Moran. OPPOSITE PAGE: Brendan Austin (top and bottom, left), Lyn Rice Architects. 50
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New Spaces for a New School
design spotlight
The New School Welcome Center architects Lyn Rice, principal, with Astrid Lipka, associate principal project architect Ivan Chabra project designer/project leader Steven Y.N. Chen designers Billy Garcia, Anne-Rachel Schiffmann executive architect Cooper Robertson & Partners structural engineering Robert Silman Associates, PC, New York MEP/FP HKA, New York lighting Tillotson Design Associate
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An open spacearchitect below the urban feature quadâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s cantilevered meeting pod. Photo: Michael Moran.
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New Spaces for a New School
design spotlight
“It’s gratifying to look through these new windows and see students using the space. Creating spaces for people to converse, socialize, and really live in excites us.” —Lyn Rice, Founding Principal
spaces for the general public at large to use. It’s gratifying to look through these new windows and see students using the space. Creating spaces for people to converse, socialize, and really live in excites us.” Another project that showcases the firm was its work last year on the University Welcome Center for The New School. Winner of the 2010 AIA New York Merit Award, the Welcome Center is an active information hub serving students and visitors to The New School’s Greenwich Village campus. Highlights of this project include a doublesided monitor beam that spans enlarged perimeter windows and displays a promotional video across twelve LCD screens visible to both outside and inside. Along with a bright entryway, a silver reception and stair element accesses the university’s advising and financial offices and complements the raw shell space, which LRA stripped bare to expose original cast iron and wood elements. Asked what distinguishes the firm from others who bid on similar projects, Rice says that the firm allows ideas to percolate from the bottom up instead of from top down. “We don’t have the idea first and then try to sell to the client,” he explains. “We embrace pragmatics and thrive on constraint. Rather than work around the requirements of the project, we embrace and use them as conceptual drivers. We don’t have to compromise; we use them to propel design and we work to innovate, to find new approaches so solutions contribute to the architecture.” While other firms have been struggling because of the effects of the economy, Rice feels fortunate to have a thriving practice. “I think it’s a great time of optimism in architecture and a time of proliferation of small firms like ours in the city right now,” he says. “I don’t know of another time when there was such a group of energetic small offices creating joyful, optimistic works that bring a fresh spirit and youthfulness to architecture in New York.” gb&d
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Azzarone
Contracting Corp
- Concrete Contractors -
Phone: 516-742-4305 Fax: 516-742-4307
110 E 2nd St | Mineola, NY 11501
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features
Student Mentoring Week Designing for the Future
Alabama
Will Ching Design Competition
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SMART Environments Carolinas
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IDC
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Student Sustainable Design Competition Perspective
Knowledge Center
Delaware
professional development
Rocky Mountain
NeoCon
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13,000 members
California IDCEU Programs
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Charter Agreement
Created to honor and expand the culmination of the greater Texas design world, the International Interior Design Association is constantly and consistently broadening the message that interiors can be beautiful, functional, and sustainable Oklahoma
Quad
by Jennifer Kirkland
Virginia West Virginia
Sustainable Design Education Fund
Wisconsin IIDA/HD Product Design
education
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“In a nutshell, IIDA stands for the highest qualifications and standards of design professionals.” —Cheryl Durst, Executive Vice President & CEO
T
his is an exciting time for interior designers. As the green revolution becomes more and more mainstream every day, it seems the entire country is preparing for a green makeover. More business leaders are recognizing the economic and human benefits of sustainable design. The government is stimulating the revolution by providing incentives, mandates, and a large market of government facilities in need of upgrades. A visit to the NeoCon World’s Trade Fair, held every June at Chicago’s Merchandise Mart, reveals a growing industry thriving with innovative ideas. At the heart of this thriving industry is the International Interior Design Association (IIDA), the world’s leading networking and educational association for professional interior designers and students. Headquartered in the same historic building as the site of the annual NeoCon convention, IIDA has 13,000 members and 29 chapters around the world. United by a Mission IIDA was founded in 1994, the result of a merger: the Institute of Business Designers, the International Society of Interior Designers, and the Council of Federal Interior Designers traded autonomy for the influence and reach of an international association, united by a mission to represent interior designers worldwide. Since that date, IIDA
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Cheryl Durst’s Résumé • Earned dual bachelor’s degrees in print journalism and economics from Boston University • Began career at furniture-design firm Knoll in residential and commercial sales and design support • Became meeting planner at the Washington Design Center • Joined IIDA in Chicago as headquarters project manager in 1997; later named senior director of education and professional development • Executive vice president and CEO of IIDA since 2000 • Honorary FIIDA, LEED AP
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expansion theory
features
Milestone at Merchandise Mart Completed in 2008, IIDA’s 10,000-square-foot headquarters, located in Chicago’s Merchandise Mart, is the first professional design association to receive a LEED-CI Gold certification. As an influential interior design association, IIDA sought to set an example with their headquarters by demonstrating that sustainable design can be beautiful and functional. Washington, DC-based Envision Design created the space, which houses the Association’s Conference and Learning Center and includes state-of-the-art meeting space for IIDA events. Featuring a number of products and materials from various manufacturers and suppliers, IIDA and Envision illustrated the wide variety of products available in the marketplace whose manufacturing and distribution leave a light footprint on the earth. Specifically, 25 percent of the materials used in this project are made of post-consumer and postindustrial recycled materials, while another five percent of the products are made with rapidly renewable materials such as cork flooring, wool area rugs, and agrifiber core panels for millwork. Additional sustainable design elements include an energy-efficient under floor air delivery system, allowing individual temperature control; fluorescent lighting fixtures and T-5 linear pendant fixtures; and glass walls and doors were created for private offices, maximizing daylight throughout the space.
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architect and LEED consultant Envision Design general contractor Turner Construction MEP engineer KJWW Engineering Consultants A/V consultant Sound Investment, Ltd.
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features
smart environments award winner project
kroon hall locATION
new haven, ct firm
centerbrook architects and planners
As Yaleâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s greenest building (and one of the most sustainable buildings in the United States), Kroon Hall was designed as a flagship for the universityâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s commitment to sustainability. The LEED Platinum, 66,818-square-foot building has received more than a dozen design awards and was created to use 81 percent less water and 58 percent less energy than a building of comparable size. Housing office space for more than 50 faculty and staff, three class rooms, a 175-seat auditorium, a Environmental Learning Center, and a library; the project actually received seven more rating points than the required 52 for a Platinum certification. Photos: Morley von Sternberg. 58
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expansion theory
has worked to convene communities of interior designers across regions and specialties representing the interests for the entire community. IIDA also provides members with the resources to attain expertise, knowledge, and contacts. Chapters and city centers are the visible strength of the association, and networking events allow professionals to connect on more personal levels that encourage trust, collaboration, and innovation. In the IIDA’s Specialty Forums, designers focused on specific areas of design offer education, inspiration, and best practices through the IIDA Knowledge Center website. Life Drives Design “In a nutshell, IIDA stands for the highest qualifications and standards of design professionals,” says Cheryl Durst, executive vice president and CEO of IIDA. “We work every day to ensure that the educational initiatives, special events, recognition awards, and collaborative competitions demonstrate the best of the interior design community.” Durst herself has led the organization since 2000 and speaks to 10,000 people per year at more than 30 speaking engagements around the United States. She is the public face of the IIDA. In her role, she’s often had to dispel the myth that interior designers only work in luxury homes for wealthy clients. “The majority of IIDA members are designing airports, stores, hospitals, and work places,” she points out. “They’re doing large spaces where there are large numbers of people.” “Life drives design,” is an IIDA philosophy that cannot be escaped. “My passion really lies in the fact that interior design is about what happens on the receiving end,” Durst says. “It’s about human beings, and it’s about humanity. Our members are really skilled and very intrinsic to creating habitable spaces where people live and work and play—and where they learn and heal.”
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features
“My passion really lies in the fact that interior design is about what happens on the receiving end. It’s about human beings, and it’s about humanity. Our members are really skilled and very intrinsic to creating habitable spaces where people live and work and play—and where they learn and heal.” —Cheryl Durst, Executive Vice President & CEO
Tangible Results of Sustainability Sustainability is the biggest revolution in interior design since the coming of the cubicle, and everyone is talking about it. At the 2009 NeoCon, which for the past 16 years has also served as the IIDA International Conference, IIDA signed a charter agreement with the US General Services Administration (GSA) to collaborate and reach out to IIDA designers to work with federal agencies as they upgrade their spaces under the mandate of stimulus dollars. This partnership will foster the growth of best green practices by opening forums between GSA and IIDA designers. The agreement is one of the many tangible results of the IIDA’s commitment to sustainability. Another is the appointment of the IIDA’s most recent sustainability advisor, Robert P. Moylan, who will coordinate its many efforts in the realm of sustainable design and best practices. Like all IIDA forums, this one offers a valuable resource for designers and endeavors to encourage, support, and educate members and the public. IIDA’s new quarterly newsletter for student members, Quad, is available on the IIDA’s website. IIDA also offers students career support and an extensive mentoring program that culminates during Student Mentoring
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features
smart environments award winner project
twelve | west locATION
portland, or firm
zgf architects
A combination of old-world wood craftsmanship, clean lines, communal meeting spaces, exposed concrete columns, and floor-to-ceiling windows lend to the atmosphere of ZGF Architectsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; dually LEED Platinum-certified headquarters. Located on four floors of a 23-story mixed-use building, ZGF designed Twelve | West to achieve the highest levels of urban sustainability. One of most striking interior aspects of the project is the expertly constructed floating staircase (pictured) that greets visitors at the buildingâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s first floor. Photo: Nick Merrick, Hedrich Blessing.
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features
With a mission to offer fresh, wholesome, organic dishes at affordable prices, the freshness doesnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t stop with just the menu; it permeates the entire facility. As one of the most sustainable eateries in San Francisco, the Scandinavian-influenced interior creates a welcoming atmosphere and floor-toceiling entrance offering astonishing views of the Bay. Located on Pier 3, a national historic district, CCS Architecture had the challenge of creating a modern restaurant with sustainable features (which include a water-electrolyzer system and a six-kilowatt PV system on the roof) while staying within the strict guidelines governing landmark structures. Photos: Kris Tamburello.
smart environments award winner project
the plant: cafĂŠ organic locATION
san francisco, ca firm
ccs architecture
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expansion theory
Week each February. This fall will see the eighth year of IIDA’s Student Sustainable Design Competition, demonstrating future initiatives in sustainable, smart design. Submissions are open to every type of design from commercial and residential to highly specialized concepts. Cash prizes are awarded, and each year, the number and quality of submissions has grown. IIDA also oversees a competition with Metropolis magazine called Smart Environments that celebrates new projects in sustainable, accessible design. Moylan co-moderated 2009’s competition with editor-in-chief Susan S. Szenasy. Each year since 2006, Smart Environments winners have reflected IIDA’s vision of design enhancing the lives of people. In addition, the prestigious 37th Annual Interior Design Competition and the 18th Annual Will Ching Design Competition were truly international in scope this year. Out of more than 300 entries, 99 projects were either completed abroad or by international firms. The slate of winners demonstrated that great design is a universal goal.
“Use your contacts as leverage in seeking out opportunities and solidifying partnerships. The people you interact with form a microcosm of the design world.” —Cheryl Durst, Executive Vice President & CEO
resource Guide The IIDA constantly encourages its members to continue educating themselves on new design practices and products, below is a list of suggested readings and blogs for interior designers. The Language of Things: Understanding the World of Desirable Things, by Deyan Sudjic Glimmer: How Design Can Transform Your Life, and Maybe Even the World, by Warren Berger Change Design: Conversations About Architecture as the Ultimate Business Tool (2nd Edition) Blogs: Product Wars, productwars.com / BLDGBLOG, bldgblog.blogspot.com / dezeen, dezeen.com / Inhabitat, inhabitat. com / design milk, design-milk.com
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A Larger, More Dynamic Microcosm IIDA is committed to facilitating a global community for members through the IIDA website, which enables members to stay connected with peers by viewing the member-submitted events in the Event Calendar, reading articles written by or featuring members in the Press Room, and linking to Twitter, Facebook, and the IIDA blogs. “Use your contacts as leverage in seeking out opportunities and solidifying partnerships,” Durst advises. “The people you interact with form a microcosm of the design world.” IIDA’s goal has always been to make that microcosm bigger and more dynamic. Like all professional networking organizations, IIDA’s annual event plays an important role. “Our event celebrates our members and provides an opportunity to reconnect on a personal and professional level,” she adds. Those professional designers include some of the most talented and visionary in the world, all dedicated to the ideals of the IIDA. With such passionate people in its ranks, IIDA will always be at the forefront of the future of design. “Our members are in essence cultural anthropologists,” Durst says, “designing spaces to fit the needs of our lives today and to recall past periods. What intrigues me most about interior design is that it literally is magic.” gb&d
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in good hands
AMBITION The Empire State Building, managed by Jones Lang LaSalle, will undergo an energy retrofit that will reduce usage by up to 38 percent, saving $4.4 million a year. The building recently announced it had achieved a Energy Star score of 90. It also intends to pursue LEED Gold certification.
Some of the country’s largest office-building-management firms are aggressively pursuing Energy Star labels and LEED certification, determined to transform the current commercial landscape by Scott Heskes
three of the largest managers of real estate in the United States have heavily committed to making existing office buildings in the country more energy efficient. Jones Lang LaSalle, CB Richard Ellis, and Cushman Wakefield are pursuing aggressive programs nationwide to achieve Energy Star ratings and LEED certification for their respective office-building portfolios under management. The combined management portfolios of the three companies represent more than two billion square feet of office space. The US Department of Energy reports in a now often-cited 2006 survey that commercial buildings consume about 35 percent of all US electricity. With new construction representing less than four percent per year of the total number of commercial buildings, a collective eye has now turned to existing buildings with the thinking that new programs can provide substantial gains on the reduction of greenhouse-gas emissions. The EPA’s Energy Star program offers a series of free tools to analyze a building’s energy efficiency and carbon footprint, in the end giving a building a rating between 1 and 100. >
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In Good Hands
For instance, if the building achieves a rating of 50; the building is performing in the 50th percentile of all similar buildings in the country, according to the EPA. A rating of 75 or better earns the distinction of an Energy Star Label. “We want to have every office building we manage have a baseline Energy Star rating,” says David L. Pogue, national director of sustainability for CB Richard Ellis (CBRE), whose company portfolio of managed buildings exceeds 700 million square feet. Of that total, CBRE has benchmarked 250 million square feet in more than 1,400 buildings and has achieved Energy Star labels for nearly 250 of those. “Our energy-efficiency program starts with a low-cost/no-cost approach. We begin with trying to get the building back into shape. Many buildings were designed and built better than they are being managed or occupied. The first thing everybody wants to do is get it back to its original design and to improve upon the standard practices. We have had a number of experiences where we were able to take a building that was kind of middle range and get it up to Energy Star Label without spending a great deal of capital.” CBRE did a study in 2009 that correlates every point of Energy Star to an .83-percent savings. “If you are able to improve a building from 65 to a 75,” Pogue explains, “you are going to improve it by about 10 percent.” Pogue’s group exhausts all potential low- or no-cost efforts before exploring return-on-investment programs. “In the near term we are just looking to move the meter,” he says. “We have found it generally achievable to save 10 or 15 percent in a building that has not had a lot done to it. Most of this is done with less than a one-year payback.” Typically, Pogue says the work is not done with capital-improvement money but is expensed as a pass through, offset by energy savings. The momentum of Energy Star accelerated in 2007 when the DOE set goals for federal facilities. The effort then extended to large corporate users. “Where we started playing three and a half years ago was on the corporate side,” says Peter Belisle, president of energy and sustainability services at Jones Lang LaSalle (JLL). “At the executive level of major companies, there was a big push for real-estate departments to develop an overarching program for communicating to shareholders and clients what was being done in the space of sustainability. Probably two years ago we started talking about this more with our investor clients, and at the time it was on their radar screens, but they took a wait-andsee attitude. In the last year and a half the boards and asset-management entities of these investment groups started making this a hot topic. We just had a property management conference where several investor clients
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“At the end of 2007, there were fewer than 60 LEED-EB buildings in the world, and since then we have ourselves have almost doubled that and have nearly twice [as many] more in the process. It’s a huge movement over the last two years.” —David L. Pogue, National Director of Sustainability, CB Richard Ellis
said sustainability is one of the top three things they are dealing with. Today, investors are focused on these issues with equal intensity to corporations.” In the United States, JLL manages about 99 million square feet of investor-owned space. Of these buildings, 61 million square feet have Energy Star scores of 75 or higher, many of which have or are in the process of getting Energy Star labels. On the corporate owner-occupied side, it manages 94 million square feet with 30 million square feet having Energy Star ratings of 75 or higher. Once buildings receive the Energy Star label, the next step is LEED certification. While significant strides have been made in the number of buildings registered and certified under the LEED-EB rating, the private-investor market is still somewhat skeptical about the value. Most of the LEED-certified projects have not been poor-performing or average-performing buildings. “What’s happening is people are taking buildings that are already pretty good performers,” CBRE’s Pogue explains. “Most of those buildings we had LEED certified did not require the owner to spend a lot of capital. The average cost for LEED certification on the 34 million square feet we have done was $0.24 per square foot. I would think right now, because of the capital-constrained market, most owners are not considering anything that has longer than a
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CASE IN POINT One Beacon Street Boston, MA quick facts • Owned by an affiliate of Beacon Capital Partners, LLC • First LEED-EB-certified building in Boston
size • 1,017,000 square feet
challenge With the ownership’s approval to pursue LEED-EB certification, the CBRE management team launched a comprehensive review of all building systems. The focus was on environmentally sound initiatives that would reduce operating costs while maintaining tenant comfort. To fulfill sustainability goals, CBRE needed to reduce waste streams to landfills, implement green cleaning and execute sustainable procedures and policies that would effectively reduce energy costs, carbon-dioxide emissions, and water usage.
solution Reevaluation and simple alterations of many current operating practices led to CBRE implementing building policies regarding sustainable use and reuse of materials, including a recycling program, janitorial procedures, and related purchases that were fully compliant with LEED standards. To reduce HVAC costs, variable frequency drives were placed on perimeter fan systems, and secondary water pumps and carbon-dioxide sensors were installed. Heating of the building’s underground parking garage was also eliminated. CBRE knew that establishing a building culture devoted to sustainability initiatives was key in achieving long-term results. Innovative ways to save energy and introduce green initiatives are constantly being explored and employees are encouraged to attend Building Owners and Managers Associaton seminars to learn new approaches to bettering the environment.
results One Beacon Street will achieve a projected $633,000 in annual savings with an investment payback period of less than one year. In addition, the following annual savings will be generated: • 6,000,000 kWh of energy (electricity and steam) • 2,473 metric tons of carbon-dioxide emissions • 100,000 cubic feet of water As a result of CBRE’s efforts, the building earned an Energy Star score of 79 and has gained recognition as the first LEED-EB certified building in Boston. Photos: David Joseph.
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In Good Hands
“The wave is building. By January 2011, in California you will need to publish the Energy Star rating for any commercial building that is 50,000 square feet or above when you sell. Other states are following with similar legislation where the building Energy Star rating is provided in a public forum.”
two year payback.” Yet JLL has decided to pursue LEED certification on about 35 million square feet and CBRE is currently managing 37.7 million square feet that has been certified under LEED-EB.
Scott, in his work with Cushman &Wakefield, sees new legislation at regional levels as a major driver in sustainability’s momentum. “The wave is building. By January 2011, in California you will need to publish the Energy Star rating for any commercial building that is 50,000 square feet or above when you sell,” he says. “Other states are following with similar legislation where the building Energy Star rating is provided in a public forum.” In addition to Energy Star legislation, Scott is encouraged by the opportunities that may be created with PACE legislation, which pays for upgrades in a building through property taxes. “What will happen is you will be able to draw from your tax base, make capital improvement to your building, amortized over a period of time,” he explains. “Florida municipalities are working on funding mechanisms for this program right now.”
John Scott, national co-chair of the sustainability task force at Cushman & Wakefield, sees the pressure to differentiate in a competitive market creating new opportunity for sustainable buildings. “We have several new Class-A buildings totaling two million square feet in Miami all coming on the market at the worst possible time. The ownerships started...trying to differentiate themselves, so one building said, ‘We are going to be LEED certified.’ Then the next building said, ‘We are going to be LEED Silver, and the next one said, ‘Well you know what? I’m going to be LEED Gold.’ So then all of them said they were going to be LEED Gold. The moral of the story is that certified sustainable buildings in the Class A environment will be the norm very soon.”
All three companies agree that there is something very significant happening in the industry. “At the end of 2007,” Pogue says, “there were fewer than 60 LEED-EB buildings in the world, and since then we have ourselves have almost doubled that and have nearly twice [as many] more in the process. It’s a huge movement over the last two years.” But by the same token, the market is still driving with a prudent ownership behind the wheel. According to Belisle, “The most successful projects are led with a powerful, clear-cut thought process around return on investment. Ninety percent of the work we are doing at Jones Lang LaSalle ESS is being driven by what the benefit is and how long it’s going to take to pay for itself.” gb&d
—John Scott, National Co-Chair Sustainability Task Force, Cushman & Wakefield
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New evidence shows that as lease rates are down and office vacancy is up, Energy Star and LEED-EB offer greater appeal in the market for potential clients. Rental rates are higher for buildings that have achieved these ratings, and vacancy rates are lower. CBRE did a study in 2009 with 154 Energy Star-labeled buildings in 10 different markets, and the findings were that they had improved occupancy—but only marginally. Other studies at University of California-Berkeley, Arizona State University, and UC–San Diego also showed modest improvements in occupancy. But all of the examined buildings also showed improvements in rental rates. The CBRE study showed a 13.1-percent increase in lease rate over the average market. In 23 of the 154 buildings, the tenants were separately metered for electricity, and the number improved to 21 percent. “We thought that was one of the most dramatic findings of our study,” Pogue says, “and I think it demonstrates that if you make someone responsible and accountable for their own utilities and [if they] they also benefit directly from their actions, then tenants tend to be more sensitive to energy use.”
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RESIDENTIAL 70 71 74 77 81 83 85 87 89 92
Lumenhaus J.L.S. Design Arkin Tilt Architects McDonald Construction & Development/ Margadio Group The LaPorte Group Campaigne Kestner Architects Odyssey Builders Sea House Development Greenmore Homes, LLC Catalano Architects
commercial 95 96 99 102 104 107
175–185 Wyman Street HarenLaughlin Construction Cerminara Architect CJW Architecture Green Construction US GCCM Construction Services, LLC
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office
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INSTITUTIONAL 115 116 117 120 122 125 128 130 132
Georgetown University Science Center Enea Tree Museum The Architects Buchar, Mitchell, Bajt, Architects Cass Sowatsky Chapman + Associates The United Group of Companies, Inc. Warner Construction Shickel Corp. CAS Architects, Inc.
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PROJECT SPOTLIGHT
the power of light in international competitions this year, the United States took a loss in the World Cup but came away with a victory in the Solar Decathlon Europe 2010. The Lumenhaus was Virginia Techâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s entry into the competition, which was held in Madrid, Spain. Zero-energy and completely solar powered, the house beat 16 other universities from seven different countries. With the north and south walls made completely of glass, throughout the day, sliding panels adjust automatically to provide seamless response to the environment. The house won mostly for its efficiency and flexibility, as its rectangular and open floor plan provide ample space with numerous potential uses. Photos: Virginia Tech College of Architecture.
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putting things in context J.L.S. Design’s commitment to marrying buildings to their surroundings points the green movement back to design fundamentals
by Matt Petrusek
joel sherman isn’t impressed with what he sees as an overly self-congratulatory “green movement” in architecture. Green design, to the principal of J.L.S. Design, is, and always has been good design, or rather outstanding design—the best in the field of architecture. And that, he claims, is far from a modern invention. “You shouldn’t get points for good design,” he says. “It’s been around for thousands of years.”
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BELOW: A view of Fernwood Folly Residence’s master suite, living room, and upper jacuzzi deck.
This profound respect for the architect’s capacity and responsibility to create meaningful spaces ideally suited to their locations forms the foundation of Sherman’s design approach. The insight was first presented to him in architecture school in the form of site-generated-design theory; it was consummated when, after graduation, he had the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to intern with Southern California architect Ray Kappe. Kappe, famous for designing innovative housing and the first “LivingHome,” taught Sherman the importance of what he calls “appropriate design.” The experience made an indelible impression on his conception of the relationship between architecture and the environment. “Nothing was portrayed as green at the time,” he recalls. “Every project was site adapted.” “Site adapted” means many things to Sherman, but it starts with a basic tenet: respect the location’s natural integrity. “You don’t cut down the trees and then name the
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J.L.S. Design
“I think a lot of people utilize the green movement as a crutch for design. But you always have to ask yourself as an architect, ‘Does the space enrich the soul?’”
These “site adaptive” characteristics represent classic J.L.S. Design work, yet Sherman also points out that, in this case, he was able to incorporate some more explicitly green elements into the home, including structurally insulated panels, closed-cell foam insulation on the outer walls, a highly efficient hydronic heating system, automated lighting, and motorized shades and windows. Sherman stresses the fact that it’s not that he’s against green technologies; they just have to serve the integrity of the overall design—not the other way around. “You can’t just do a design and then shove the products in,” he says. “It has to be appropriate to the site.”
—Joel Sherman, Principal
streets after them or flatten a site just so you can build a house,” he says. As a designer of high-end custom homes in often pristine, mountainous terrain, Sherman takes pride in adapting each project to the preexisting layout of the land and vegetation. “The worst thing you can do is to give me a flat lot,” he laughs. “What can I do with that?” Working with, rather than against, the building site involves taking into account many other variables, in addition to topography and the location of trees. What is the home’s ideal orientation and foundation? What about building materials and basic systems? Frequently, the greenest choice is not necessarily what would earn the most LEED points. Take, for example, cement board: the areas where J.L.S. Design builds are teeming with local and renewable lumber, but where wood needs to be stained every two years in the harsh mountain climates, cement can go decades with little or no maintenance. The upshot of these meticulous considerations is a design approach that understands sustainability in the broadest context possible, including each project’s effect on the client’s budget. “We pour our hearts and souls into our projects and always make sure that something is financially feasible,” Sherman says. All of these principles went into building one of Sherman’s latest homes, called the Fernwood Folly Residence. Sherman built the 3,000-square-foot home to blend in with its lush, sylvan environment, taking special care to accommodate the design to the large coniferous trees on the site and to work with the land’s existing topography. He also took advantage of the natural light breaking through the forest canopy by incorporating large windows throughout the structure, which not only naturally illuminate the living spaces but also provide near 360-degree views of the undisturbed, natural space lying just outside the front door. The home also has a custom garage door that, much to Sherman’s pride, blends in with the design so well that it almost completely masks its primary function.
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CLOCKWISE from top left: Fernwood Folly Residence’s stairwell tower and “open face” downspout. View across kitchen island to stairwell beyond. Master bedroom.
Which, in the end, perhaps aptly captures Sherman’s conception of his own role in the green movement. Designers, he believes, have a responsibility to protect the natural environment. But first and foremost, they must be designers—not green-product installers. “I think a lot of people utilize the green movement as a crutch for design,” he says. “But you always have to ask yourself as an architect, ‘Does the space enrich the soul?’” gb&d
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willing to build less
• owners can be part of the construction process through a bale-raising.
California design firm Arkin Tilt Architects pushes the architectural envelope through a frank commitment to the environment over its buildings by Suchi Rudra
using straw and earth might be one of the most ancient methods of building, but Berkeley, California-based design firm Arkin Tilt Architects (ATA) is finding that these materials also might be one of the newest ways to develop ecologically sound design. Husband and wife owners, David Arkin and Anni Tilt, pride themselves on pushing the architectural envelope, and the firm has designed about 40 straw-bale and earth projects so far. According to Arkin, straw-bale building is advantageous because: • it is the least expensive thick wall option; • it is entirely an agricultural waste product and is naturally carbon-sequestering; • it is breathable and has excellent acoustic properties; • bale walls offer both high insulation levels and thermal mass; and
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BELOW: The Hidden Villa Hostel and Summer Camp was named one of the AIA/COTE Top Ten Green Projects. It is heated with a groundsource heat pump, and volunteers helped to build the rammed-earth thermal mass wall between the dining area and kitchen. Photos: Edward Caldwell, edward-caldwell.com
However, Arkin adds that bale walls are often a bit more expensive than wood frame, due to the “wider footings and lack of familiarity by most contractors and subs.” But lower energy bills have enabled some homeowners to qualify for a higher mortgage that can help cover such costs, and one of ATA’s bale home designs sold for more than 25 percent over the asking price. Alternative materials and passive and active solar have always been important components of ATA’s work, “but the basis has always been a strong sense of design,” Tilt says. “What is appropriate? How can this be comfortable and lyrical, and, ideally, inspirational?” The design work that Tilt does now is simply “an extension of her childhood,” she says, which centered on nature and a passion for art and math. Arkin too grew up exploring nature, and by fifth grade, when he discovered the work of Frank Lloyd Wright, he knew that architecture would become his life’s pursuit. The designing duo met in graduate school at University of California–Berkeley, and three years later saw them married and working out of a cottage in their back yard.
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Arkin Tilt Architects
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“If you want to increase energy efficiency and material efficiency, it just makes sense to build, and condition, no more than is necessary.” —Anni Tilt, Principal
Achieving the most ecologically sound design possible for every project can actually place a design firm such as ATA in a tough position: sometimes the best solution is no building at all. As Tilt puts it, building sustainably means “building as little as possible, which is perhaps a little audacious, given that it is our livelihood. However, if you want to increase energy efficiency and material efficiency, it just makes sense to build, and condition, no more than is necessary.” The firm is currently working on a partially pro-bono project for Heifer International (one of their Global Learning Villages) at Hidden Villa in Los Altos Hills, California. Arkin says that it has been challenging “to navigate the regulatory climate and meet their needs efficiently and artfully,” but that he’s pleased with the direction the project’s taken: a large, round, inverted roof, open in the middle, with support structures in separate spaces beneath it. “It straddles a flood zone and mediates the public and program halves of the site,” he notes. “The actual heated space is minimal, with the gathering spaces in an open porch.” Environmentally friendly design is only one way that ATA incorporates its mission of sustainability. The couple’s home and office also reflect their belief in a simple, energy-efficient lifestyle. “We’ve always tried
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ABOVE: While neighboring homes have heating and cooling bills approaching $1,000 per month, this Eastern Sierra home utilizes passive and active solar strategies to meet 100 percent of its heating, cooling, and electrical needs, RIGHT: The obligatory truth window—in this case a salvaged buttglazed unit—reveals walls insulated with straw-bales. The wall finish is PISE, an earthcement featuring soil excavated at the site.
to live a low-impact lifestyle,” Arkin says. “We outfitted the house with a solar hot-water collector and installed photovoltaic panels and a wind generator over 10 years ago. We’ve owned a [Volkswagen] Beetle converted to electricity for about as long and more recently have been involved in a startup that distills ethanol fuel from waste wine, which we run another car on.” In addition to its obvious desire for personal eco-consciousness, the architects’ office was renovated largely with salvaged materials, is solar powered, and uses LED lighting. Add to this the fact that Arkin and Tilt, as well as most of their employees, bike to work, and it’s not surprising that such dedication to a mindful office culture hasn’t gone unnoticed. In 2000, ATA won a Sustainable Business award from Acterra, a local environmental organization, which remains the only trophy that Arkin
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Arkin Tilt Architects
keeps on his desk since it was made out of recycled materials—but also because of its significance to him: “We’re as interested in our own ecological footprint as we are in that of our clients.”
enormous opportunity to show how you can work with and enhance your place in the environment without ruining it in the process. I feel like we do this one building at a time.”
As ATA moves closer to lessening both, the firm continues to be motivated to make buildings “better in ecological terms than anyone else,” Arkin states. Already, the firm has subscribed to the goals of The 2030 Challenge; has several LEED, PassiveHaus, and net-zero projects; and is paying close attention to the toxicity of chemicals in building products (including halogenated fire-retardants, organohalogens, formaldehydes, and endocrine disruptors), as well as the embodied energy of materials and systems. Arkin hopes that ATA and similar firms can keep designing to avoid these chemicals and help to change fire codes and industry standards.
But Arkin has his sights set on a “personal Holy Grail” of design—a building completely without mechanical systems, “one so tuned to its climate and setting that at any time of day or year, it remains a comfortable living environment.” gb&d
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ATA does almost no formal advertising, so Tilt and Arkin rely on word of mouth, often give lectures on ecological design, and try to get the firm’s projects published. “Architecture has the ability to close you off from the world around you or open you up to it,” Tilt says. “I think it is an
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paying homage The design-build approach of McDonald Construction & Development / Margarido Group comes from the methods of masters like Frank Lloyd Wright
by Zipporah Porton
growing up sets us on our way, both physically and, often, professionally. So it is no surprise that Michael McDonald, who grew up in a construction family, decided to take the same path. His interest in the environment also comes from his family. However, at some point, we become responsible for ourselves and must act on the values we were taught as children. For the president and CEO of McDonald Construction & Development (MCD) / Margarido Group, taking the company in a sustainable direction was his own, personal decision.
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BELOW: The Margarido House from the outside, looking into the greatroom, through large doors and windows. Photos: Mariko Reed.
“Building sustainably just makes sense, both business sense and long-term plant sense,” McDonald says of his dedication to green principles. Since the firm’s inception, every project boasts sustainable features, and the past three major projects were certified LEED Platinum. McDonald founded MCD / Margarido Group in 1999 and committed himself and the company to being involved locally in the community. He began by concentrating one hundred percent on the transformation of Oakland, California, where his family still lives today. The firm has since evolved into an architecture/design/build firm focused on highly designed, sustainable, and collaborative projects. “We like to think we are paying homage to the old-school way of building that Walter Gropius, Frank Lloyd Wright, and others made famous by owning 100 percent of their projects,” McDonald says, “meaning they designed them and built them, including designing and building the actual furnishings.” McDonald’s interest in the environment stems from memories of helping his father dismantle old buildings
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in the Philadelphia Navy Yard, hauling the pieces up to the Pocono Mountains, and building a home almost completely from the salvaged materials. “That home still stands today, more than 30 years later,” McDonald says. “I would say that this way of building and living left a pretty strong impression on me.”
“We believe passionately in design and that having all the stakeholders around the table at an early stage is the key to success. We like to believe we are able to check ego at the door and encourage solutions and miracles from the most unlikely of team members.” —Michael McDonald, President & CEO
When starting MCD / Margarido Group, McDonald initially focused on distressed existing buildings in Oakland and strove to reshape them into modern, healthy places to live. “This focus on ‘adaptive reuse’ proved to be fun and profitable and quite sustainable,” McDonald notes. When the company began to explore new construction, McDonald continued to explore environmental practices through passive strategies, such as natural-light use and solar-awning and balcony utilization. The company was active too, by choosing urban infill sites, using nontoxic and recycled materials, and adding solar-PV and solar-thermal systems. The first project MCD / Margarido Group ever worked on was a rehab of a decrepit Oakland building more than 10 years ago. Included in it were a number of green features, and the environmentally conscious work has continued over the years. But the project that put the company on sustainability’s map was the Margarido House, Northern California’s first LEED-H Platinum custom home and only the second in the state.
LEFT and ABOVE: Floorto-ceiling glazing, an innovative balcony that doubles as a sun shade, and drought tolerant native landscaping are among the many features of the LEED Platinum Margarido House in Oakland Hills, CA.
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Completed in 2008, the Margarido House (margaridohouse.com) is the first new home in the country to be both LEED-H certified and GreenPoint rated. The home has green strategies throughout and is 55 percent more efficient than California’s Title 24 energy standard. Features of the Margarido House include: • a planted roof garden and deck; • on-site rain- and ground-water reclamation tanks; • locally sourced thermally broken doors and windows;
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McDonald Construction & Development / Margarido Group
products, and procedures. All of the materials were researched and carefully chosen to provide only the cleanest, nontoxic products without industrial waste or toxins. This goes for the green products as well, which include zero-VOC paints and finishes, FSC-certified renewable hardwoods, reclaimed Douglas fir framing, and cotton insulation made from blue jeans.
• poured concrete flooring and walls to create a thermal mass for heating and cooling; • an interior-air-quality-management system; • smart-house automation features to minimize energy use; • zero-VOC paints; and • low-water, drought-tolerant landscaping.
Though a sustainable approach keeps MCD / Margarido Group original and innovative, McDonald believes it is the firm’s admiration of design and focus on teamwork that makes the team successful. “We believe passionately in design and that having all the stakeholders around the table at an early stage is the key to success,” McDonald says. “We like to believe we are able to check ego at the door and encourage solutions and miracles from the most unlikely of team members.” gb&d
In addition to admiration of its green efforts, some have asserted that the Margarido House helped start the movement toward this older method of design/build, rather than having separate entities design, bid, and build. After Margarido House, the next step was to acquire another notch on its design belt. MCD / Margarido Group added the recently completed, award-winning, LEEDH Platinum Hillside House (thehillsidehouse.com) to its portfolio. Located in Mill Valley, California, it is the first LEED-certified custom home in Marin County. By this point, the firm has a number of sustainable residences under construction and on the horizon. The Tiburon Bay House (tiburonbayhouse.com) in Tiburon, California—completed in 2010—was conceived as a contemporary approach to sustainable living. It is located on a previously developed site, and the existing 1,500-square-foot structure was deconstructed by hand so that 95 percent of the materials could be reused or recycled, including 20,000 pounds of lumber. Sausalito-Purhaus (sausalitopurhaus.com) is also in line to be completed in 2010 and combines modern design and green features with Healthy Home building strategies,
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A MESSAGE FROM WHIRLPOOL CORPORATION Whirlpool Corporation is proud to work with outstanding companies like McDonald Construction. We, like they, are committed to working together to make a sustainable difference in our world. Whirlpool has won more Energy Star Awards (22) than any other manufacturer and is listed on the Dow Jones Sustainability, the FTSE4 Good, and the KLD index as well. To learn more about Whirlpool we have developed The Inside Advantage. More than a program, it’s a promise to provide the building professionals with: Powerful Brands, Innovative Products, Market Insight, and ABOVE: Shot at dusk, the LEED Platinum Hillside House in Mill Valley, CA, is sited on a steep infill lot.
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no building too old Together, solar panels and efficient appliances allow The LaPorte Group to turn Salt Lake City historic rehabs into ‘ultimate green buildings’ by Zach Baliva
The group received an EPA award for the Strafford Apartments, an Energy Star and solar-powered building completed in 1998. More recently, Logue’s team used LEED principles on two buildings, Smith North and Smith South. Smith North was built in the early 1900s and was renovated with solar panels, upgraded insulation, and native landscaping while keeping its historic properties. As part of Section 42, units rent to low-income families. Smith South received a similar update to LEED Silver standards.
utah skylines are truly changing. the laporte Group, a full-range design, construction, and management firm, specializes in historic preservation and urban renewal. Ben Logue, owner, has placed solar panels on every building in the company’s portfolio. While LaPorte Construction started in 1998, LaPorte Management dates back to 1992 and has embraced solar energy throughout its history. The technology, Logue says, fits historic-rehab projects despite their inherent restrictions. “Older buildings are limited by their roof space, but they are the ultimate green buildings because you keep old buildings in service by rehabbing them. It makes sense to use solar,” he explains. Because of the small roof size, Logue and his colleagues combine solar panels with electric appliances rated by Energy Star. Through the strategy, he is able to lower a unit’s energy costs by 70 percent with tenants often paying less than $15 a month in electric bills. With these projects, The LaPorte Group educates the public while reducing energy consumption. Raising awareness is critical. “Solar energy and Energy Star in our buildings allow tenants to be green too,” Logue says. Building owners and managers are appreciative because lower bills and green features help them retain tenants as mainstream acceptance of sustainable design increases.
has helped Logue’s company find initial success. The LaPorte Group has 50 full-time people in its construction crew and has doubled revenue each year. The firm completes some new construction but remains committed to historic rehabs, for which they perform seismic upgrades in addition to other standard retrofitting. “The key to historic rehabs is for us to create the ultimate green building that will last,” Logue says.
BELOW: Smith South is being built to LEED Silver standards and upon completion will serve as living space for individuals who qualify for Section 42 housing.
The LaPorte Group constantly looks for new ways to improve its properties. Logue, a European, is happy that American builders are getting excited about the industry’s sustainable side. “Historically, we create a lot of waste in the United States. There are different attitudes in different parts of the world, but it’s time to look at things more as a global community,” he says. In his neighborhood, he says, residents must burn fuel to drive cardboard to the recycling plant. But Logue and his peers are making strides by saying striving to find better ways to do things every day. He and his staff are dedicated to improving their city and state. As others around the world do the same, a movement will continue to grow. gb&d
The company, based in Salt Lake City, was the downtown area’s first installer of photovoltaic panels and still completes more solar jobs than anyone else in the state. Increasing interest in green building has pushed Logue to find other alternative building methods. His employees are certified to remove both asbestos and lead-based paint. “Sustainability can look different in many settings. We’ll keep moving in an efficient and green direction as the future dictates,” he says. “Salt Lake City has green and LEED programs and everyone is scrambling to do more. It’s going to be a learning curve for the next five years. Some builders are scared to embrace change, but we believe you have to jump right in.” Until recently, Salt Lake City owned all water from a building’s roof. Current legislation seeks to change that fact. Once it does, The LaPorte Group will be able to do more. Staying flexible to serve changing demands
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gbdmagazine.com
7/16/10 7:41 PM
spaces/residential
making every square foot count Having designed Connecticut’s first LEED Gold residence, Campaigne Kestner Architects feels at home in the trend to go smaller by Joyce Finn
according to the american institute of architects, 50 percent of architecture firms have reported that clients have started asking for smaller homes. Some of this recent demand is a reflection of the current economy—smaller homes are cheaper to buy and maintain— but they also consume less land and building materials and contribute proportionally less in air pollution and toward global warming. Ahead of this trend, Russell Campaigne and his wife and partner Mary Jo Kestner of Campaigne Kestner Architects in Guilford, Connecticut, have been building
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BELOW: Campaigne Kestner completed Connecticut’s first LEED Gold home and is currently working on two nearzero-energy homes.
smaller homes in New England for over a decade. “Our interest has always been to make homes smaller and more compact,” Campaigne says. “We design houses tightly around the needs of our clients; we build without excess rooms, square footage, or wasteful space.” Unlike the homes of past generations, these new smaller homes are now being built with a focus on environmental sustainability. Campaigne goes on to explain that everything his firm designs is sensitive toward the environmental through its reliance on green design principles. The firm was a part of the first LEED Gold house in Connecticut and is currently constructing two near-zero-energy homes. “We deliver green design in a very practical, cost-effective way,” Campaigne continues. “The sexy items of green design can be very costly, but if you’re practical and do your research and approach things in a way in which you’re redistributing resources—and use them in ways to make them better—you can add green design with almost no cost premium.” To prove it, Campaigne Kestner Architects has installed geothermal heating in almost every house it has designed
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over the past five years. With rebates and other incentives—and with the building design going well beyond code compliance—geothermal becomes more affordable than the cost of fossil fuels. “By focusing on being more practical with energy or maintenance saving, our clients are receptive,” Campaigne notes. “We deliver a cost-effective product.” This point becomes essential in sustaining the practice. Each year, the husband-and-wife team designs approximately five large-scale new residential developments, 20–25 renovations in a price range of $100,000–300,000, and one or two commercial and institutional buildings under $2 million per project, none of which would be possible if the firm’s commitment to green design wasn’t coupled with its ability to make these residential designs cost-effective. The firm is currently designing a nature center for the Connecticut Audubon on 600 acres. The Grasslands Center will be a 5,400-square-foot educational center with completion scheduled for 2011. Sixty to seventy percent of the firm’s projects are adaptive reuse; many are deep energy retrofits to older, often historic homes in urban centers: a 1905 Federal-style workman’s cottage in Guilford was recently gutted and renovated; included was a geothermal heating system. “We use a new energy-modeling tool, REM Design, that allows us to test different scenarios,” Campaigne explains. “It works well on the deep energy retrofits that we do. It allows us to bring hard data to our clients. In
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Campaigne Kestner Architects
“Our interest has always been to make homes smaller and more compact. We design houses tightly around the needs of our clients; we build without excess rooms, square footage, or wasteful space.” —Russell Campaigne, Owner
this economy where everyone is so concerned about their dollars and how to justify what’s spent, this has been an incredible tool and helps our business expand. We can prove cost savings.”
ABOVE, LEFT: Good scale, durable materials, and historic references make this home fit into it’s New England neighborhoods. ABOVE, RIGHT: Open plans use built-in furniture and ceiling accents to shape this space.
According to Campaigne, the Campaigne Kestner Architects website brings in about 25–30 percent of its business. By putting its professional priorities and portfolio online, clients are able to pre-qualify the firm and are more knowledgeable about the design process. Beyond sustainable design, the couple believes in community service. Campaigne has been a member of the Guilford Historic District for nine years and served as chairman from 2003 to 2006. Kestner is Chair of the Plan of Conservation and Development Committee and a member of the town’s Planning Committee. gb&d
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7/16/10 7:42 PM
spaces/residential
northwest contemporary Odyssey Builders’s cutting-edge style are the result of constant education and a dedication to pushing building practices into a greener future
by Scott Heskes
when matt cantrell was hired by a new client in September 2008 to build a house on the outskirts of Seattle, Washington, he went about the process as he usually does: first and foremost, educating his client, John Bell, about the benefits of sustainable building. Cantrell, owner of Seattle’s Odyssey Builder is a serious student and practitioner of building homes that are on the cutting edge of sustainable thinking. He is usually ahead of the pack when it comes to incorporating new ideas into the homes he builds. “Ten years from now,” he says “a lot of what I do will become common practice.” He prides himself on his ability not only to teach his clients but also to keep his loyal group of employees up to speed on the latest sustainable practices. “Nearly all of my employees have been here for more than 10 years. I enjoy working with all of them and encourage shared learning of on-the-job experiences.” Bell, the client, wanted his home to leave a small footprint on the five-acre property, which is surrounded by woods and a local stream. The single-story 2,600-squarefoot house—of a style that Cantrell calls northwest contemporary—incorporates natural finishes with no VOCs and natural woodwork. The final point shouldn’t be lost in a list of “pleasant extras.” According to the Forestry Commission of Scotland, “It is possible to achieve up to an 86-percent reduction in GHG emissions [in buildings] by increasing the amount of timber specified...” Bruce Lippke, PhD, a University of Washington professor who also serves as president of the Consortium for Research on Renewable Industrial Materials, also affirms Cantrell’s use of wood. “A closer look at greenhouse gases reveals wood’s unique advantages in addressing global climate change,” Lippke says. “Trees remove carbon from the air and store it in long-lived wood products. Furthermore, wood is used to generate clean energy in biomass or cogeneration facilities.” Cantrell used additional innovative features in Bell’s home. “There is no drywall,” he says. “All the walls are
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finished with plywood paneling.” The reason? Conventional drywall is made from mined natural gypsum, and although more sustainable practices have been introduced to the drywall-manufacturing process in recent years, gypsum is not a renewable resource. In a report done by the Iowa Department of Natural Resources, it is estimated that the third largest gypsum reserve in the United States—Fort Dodge, Iowa—will last only another 40 to 50 years. So exterior plywood paneling, because it does not contain any known carcinogenic formaldehyde, is well suited for indoor use. Even building guides are recommended this new method—the Sonoma County Guide to New Home Construction states, “Exterior plywood uses phenol resins that off gas much less than interior plywood. Interior plywood typically uses ureaformaldehyde glue which off gasses into the house.” Following this thinking, Cantrell utilized a half-inch, marine-grade, exterior-plywood panel for the interior walls of the Bell home. “I am pretty serious about constructing buildings that are sustainable,” Cantrell says. “It’s really important to stay educated about current construction science and technology. We don’t build the way we did 20 years ago, and 20 years from now we won’t be building like we are today. A lot of builders are traditionalists. They don’t want to do something new, and they want to stick to something that is proven to them.” Cantrell isn’t one of these builders. He continuously asserts his belief that the environmental impacts of building waste are big problems. “You can be just as wasteful with something green,” he adds, explaining that an entire mindset change is necessary to help stave off environmental disaster. Always dedicated to whatever it takes, Cantrell is committed to building in a way that doesn’t pollute the environment and isn’t wasteful of water or energy. “People are concerned about good value right now,” he says. “Part of that is getting greater efficiency out of their homes. I do believe we will be better off in the country and world if we are building in the proper way. Number one is sealing up the air leaks. After that I’d say it’s important to be insulating and looking at fixtures. Last would be windows. I always look at conservation first before alternative sources for energy.” Cantrell is encouraged by the amount of interest in the Seattle area for green building and has witnessed high turnouts for educational programs in the area. According to the Odyssey owner, the city of Seattle has positive programs that allow for an expedited permit process for green projects. “There are a lot of incentives for people who upgrade to more energy-efficient windows and add insulation,” he notes. “Solar works —even in cloudy Seattle. The quickest payback is on solar hot water, especially if you have a house full of teenage kids.” gb&d
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smooth sailing New Jersey’s Sea House Development adapts a historic boat-works building to open up new commercial and residential space—the latter of which will be the builder’s new home by Julie Schaeffer
john buzzi grew up thinking a bit differently than other people. “My father owned an engineering company, and I grew up looking at construction as systems-oriented,” he says. “I’ve always thought about building as working with all of the Earth’s natural processes— like rain, sun and wind, and materials. I have worked to develop systems that use what nature gave us instead of ignoring or wasting it.” It was—in a word that hadn’t yet so heavily infiltrated the vernacular—sustainability that Buzzi grew up thinking about. Because of this, the man became intrigued by the solar movement early in life, studying environmental science in college and writing his senior thesis on building
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ABOVE: A beachfront residence in Normandy Beach, NJ, utilizes its high-wind location for energy efficiency.
a passive-solar hot-water system that he constructed. “I was so caught up in the idea of solar,” Buzzi recalls, “when I graduated from college in 1979, I founded SunSource, an active- and passive-solar-energy company, later focusing primarily on building energy-efficient homes and remodeling. And as I became more interested in property development, Sea House Development was formed.” Today, Sea House primarily builds custom homes and does residential remodels in central and coastal New Jersey, with commercial projects and property development rounding out the company’s portfolio of work. Most of its projects, Buzzi says, have features that “are standard fare for what now has become the green movement— proper orientation on the site, energy-efficient insulation, rainwater systems, solar systems and such.” What makes Sea House’s approach unique, however, is its customized approach. The company only works on one project at a time, a tactic Buzzi prefers. “We design projects with owners and architects, then implement that design from beginning to end, working on the foundation right on up to the roof, and everything in between,” he explains. “Because we’re small, we can be very detail-oriented. Our projects are...very special homes.”
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Sea House Development
MIXED-USE BUILDING SUSTAINABLE FEATURES
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Not only will Sea House’s upcoming project house 2,240-square-feet of commercial space, it will be the home of Sea House’s founder, John Buzzi. A. Thermal mass B. Triple-glazed windows C. Rain catchment cistern D. Solar collectors E. Terrace shading F. Vegetated roof
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“I’ve always thought about building as working with all of the Earth’s natural processes—like rain, sun and wind, and materials. I have worked to develop systems that use what nature gives us instead of ignoring or wasting it.” —John Buzzi, Founder
Next up: a project that’s especially dear to Buzzi’s heart, not just because it’s the renovation of a historic structure but also because it will be his home. The project is an adaptive reuse of an existing, historically significant, wooden-boat manufacturing building into a 2,250-square-foot single-family residence and 2,250-square-foot commercial space. Though the building will have many green features, one thing it is not likely to have is LEED certification. Buzzi believes LEED is “great” and has consulted on a number of LEED projects. But, he says, “due to the small size of the project and its multi-use nature, we seem to fall between the cracks of the LEED program. The project’s innovative concepts are site- and project-specific— not necessarily program-specific. The freedom fosters outward-thinking and economy. So the building is going to be green, but it’s going to be green based on common sense, 30 years of experience, and a respect for its history.” What Buzzi calls Sea House’s most important project broke ground in July 2010. The adaptive reuse of the
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Hankins Boat Works Building in the seaside town of Lavallette, New Jersey, will consist of 4,500 square feet. “It’s really quite a meaningful building to the town,” says Buzzi, who designed the building with John Amelchenko, LEED AP, with Aquatecture in Point Pleasant Beach, New Jersey. “We’re taking an old boat-works building and transforming it into a whole sustainable living system as opposed to the bulldoze-and-build mentality of the area.” One feature of the house is a vegetative green-roof system combined with raised planting beds for vegetable and flower production, both designed to insulate the roof and assist in the home’s storm-water-management plan. The building’s roof also features reflective roofing products for cooling. “Most green roofing systems are designed for large commercial projects, but GAF has a green roofing system that can be geared toward smaller projects,” Buzzi says. “They also warranty the entire system, from roofing materials to plantings, which is a new approach.” True to Buzzi’s expertise, the building uses passivesolar gain. “We minimized the number of windows on the north side of the building to limit heat loss and maximized southern exposure, and we then control the amount of sunlight that comes into the building with six overhangs designed to provide shading in summer yet let in sunlight in winter,” says Buzzi. “And radiant floors insulated with a thermal mass will store energy during day in winter and release it at night.” Other features include a 1,600-gallon water tank that collects rainwater for irrigation, flushing toilets, and other non-potable uses; heavy insulation with soy-based foam; energy-efficient windows; LED lighting; and reuse of salvaged materials. gb&d
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7/16/10 11:01 PM
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introspective design Greenmore Homes, LLC’s in-depth understanding of the inner city leads to a simple, successful transformation in Little Rock, Arkansas by Daniel Casciato
scott reed believes that it’s the ideal time to rebuild inner cities. The managing director of Reed Realty Advisors says that for many developers, the outskirts of the city limits and the suburbs are more profitable during boom times. But when the economy pulls back, this is when people need to redirect internally to the urban cores at the center of all our cities and rebuild. “This is the time that city leaders and developers who are scratching their heads, figuring out what to do, should look at the cores of their cities where they are traditionally neglected and get down to it,” Reed says. “Don’t
get caught up in thinking that it can’t be done because it hasn’t been done. We’re doing it here in Little Rock, [Arkansas].” In 2008, Reed moved to Little Rock from the West Coast to help found Greenmore Homes, LLC. While his consulting and development firm was performing well, Reed and his associates began thinking about its plans for the future. After conducting several market studies and looking at its future developments, they sought to position themselves for smaller-scale building projects instead of the multi-million dollar San Francisco Bay Area homes and residential projects it had been accustomed to doing. “After some soul searching and due diligence, we came up with a plan that would allow us to pursue our passion of developing a workforce green home—a green home that the average working person could afford to live in,” Reed explains. The team examined 187 metro areas throughout the United States, focusing mainly on the demographics of employment, income, population, and economic growth. It looked at the top 25 markets and then had to decide who had the real estate to support its plan. “While many Southern cities kept popping up, Little Rock was always at the top of the list,” he says. After establishing Greenmore Homes, Reed wanted to establish three concept houses to make a name for the firm in the city. He picked three of the worst houses that he could find in the toughest part of town and built three Energy Star Homes out of their old shells. The homes have Energy Star windows, recycled-content insulation, highly efficient heat pumps, no-VOC paint, low-flow water fixtures, rapidly renewable bamboo flooring, and locally produced materials. The first day the houses became available, they had multiple offers on them.
LEFT: Before and after exterior views of a Greenmore concept house.
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Greenmore Homes, LLC
“We’re transforming deteriorating neighborhoods in a major way and in a relatively short period of time. The ability to come in here and re-do these houses is going to be a great thing, and to do it in a green context is even better.” —Mayor Mark Stodola, Little Rock, Arkansas
Mayor Mark Stodola, who campaigned for office in 2007 and dialogued extensively about neighborhood rehabilitation, applauded Reed’s efforts. “Scott went into some of more distressed neighborhoods and acquired properties that were condemned or were going to be torn down,” the mayor says. “He took these properties and brought them back to life.” Reed is now ramping up to do two larger, more ambitious projects: a 30-unit short-sale-and-foreclosure residential development (designed to Energy Star standards) and a 32-unit downtown loft apartment project in an old office building, which will be LEED certified. “In this economy and in the next three years or so, I think that spec building and building for upper-middle class—like we saw over the last five years—will be a difficult market,” Reed says. “I think there will not be many buyers. There’s always a market for what we call the bottom rung of the homebuyers ladder. They are just buying their first home.”
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The 30-unit project kick-off occurred in late spring 2010 and is expected to be completed in 14 months. The project was part of the Neighborhood Stabilization Program Grants, and of the 30 homes, 17 will be brand new homes and 13 will be renovations. “We’ll be doing mainly panel building in the 17 [new] homes,” Reed explains. “We’re building the panels offsite and bringing it onsite. A lot of the design has to be standardized— but we hired historic architects to design these homes so they fit into the neighborhoods. These are not cheap boxes; these are well designed homes, craftsmen, and colonial designs to match the neighborhoods they are going into.” Mayor Stodola is excited about the project. “We’re transforming deteriorating neighborhoods in a major way and in a relatively short period of time,” he says. “The ability to come in here and re-do these houses is going to be a great thing, and to do it in a green context is even better.”
ABOVE: Before and after views of the kitchen in the Greenmore concept home.
For Greenmore Homes, Little Rock is a test kitchen. Where it hopes to be in three to five years is leveraging central Arkansas’ excellent infrastructure with its timber resources, relatively low cost wages, and skilled workforce to build homes in other working-class urban areas. “We hope to be able to sell these homes off flatbeds to get reassembled elsewhere,” Reed says. “We see that as the future of affordable green housing—being able to export our homes to other parts of the country.” gb&d
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erson.com
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318 West Second Street ( Suite # 2) | Boston, MA 02127 T: 617.268.1122 | F: 617.268.1139 | www.light-insightdesign.com
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spaces/residential
sustaining new england Drawing on decades of smart design, residential firm Catalano Architects’ pioneers new wastereduction and building-envelope methods by Jennifer Hogeland
dispelling the misconception that sustainable buildings have a particular look, Catalano Architects prides itself on incorporating sustainable features while being sensitive to the structure’s surroundings—an appealing offer for old neighborhoods along the East Coast. After spending seven years with prestigious architecture firms such as Robert A.M. Stern Architects in New York and Gund Partnership in Boston, Thomas Catalano founded his own firm in the latter city in 1987. Though Catalano Architects is known throughout New England and New York state for high-end custom homes, it also designs smaller industrial projects. Approximately 75 percent of the firm’s workload is singlefamily projects, although each job varies in scale and
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ABOVE: This New England home is set into the hillside, minimizing the disruption of the site and reducing the exposure of the garage wing.
complexity. “Our firm has evolved over the last 23 years,” Tom Catalano says. “We’ve figured out how to make buildings that work well for our clients, last a long time, and don’t cost too much to build.” Green structures have become more fashionable in recent years, and yet Catalano has been incorporating sustainable elements into his designs for more than two decades. “We’ve always tried to take care in designing our buildings so they work with the local environment, respect the context in which they are set, and...work with nature, not against it,” he says. Seen as a hallmark of sustainable building, Catalano Architects designs structures meant to stand the test of time. As building products and systems continue to improve, allowing the firm to be able to design structures to be more energy efficient, the firm has been using advanced framing techniques to build super insulated homes with elaborate building envelopes over the past eight years. These tight structures significantly lower operating costs while considering the importance of indoor environmental quality. Catalano Architects has also adopted simple solutions to reduce waste, making a noticeable impact on job sites and within their buildings. Wood parts are
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Catalano Architects
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“We recently designed a nearly 4,000-square-foot house where all the waste fit into one dumpster.” —Tom Catalano, Founder & President
designed in common multiples of two—four or eight feet—which greatly reduces plywood waste, and the firm often uses engineered lumber precut to length. “Because we are using engineered wood, we will actually use less of it because it is stronger than traditional wood,” Catalano explains, adding a notable achievement in his sustainability efforts: “We recently designed a nearly 4,000-square-foot house where all the waste fit into one dumpster.” The assumption that demand for green design will continue to grow inspired Catalano to pursue a LEED AP designation. “I felt our clients would value the expertise,” Catalano says. “We also wanted a head start on the things introduced by the US Green Building Council and to understand changes as they are incorporated into Massachusetts’ building code.” This LEED knowledge has been extensively incorporated into recent new building design and structure renovations. One such renovation, an area boarding school, would have qualified for LEED, had formal certification been pursued. In Boston, where open land is a rarity, renovations are an architect’s challenge, but this project was unique in its delicacy: built in 1883, the Hundred House had never undergone a major renovation. Catalano Architects’ redesign included a geothermal heating-andcooling system and installation of new windows and insulation. The firm’s growing green-knowledge base will also help inform the new multi-theatre complex it is designing in Nantucket, Massachusetts. The sustainable attributes will be seamlessly incorporated into the performance and functional space, which is targeting LEED Gold certification. The design of Catalano’s personal residence in Hyannis, Massachusetts, is also on track for LEED Gold. The home has an efficient envelope with nearly double the code’s minimum insulation values on the walls and roof and utilizes a combination of active and passive solar: a 4.2-kilowatt photovoltaic array on the roof allows the house to claim ground in near-neutral territory. The home’s series of three solar-water collectors are part of its design, providing domestic hot water in
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TOP, RIGHT: A covered walkway connects the home’s two buildings while allowing for increased ventilation. BOTTOM: The master closets are kept in a negative air pressure. The metal grillwork on the doors increases the flow of air and allows the exhausting of any off-gassing from cleaning fluids and detergent on the clothes stored within the closets.
the summer and heat in the winter. “Because it is a seasonal house, the domestic water level, which is pretty low, will provide about 65 percent of the hydronic heat requirements of the building,” Catalano says, noting the unique value of this project. “We are trying different things, using it sort of as a test lab.” Environmental consciousness carries over to every day business at Catalano Architects—recycling is part of office life, and an alternative gas diesel car is taken to job sites. Its clients, too, are becoming ever more aware. Catalano sees this trend growing, and he intends to be equipped with the knowledge and prepared to lead the charge with designs that leave a smaller ecological footprint. gb&d
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C.J.
RILEY BUILDER, Inc.
www.cjriley.com
GENERAL CONTRACTOR • REMODELING • PROPERTY MANAGEMENT 94 NOV 2010 gbdmagazine.com gb&d_4_NOV10.indd 94 cjriley_1.indd 1
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PROJECT SPOTLIGHT
business class development a massachusetts commercial development —175–185 Wyman Street, composed of two Class-A office buildings— was recently certified LEED Gold. Owned and operated by Hobbs Brook Management, the architectural team of Margulies Perruzzi Architects and John G. Crowe Associates, Inc. designed for the complex a cutting-edge storm-water-management system, in which water is treated in a landscaped pond and used for irrigation. Through orientation and solar shading, the design minimizes heat gain while maximizing light, and of the previous building, 90 percent of the material was salvaged and reused or recycled. Through these efforts, all supplied credits were accepted by the USGBC—including all five Innovation in Design points—marking a perfect Gold score. Photos: Warren Patterson Photography.
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three generations and counting
in particular has contributed strongly to HarenLaughlin’s healthy growth rate (10–20 percent) over the last five years.
In business for 78 years, HarenLaughlin Construction is banking on a future as rich as its past by Chris Allsop
History has come full circle in the sense that last year’s recession was the backdrop for yet another company milestone—again, involving banks and renovations. This time around, HarenLaughlin was contracted by Missouri Bank (Mobank) to develop a facility in the downtown Kansas City Crossroads District. The architect, Helix Architecture + Design, was brought on board, and an old auto shop selected as the site to be transformed into an environmentally friendly banking center.
hard times are a defining characteristic for Kansas City-based HarenLaughlin Construction. The company was founded in 1932, during the Great Depression. C.W. Haren, Sr. (known as “Pappy”) started his construction career renovating bank-owned properties. Seventy-eight years later, HarenLaughlin is in its third generation as a family-run, employee-owned business, pulling in $35–45 million in annual sales. Specializing in the construction and development of commercial and industrial projects, Danny Wastler, HarenLaughlin’s director of business development and marketing, explains that the main growth areas for the contractor are multi-family, data-center and technology, renovation, and senior-living projects. The last market
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“While our primary focus is on these four areas,” Wastler says, “we do get invited to work on a wide variety of projects, from churches to fire stations. Word of mouth brings in a lot of work for us—over 80 percent of our business today is from existing relationships.”
ABOVE: HarenLaughlin completed a major structural overhaul of a dilapidated mechanics garage, turning it into the Missouri Bank Crossroads District in Kansas City, MO.
“Mobank were interested in the concept of LEED certification from the start,” explains project manager Dan Maximuk. “This was something of a learning process for everyone involved—it was HarenLaughlin’s and my first project geared toward LEED certification, and that goes for the architect and Missouri Bank as well.”
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HarenLaughlin Construction
During the initial phases, there was talk about demolishing the decrepit brick building in the interests of cost effectiveness, but the bank president, Grant Burcham, was adamant about sustaining the feel of the neighborhood and maintained that a renovation was the correct path to take. It was clear, however, that the condition of the building would present the greatest challenge to the team. “Every phase presented another hurdle,” Maximuk recalls. “Nobody knew what the condition of the building was going to be. Once we got into the roofing, looked at the load bearing walls and the façade, it became clear that basically every part and piece of the building needed attention.”
“Every phase [of the Missouri Bank project] presented another hurdle. Nobody knew what the condition of the building was going to be. Once we got into the roofing...it became clear that basically every part and piece of the building needed attention.” —Dan Maximuk, Project Manager This Herculean renovation was finished on time and on budget, and HarenLaughlin coincided the opening of the bank with First Friday in March of last year, a local cultural event where galleries, studios, restaurants, and businesses throw open their doors to all comers. Mobank had artwork on the walls and a local band in situ for the unveiling.
HarenLaughlin began work on the 7,500-square-foot site (comprising two adjacent buildings) by stripping the paint off of the exterior. Tuckpointing on 100 percent of the masonry joints was required, as was the replacement of damaged and failing bricks throughout both the interior and exterior. The roof was replaced in its entirety, with structural wood joists and a green-grid roofing system added for installation of a rooftop garden, and raised insulation values were necessary to meet LEED standards. None of the interior slabs were level—these had to be removed and refurbished while micropiles were added to the existing foundations for underpinning. All that remained were the old roof joists and the exterior loadbearing wall; everything else was either supplemented or new, including floors made from reclaimed pine and door frames made from reclaimed cypress—salvaged from an old barn and Speas Vinegar Plant storage tanks, respectively.
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LEFT: Interior space of the LEED Gold-certifiedKansas City bank. RIGHT: Sustainable design and construction practices were used at every opportunity with the design of the bank, including the use of a green roof, shown here.
HarenLaughlin’s Mobank project received LEED Gold certification, but the company hasn’t rested on its laurels—the contractor has since completed a fire station to LEED guidelines and is already hard at work on another Mobank building, this time in the Brookside neighborhood of Kansas City. Looking back at the project, Wastler says, “In every project there is going to be an issue, and it’s all about how professionally you can resolve that issue. Mobank was an important notch on our belt, and being able to say that we’ve completed a LEED Gold-certified project is really opening doors for us.” gb&d
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An extensive resume of projects, varied in scale and detail, has helped shape our company and our culture, making HarenLaughlin the very best choice when selecting a contractor for your venture. We’re passionate about helping people work better, smarter and more efficiently. Whether you design spaces, manage spaces or work in them, our goal is to make your job easier…to help you…Love how you work
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Corporate Healthcare Laboratory Education Visit Dancker.com or call 908-231-1600
BUILD ON OUR STRENGTH COUNT ON OUR COMMITMENT SINCE 1987 • leed certification
Congratulations to
• sustainable design
Cerminara Architect
• healthcare / human services • hospitality & recreation
We’re proud to have worked
• multi-family / residential
with you over the years and
• commercial / retail
wish you cotinued success in
• tenant improvements
your future endeavors.
For more information, please visit our website at www.jgpetrucci.com or contact one of our office locations.
• auto dealerships • corporate offices • food processing • light manufacturing • warehouse
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Find out more at
www.jgpetrucci.com
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true team efforts
and commitment to quality has cultivated a growing list of satisfied clients who return with repeat business time and again.
Cerminara Architect brings its projects from concept to completion through philosophy, physicality, and synergy
Most projects by Cerminara Architect focus in and around New Jersey and the Lehigh Valley / Eastern Pennsylvania region, although its work has extended as far north as Massachusetts and as far south as Texas.
by Jennifer Hogeland
Though sustainable design has long been a part of the firm’s focus, Cerminara Architect was first introduced to LEED certification eight years ago, when the industry— and the country as a whole—became focused on building green. Recognizing that LEED would dramatically influence the future of design, more than half of Cerminara Architect’s employees have earned their LEED AP certification.
cerminara architect is a bit of an underdog story. It was founded in 1990 during a tough economy, but with persistence, thoughtful marketing, and a commitment to excellence, the company flourished and established itself as a respected leader in the field. It’s now established itself as a practice with its primary focus on commercial design, but the firm also boasts a broad portfolio including work for healthcare, banquet and hospitality, warehouse, automobile dealerships, fitness and sports, and large-scale residential sectors. It also has expertise in conservation and historic restoration. Philosophy Listen, Learn, Retain, Apply. Carmine Cerminara, founder and principal of Cerminara Architect, built these principles into the foundation of his business. He says, “We listen to what our clients have to say. We learn and retain what we’ve learned in the past, and apply that knowledge to our current projects.” This four-part philosophy has served the firm well. The team’s practical approach
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ABOVE: The Team Capital Bank in Flemington, NJ, was designed for LEED certification and serves as a model for future branches.
Physicality Two years ago, Cerminara Architect began the initial design of its first LEED project, Team Capital Bank. The firm had previously designed several buildings for the client, but the Flemington, New Jersey, branch was the first to pursue certification. The existing structure and its location made it a natural fit for the USGBC’s rating system. “We were reusing the existing building’s footprint, site fixtures from the previous tenant, and other existing site improvements while reducing lot coverage. We replaced several parking spaces with indigenous landscaping that only relies on natural irrigation,”
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Cerminara Architect
“We listen to what our clients have to say. We learn and retain what we’ve learned in the past, and apply that knowledge to our current projects.” —Carmine Cerminara, Founder & Principal
explains Vera Bacwyn-Holowinsky, an associate and consultant. Cerminara Architect explored energy use, material selection, and natural lighting when designing the bank branch. “We made sure that we evaluated all the possibilities of obtaining LEED points in addition to being energy efficient,” Bacwyn-Holowinsky continues. “We looked at the aspects that would benefit the client the most in terms of their comfort and the feel of the space.” Pleased with the look and lower energy bills, Team Capital Bank is considering a similar design for future branches. Cerminara Architect recently designed St. Luke’s Riverside Hospital, another project pursuing LEED certification. The hospital is an out-of-the-ground structure set on 600 acres in The Lehigh Valley. “The hospital is focused on reducing energy and water consumption and the use of sustainable materials to create a comfortable, environmentally conscious interior,” Cerminara says. “The mechanical systems meet or exceed LEED compliance in terms of integration, control, and separation.” The Imperia banquet facility in Somerset, New Jersey, took a different path to modernize their structure. Though the architects employed green-design practices—making systems more energy efficient and recycling historic pieces found on site—they didn’t apply LEED formulas to the project but rather blazed their own trail.
Each project seems to get more and more unique. The Healthquest Sports Dome allowed Cerminara Architect to take the concept and design a foundation to support the pneumatic structure that reaches 110 feet at the center of the dome. The flexible structure is used as a sports and training facility from late fall to early spring and then is collapsed and rolled up for storage six months out of the year. Synergy Cerminara estimates that 90 percent of the firm’s work is through a design/build process, where clients use preferred contractors and construction managers. “What we’ve done is learn how to work with the contractors so we are able to tailor our drawings and specify our materials based on what the client wants and desires while working within their budgets,” he says. “We’ve been very successful with that.” Through it all, Cerminara Architect pushes for sustainable structures. “We share the benefits of going green with our clients,” Bacwyn-Holowinsky says. “There is little resistance now. Clients understand the benefits of doing so and want to do their part.” As products continue to develop and the LEED-certification process evolves, Cerminara suspects many of the sustainable design practices will become part of building codes. “At some point,” he says, “everyone will be designing energy-efficient, code-compliant, sustainable buildings.” gb&d
A MESSAGE FROM J.G. PETRUCCI CO., INC. Founded in 1987, J.G. Petrucci Co., Inc. (JGPCO) specializes in the design-build, development, redevelopment, and ownership of commercial real estate, principally in New Jersey and Pennsylvania. With a portfolio comprising industrial, office, healthcare,
Another New Jersey project, The Palace at Somerset Park, was designed in a classic Palladian architectural style. With three main entry ports, Cerminara Architect followed the client’s wishes to give it a sense of place and a sense of arrival. Each entry has its own unique identity. Sustainable features weren’t forgotten. The building and parking were placed following the natural grading of the site, creating a park-like setting. “We were very conscious of the materials used on the outside and inside of the building,” Cerminara says. He heavily insulated the building using an exterior-insulating finishing system. Energy-efficient, insulated-glass windows were installed. “All materials were above the standards, [and] the finishes became more natural and grand,” he adds.
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multi-family, retail, and other properties, JGPCO is uniquely positioned to meet the needs of its clients and partners through shifting markets. We are proud to have partnered with Cerminara Architect on numerous projects and look forward to working with them for many years to come.
A MESSAGE FROM DANCKER, SELLEW & DOUGLAS Dancker, Sellew & Douglas (DS&D) creates great experiences wherever work happens. Whether you design, manage, or work in them, DS&D can help you create harder working workspaces. Offering the broadest range of furniture and interior architecture products for corporate office, healthcare, education, and Laboratory applications—and valuable services including space planning and installation. Visit dancker.com.
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Cerminara Architect is a multi-disciplined firm providing architectural, planning, and interior design services. From design to construction, we maintain an active role in all phases of project development. Our services include:
programming space utilization studies building code analysis zoning analysis municipal approvals
master planning site selection contract documentation construction administration interior design
224 Courtyard Drive, Hillsborough, NJ 08844 | Phone: 908-685-7700 | www.cerminaraarchitect.com
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making end user plural CJW Architecture takes a holistic design approach to the sanctity of a building’s life, encouraging long life cycles so that the structure is useful long after its current inhabitant
Each CJW Architects project utilizes green design principles, which has been a trademark of the company from the beginning. This involves using passive-solar design principles, designing buildings with limited grading, taking advantage of existing drainage courses, reducing the on-site need for transported water, and maximizing the utility of each project over time.
by Sarah Lozanova
in a global world, it is unique to find an architecture firm that primarily serves clients within a 10 to 15 minute drive from its office, which sits roughly 40 miles south of San Francisco. CJW Architecture specializes in projects close to home and difficult in nature, including fire stations, high-end residences, civic buildings, and wineries. Challenging projects are plentiful due to the geologic characteristics of the area. “We are experts with the existing geology,” says Carter Warr, founder and principal of CJW Architecture. “There are many micro-geologic constraints because of our proximity to the San Andreas Fault and different geologic formations.” This requires the firm to seamlessly accommodate for steep slopes to maximize views and solar exposure while minimizing the ecological impact. CJW Architects excels under such pressure and had the opportunity to shine on a recent project.
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The Ladera Oaks Swim and Tennis Club in the Portolla Valley foothills is located on an extremely narrow property, a mere 200 feet at the widest point. It borders a major road on one side and has a long creek frontage on another. The result of the CJW Architects’ work is a seamless and intuitive design that includes two pools, a hot tub, six tennis courts, a shop, a lounge, and a scenic garden that can accommodate hundreds of guests.
BELOW: For Spring Ridge Winery, simple board-formed, curving concrete walls and roofs nestle the building comfortably into the site. Photo: Mark Luthringer.
“We think it is an architectural crime to have a building torn down just because it is leaking or has outlived its useful life,” Warr says. “We see the useful life of a building as being many times more than the typical 30 or 40 years. Designs and buildings are always going to outlive the current use and for sure the current set of users. Thinking of [building] use beyond our current client is something that even our clients appreciate, because it makes the property more valuable to the next user.” Dedication to resource conservation and preservation are also common values where CJW Architecture operates.
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“We think it is an architectural crime to have a building torn down just because it is leaking or has outlived its useful life. Thinking of [building] use beyond our current client is something that even our clients appreciate, because it makes the property more valuable to the next user.” —Carter Warr, Founder & Principal
“Nearly all the communities where we work have design reviews because the communities care a lot from an aesthetic, ecological, and drainage point of view,” Warr continues. “For decades, the communities where we work have been concerned about native plants, wildlife corridors, and the preservation of open space. One of our strategic advantages is that we know a lot about these issues, and we care a lot about them.” Such values are evident in the Portolla Valley School District’s plan to install two solar systems, totaling 280 kilowatts of generating capacity and satisfying 70 to 85 percent of the electricity needs of the district. With a majority of the power in the community produced from natural gas, this move would significantly reduce its dependence on fossil fuels. CJW Architects is designing the two solar systems, an ability that is somewhat rare for an architecture firm. In fact, all new construction projects that CJW Architects designs cater to the generation of solar electricity. “Every project is designed to have the opportunity for significant photovoltaic-panel installation,” Warr says. “We do that as part of the conceptual design, not something that is added on as an appendage.” This involves being diligent about the building orientation, angle of the roof, and providing ample surface area.
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LEFT: Interior view of Spring Ridge Winery. RIGHT: Woodside Elementary School’s design coalesces around the community’s strong context of historic buildings and ancient oaks. Photo: Rafael Hernandez.
The increased use of photovoltaic panels is a natural progression for Warr, who was inspired to become a green architect after seeing the effects of the oil crisis in the 1970s. He saw the field as an opportunity to reduce dependence on precious resources, while maximizing the utility a space can provide. He was especially inspired by farmers, who demonstrated a mastery of many green-design principles because it was practical. “A farmer would always place his buildings in a way that took advantage of the sun, natural winds, shade, and drainage, so that they needed to do less to alter the environment,” Warr says. “That’s what we’ve been doing for decades in advance of the trend for sustainable design. We really take advantage of what the site gives us.” Warr is not unique in his desire to use the built environment as a means to leave a positive mark; he says it is common within the profession. “Most architects come to architecture not because of the economic rewards but because we feel the world is a better place because we were here.” gb&d
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equal footing for ‘green’ and ‘business’ Green Construction US, a company known for its ‘big-box’ work gets a green makeover, a new name, and high-profile clients who appreciate its new focus by Thalia Aurinko-Mostow
sean pfent knows big business. he is the director of Green Construction US, formerly know as Greg Construction Company, and he’s most likely responsible for at least one of the large retail stores you shop at. Green Construction US’s client list includes Office Depot, Home Depot, Kmart, Aldo Shoes, Marshalls, Linens and Things, Sears, and many others. Since 1969, Green Construction US has evolved from a small general-contracting firm to a national endeavor with 50 full-time employees and offices in Michigan, Florida, Oregon, and Puerto Rico. Its clients have been loyal; every chain store has design criteria that allows for only minor modifications from location to location. “A large percentage of our projects are chain-wide rollout programs,” Pfent says. “They range from restroom upgrades to full store renovations to new store prototypes.
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ABOVE: This white TPO roof and prismatic skylight package provide a sustainable construction design that pays back dividends for the retailer. The roof lowers the heat island effect, while the skylights provide a cost-effective way to reduce the store’s energy consumption.
We train our project managers and supervisors to consistently interpret our clients’ design criteria, scope of work, plans, specification and most importantly schedule of completion. This allows us to build a project on time and budget with a high level of quality control. We do this from coast to coast.” And though it specializes in commercial and retail work, Green Construction US has also found itself fortunate to have a large amount of government contracting work, something that has kept them growing despite the turbulent economic climate. Environmental responsibility has always been important to Pfent—whose idea it had been to rebrand the company in 2009 and focus more on sustainable building—but he also believes that it ultimately has to make sense financially and logically for the business. “I put equal emphasis on both words ‘green’ and ‘business.’ I believe that it is important to make green building something good for a business, not just for the PR or the environment, but good for the bottom line,” he explains. “A single Gold or Platinum LEED project can be cost prohibitive to many companies. It can sour them toward going green. We as an industry need to help them find green projects with payback.” To make sure it is doing its part, Green Construction US has partnered with TgX Solutions to create what they’re calling a “Green Way to Cool” program. TgX Solutions is an Energy Star Partner, with a scientifically formulated, one-time additive developed to dramatically decrease
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energy costs while extending the life of cooling and refrigeration systems. There are documented case studies that show a 15–45-percent decrease in electrical-energy consumption required for cooling. It is currently being tested in several major retailers and restaurant chains.
“I believe that it is important to make green building something good for a business, not just for the PR or the environment, but good for the bottom line.”
Green Construction US has also taken its new passion for all things green to some of the company’s oldest and most loyal relationships. For recent work on a Puerto Rico Office Depot, Green Construction US added 40 skylights, retrofitted the entire lighting package with new bulbs and ballast, installed new daylight harvest sensors, reprogrammed the energy-management system, added sensor switches instead of conventional switches, and converted to all water-reducing plumbing fixtures in the restrooms.
—Sean Pfent, Director
Curtis Barnes, senior manager of design and construction for Office Depot, has no trouble seeing the benefits of working with a construction company that looks out for the environment. “From our experience building more environmentally sustainable buildings across the US and Puerto Rico,” he says, “we have learned that the speed at which building initiatives can be evaluated and implemented is incredibly faster when partners, including the landlords, vendors, contractors, and government officials, are interested in, understand, and recognize
the benefits of sustainable construction for all parties involved. With the level of cooperation and information received from our critical partners, including Green Construction US, building greener facilities will help us continue to lower costs overall and create additional opportunities to reduce our impact on the environment.” Since 2005, Office Depot has been integrating green initiatives, including energy-management systems and T5 energy-efficient lighting, into all of its retail stores. In 2008, it became the first retailer to have a LEED-certified prototype; the store, located in Austin, Texas, received Gold certification from the USGBC. As for the future of Green Construction US, Pfent and his team plan on more success with their long-term clients, bright developments with new ones, an ability to create more jobs, and a hope to continue to build on their 40year legacy. gb&d
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At Green Construction US, our clients see immediate business benefits with significant reductions in operating costs while enhancing building value and return on investment.
Green Construction US has provided general contracting services for Nation Retailers & Government agencies since 1969. Our project managers are specially trained in recognizing and implementing green technologies and sustainable construction services that are ideal for all of our clients, including but not limited to: • energy efficiency design review (electrical. plumbing & hvac) • daylight harvesting
Teamwork. Open & Effective Communication. Commitment to only the Highest Quality of Workmanship. Strict Safety Standards. Cost-effective, Timely Completion of Each & Every Project. Since our humble beginning In 1969, Greg Construction Co. has evolved from a small general contracting flrm to a national endeavor with offlces in
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Michigan, Florida, Oregon, and Puerto Rico. From
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these strategic locations we manage store fixturing,
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retail, general and government contracting services from coast-to-coast and abroad. Our construction capabilities range from interior renovation to ground-up construction, and every important step in-between, including: construction management, tenant improvements, selective demolition, site development, building expansions, multi-store rollout packages and tumkey design/build services. For more information, visit our website or give us a call today.
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when it’s true, it’s not propaganda At GCCM Construction Services, LLC, the acronym has become a synonym for sustainable best practices and a readiness to spread the green word by Jennifer Kirkland
“construction is our passion—we enjoy our work like it’s a hobby,” says Sy Safi, manager for GCCM Construction Services, LLC, a general contractor based in Union, Kentucky, known for its enthusiastic promotion of sustainable practices. “It isn’t something we do for a paycheck,” Safi adds. “It’s fun to us.” To Safi, as well as the entire 12-member staff of GCCM (which stands for General Contracting and Construction Management), the most gratifying aspect of completing a construction project is seeing the client use the building the way it was intended. “We like to be involved very early in the project,” Safi says, “to have input on the design decisions with the client and the architect sitting at the table.” A Tough Sell That early involvement doesn’t always happen, but Safi stresses to the client the long-term benefits of sustainable practices and materials. “Green is something we’ve come to naturally,” he says, “but it’s sometimes tough to sell because of the extra initial costs.” Safi also understands the generally conservative nature of the construction business. “We’re up against the conventional wisdom of sticking with something tried and true rather than trying something that’s relatively new. Many of our clients have been doing things successfully a certain way for a long time, so it’s hard to get them to accept anything different.” The Independence Urgent Care office building in Independence, Kentucky, is a case in point. GCCM joined Wally Construction on the project after a conventional design had been approved. Safi saw many ways to make the project more sustainable, even though the clients rejected going for full LEED certification; one of the most significant and practical improvements on the design was the use of ICFs for the exterior walls. ICFs have been around for more than 20 years, but their use has only begun taking off in the past five years. Indeed, almost all new school construction in Kentucky uses ICFs. But Safi had to convince the Independence
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client by explaining the product’s many benefits and presenting testimonials and data about the energy savings made possible by ICFs. The sales pitch worked.
ABOVE: What was home to Cincinnati, OH’s Hudepohl Brewing Company since 1885 will soon be a green development of offices, retail space, and condos. GCCM is working with Hudepohl Square, LLC and P. Gerald Foote & Associates and KBA, Inc. Architects on the 150,000-square-foot brownfield site.
“The client moved in in January and was pleasantly surprised to find that month’s heating bill was less than a third of his usual bill,” Safi explains. “Now the client tells everybody, and we’re building another four offices for him.” Measuring Sustainable Success GCCM worked similar wonders at the Westport Community Center in Louisville, Kentucky, where Safi and the designer convinced the client to switch from a black rubber roofing system to a white rubber flat roof, which alone reduced the client’s summer cooling bill by at least 30 percent. They also implemented a thermal
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GCCM Construction Services, LLC
“We’re up against the conventional wisdom of sticking with something tried and true rather than trying something that’s relatively new.” —Sy Safi, Manager
chimney design for natural cooling as an alternative for the 70 tons of cool air used for the large assembly space.
THE BENEFITS OF ICF • With an R-value of 22, combined with thermal-mass and air-tightness considerations, it performs 3 to 4 times higher than conventional wood, concrete, or brick walls • Three times stronger than conventional walls • Proven to be more resistant to wind damage by withstanding upwards of 220 mph winds, Miami Dade approved • Will not support mold growth; better indoor air quality • Made with flame-retardant material • 5-in-1 assembly: structural wall, furring, insulation, moisture barrier, and vapor retarder • Significant contributor to points within LEED v3
The firm advocates many other sustainable practices— many of them simple and practical—including getting architects to use design lengths that are standard sizes of building materials, which can save 15–25 percent in construction waste; using local building materials; recycling all construction materials; and reusing or repurposing demolished materials. GCCM can tackle large urban jobs as well, such as the 150,000-square-foot Hudepohl Brewery redevelopment in Cincinnati, Ohio, a mixed-use project for which GCCM is repurposing demolished materials into new construction and design. Safi sees such brownfield projects as an important link in reclaiming urban sustainability. “I’m very excited about this green project for many reasons,” he says. “The adaptive reuse helps land conservation, reduces urban sprawl, and reduces use of natural resources and new building materials.” GCCM’s diverse projects push the innovative vision of its staff. Pedigree and Portfolio “We do whatever we can to help anyone we can,” Safi says, and that includes providing significant discounts for non-profits. That spirit comes from GCCM’s pedigree as a sister company to Wally Construction, a firm started by Safi’s late father in the 1970s where his brother is now the vice president. Most of GCCM’s clients are repeat customers or were referred by previous clients, but Safi hopes to see GCCM grow with its clients and expand to other regions and countries. Meanwhile, Safi is excited to be working on the first LEED Platinum custom home in the state of Kentucky. He is confident that GCCM’s diverse portfolio of services will continue to spread the benefits of sustainable design. With such a passionate vision, GCCM’s future looks promising. gb&d
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Specializing in Residential, Multi-Family, Religious, Educational, Office, Medical Office, Restaurants and Night Clubs We did green before green was fashionable. P. Gerald Foote and Associates has been innovating for over 35 years of sustainable designs for his many unique projects in three continents around the world. With work ranging from custom residential, multi-family, office, healthcare, religious, educational, restaurant, and entertainment complexes, P. Gerald Foote and Associates bring years of knowledge and experience to help make your designs a reality.
ARCHITECTS & PLANNERS
9467 MONTGOMERY ROAD CINCINNATI, OH 45242
513.984.1050
pgfooteandassoc@aol.com
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GCCM Construction Services, LLC specializes in sustainable, custom residential and commercial construction. With over 25 years of satisfied clients, we will surpass your expectations through the design and build of your future project. Call us today and find out how responsible building can lead to a greener, profitable future.
"Responsible buildings. Sustainable futures."
info@gccms.com 502-425-4541 www.GCCMCS.com
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PROJECT SPOTLIGHT
empathic design proving that animal-rights advocates are equally mindful of the environment, the International Fund for Animal Welfareâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s global headquarters on Cape Cod uses passive-solar technology and advanced wastewater treatment to keep its footprint as small as possible. Recently certified LEED Gold, the designLAB architectsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; project features a glass curtain wall designed to provide seasonal heating and cooling; included mechanical systems that reduce energy consumption by up to 45 percent; and used structural steel, foundation framing, and recycled-content flooring and tiles. The building design also consists of certified wood, more than 90 percent coming from sustainably managed forests. Photos: IFAW/ Peter Vanderwarker.
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spaces/office PROJECT SPOTLIGHT
the little things the extensive detailing throughout saba tini Architects’ offices reflects an influential quote by Mies Van Der Rohe, “God is in the detail.” That notion is echoed in all the firm’s projects, but especially for the design of its office space in Lawrence, Kansas. The fresh feel of the interior is enhanced with natural light, reflective floors, and exposed concrete. The firm won multiple awards for the design, which utilized sustainable materials and naturally eco-friendly design principles. The reduction of artificial lighting has meant pronounced energy savings. The details add up to enormous payoff. (For more information on Sabatini Architects, see p. 139.)
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function over tradition Bruce Ronayne Hamilton Architects, Inc.’s integrated project delivery leads to expressive character within the realm of function
Since the beginning, BRHA has shown attention to the environment—both natural and man-made. In terms of the natural environment, BRHA has two LEED APs on its five-person staff and plans to increase this number. “We encourage our clients to consider green design strategies, and our LEED APs provide insight into how a high-performance building can address their building needs to create projects that are energy-efficient and environmentally sound and provide a healthy, enjoyable environment for building occupants,” Hamilton says.
by Zipporah Porton
in 1991, bruce hamilton, aia, formed bruce Ronayne Hamilton Architects, Inc. (BRHA) with the intent to “create solutions that work, please, and endure.” The firm started out with just two employees; now, five employees design about 50 projects a year. The company focuses not only on architecture, but also land planning, interior design, and 3-D visualization. Since its founding in 1991, BRHA has completed 900 projects in a variety of forms—churches, office buildings, assistedliving homes, and estates. Overall, the goal of BRHA’s design philosophy is to develop expressive character related to a building’s function, something that, in practice, means designing a building that appears to be “what it is.” The character and function should then blend artfully into an integrated, sensible, and beautiful structure. “Character
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may be developed through consideration of tradition, but it is important that we are free to depart from traditional styles or plans that do not suit the needs of our client,” Hamilton notes. “If a building is to be meaningful...and stand the test of time, it will be the design that makes this determination.”
ABOVE: A rendering of the Scott Lawson Companies corporate offices’ main entrance.
Currently, to enhance the firm’s green presence, BRHA is working on the schematic design for the Scott Lawson Companies Corporate Office Building, a 44,000-squarefoot project that will strive to be the first LEED Platinum-certified office building in New Hampshire. The team—which includes Office Interiors, WV Engineering, and Hutter Construction—uses an “integrated project delivery” process, where all team members participate in all phases of the design development. “The integrated
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Bruce Ronayne Hamilton Architects, Inc.
SCOTT LAWSON COMPANIES CORPORATE OFFICE FLOORPLAN
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A. Lobby with two-story water feature B. Scott Lawson corporate offices C. Auditorium D. Leasable office space E. Racquetball court
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“Character may be developed through consideration of tradition, but it is important that we are free to depart from traditional styles or plans that do not suit the needs of our client. If a building is to be meaningful...and stand the test of time, it will be the design that makes this determination.” —Bruce Hamilton, President
project delivery method,” Hamilton notes, “has allowed us to create a project which takes full advantage of site characteristics for proper building orientation, daylighting, rain-water harvesting, use of renewable energy resources, and maximizing energy efficiency while tracking project costs.” The project will feature a storm-water system with a two-story water wall, a cascading trough, a landscaped pond, and both a white and green roof. It is scheduled for completion in fall of 2011. “I wanted to have a building that is ‘infinitely’ adaptable to our changing business,” says Scott Lawson, president of Scott Lawson Companies. “It dawned on me that if I could build a very high-performance, architecturally attractive, really ‘cool’ building that was also LEED certified, I could convince more people that this is really the way to build buildings based on total cost of ownership [long-term] versus cheapest
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B
cost to build [short-sighted]. If I could do that, then I, as an individual, could do more for the environment than by just trying hard on my own to be energy efficient and have a low impact on the environment.” From this point forward, BRHA is committed to making sure that all of its projects, like Lawson’s, are sustainable in some way. Coming up, the firm will convert an existing four-story mill into student housing near Fitchburg State College in Massachusetts. The housing project is seeking LEED Silver certification, and the design will offer storm water solutions, optimized energy performance via energy modeling, and the use of low-emission emitting building materials. In addition to attracting clients with its design approach and sustainable focus, Hamilton believes it is the effective use of 3-D modeling that brings in clients. “By beginning to model a building at the conceptual design stage, we are able to demonstrate the basic geometry and placement of the building on a site,” Hamilton says. “As the design progresses, we can also explore the use of natural light, lighting, color, and building materials.” On top of offering this 3-D feature, Hamilton feels that BRHA finds success due to its design philosophy. “Each project is approached without bias, preconceived ideas, or constraints so that its unique problems can be fully analyzed and its character can be expressed completely and honestly,” he says. “Our goal is to design a community of related elements in which each structure will appropriately fulfill its purpose in terms of function and character, yet at the same time respect its environment.” gb&d
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The Scott Lawson Companies 20 Chenell Drive | Concord, NH 03301 800.645.7674 | www.slgl.com
810 Turnpike Road | New Ipswich, NH 03071 603.878.2300 | www.hutterconstruction.com
Bruce Ronayne Hamilton Architects
Office Interiors Limited 85 Washington Street, | Dover, NH 03820 603.749.6200 | www.ofďŹ ceinteriorsltd.com
WV ENGINEERING ASSOCIATES, PA 11 King Court | Keene, NH 03431 603.352.7007 | www.wvengineering.com
Architecture Land Planning Interior Design 3D Visualization
(603) 878-4823 www.brharch.com 833 Turnpike Road, P.O. Box 104, New Ipswich, NH 03071
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PROJECT SPOTLIGHT
a new home for the sciences in order to help redefine—and provide the space for—the role of science on Georgetown University’s campus, the college chose lauded Boston architecture firm Payette for a master plan that will create not just a new science building, which broke ground in May 2010, but “a new science community,” according to Dr. Mak Paranjape, a member of the Science Center Planning Committee. Pursuing LEED Silver certification, the 154,000-square-foot building will feature chilled beams, enthalpy wheels, natural daylighting, native plants, and renewable building materials, and its location creates an open, terraced space, allowing for interaction along each of the building’s five floors. Renderings: Payette.
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spaces/institutional PROJECT SPOTLIGHT
curating a living museum chad oppenheim and enzo enea have become a noteworthy duo recently, due to the pair’s collaboration on Simpson Park in Miami. Solidifying their celebrity status in the world of sustainable design, in June they unveiled Enea’s new headquarters in Schmerikon, Switzerland, which was designed in part by Oppenheim. Most notable is that the new offices for Enea Garden Design also includes a tree museum. The Enea Tree Museum houses 2,000 trees of 50 different types, on a labyrinthlike 2.5 acres. Made up partly of trees that Enea has had to remove from projects and decided to keep, the museum’s walls are simple sandstone, creating nooks and canvases for the varying species. The headquarters include green roofs and geothermal systems, as well as locally and sustainably sourced lumber.
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q&a: in search of wide open spaces Bringing the California experience to New England, Dennis Mires, owner of The Architects, speaks on his personal design goals
What, exactly, did you want to do? I wanted to do more design. I thought we could bring more indoor-outdoor living, which was my California experience, to New England. I also wanted to do more open-space plans.
by Julie Schaeffer
“it’s come full circle,” says dennis mires, founder and owner of The Architects, about the sustainable design movement. But he could just as easily be talking about his own firm. We asked Mires to tell us how his firm has evolved and highlights some notable green projects. gb&d: How did you get your start in architecture? Mires: I graduated from the University of California at Berkeley with a bachelor’s degree in architecture, then joined the US Air Force as an architect, and they moved me to Massachusetts.
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How did you end up starting your own firm? After my service ended, I worked as an architect in New England, eventually settling down with my family in Manchester, New Hampshire, where I worked for another architecture firm for seven years. But when discussions about my becoming a partner faltered, I decided to move on. I looked around and didn’t see anyone else doing what I wanted to do, so I decided I’d do it myself.
ABOVE: The luminous New Hampshire Institute of Art.
When did you develop interest in sustainable design? Well, they just recently began calling it “sustainable design.” But when I was in California in the 1960s, everything we did was sustainable. Sea Ranch, an ecofriendly second-home development on the northern coast of California, was designed at the time I was in school. Everything there was done to achieve energy savings and avoid adversely impacting the landscape. The houses were set among the trees, and they had
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The Architects
energy-efficient envelopes, natural ventilation, sloped roofs, bermed walls. They even had planted roofs, which is all the rage these days. We’ve done quite a few of them, in fact. But now these things have a name, so we use it. How has sustainable design changed over the years? It’s come full circle. It began with how you put a building on a site in relationship to the sun. Then more hard evidence came out about what works and what doesn’t, and it grew more sophisticated, with newer products coming onto the market. And it became much more cost-effective. You recently completed a green project for the Art Institute of New Hampshire, correct? Yes. The property had an existing brick building, which we moved forward so it sat close to the sidewalk like its neighbors. We then renovated that building and built a six-story building behind it. The renovated building houses academic space, and the new building has three floors of academic space and four floors of dormitory space.
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ABOVE, LEFT: The Art Institute’s 6th-floor common room. The Architects assisted the NHIA in renovating the existing two-story brick building that was Manchester’s first high school, adding a new mixed-use six-story building, with the top four floors providing dormitory space. ABOVE, RIGHT: A completed dorm room. RIGHT: This shared bathroom connects two double dorm rooms.
How is the new building sustainable? All dorm rooms face south, and all exterior windows have exterior sunshades that accommodate photovoltaic panels. The elevators and stairwells are on the north facade, providing a nice buffer from the elements. One really interesting aspect, however, is that the building uses a geothermal HVAC system, which is rare on a tight urban space in the region. We also used a rainwaterharvesting system to collect roof water in 4,500-gallon tanks and use it to flush toilets throughout the building. That, along with a vegetative roof, reduces storm-water runoff, which is critical because in the area because storm-water and sewage aren’t separate. Are you pleased with the results? Very pleased. The building has been up and running since October, and it hasn’t used any fossil fuel yet. And we’re expecting a LEED Gold certification.
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SEPPALA construction
“I thought we could bring more indoor-outdoor living, which was my California experience, to New England.” —Dennis Mires, Owner
Congratulations to Dennis Mires Architects for the successful completion of the Wellness Center at Nashua Community College. It was great working with you on this project. -Samuel Seppala, Seppala Construction
153 Hunt Hill Road • Rindge, NH 03461 Fax: (603) 899-6814 • Phone: (603) 899-3011
I understand you also designed an innovative medical office building. That would be St. Joe’s, a 30,000-square-foot, 2-floor building housing a number of medical offices. We used a geothermal HVAC system, a high-performance envelope, and a water-to-air heat-pump distribution system. The design is also interesting: the medical offices all share a single reception/waiting space on each floor. That enabled us to minimize the common space, which is good from a functional point of view, and it made use of indirect lighting and minimized the number of electrical devices, such as televisions. Is that building LEED certified? The client didn’t want to pursue a LEED certification, but we think we would have received at least a LEED Silver certification.
Landscape Architecture Land Surveying Civil Engineering
Phone: 603.627.2881 | Fax: 603.627.2915 10 Commerce Park N Ste 3B | Bedford, NH 03110 skeach@keachnordstrom.com
You’re approaching your thirtieth anniversary; how has the firm evolved over the years? In the high-flying 1980s, when there was a lot of residential developmental in the area, we had 15 employees. But it got away from us. I lost control, and some clients were unhappy. So I decided to keep the firm at about seven or eight people, which is about as much as I can keep up with in terms of knowing what’s going out the door. Most employees have been with the firm for 20 years; the newest ones have been here seven or eight. gb&d
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experienced, educated, and optimistic Buchar, Mitchell, Bajt, Architects celebrates a lifetime of design excellence in higher education by Yvelette Stines
for many young boys, primary interests are some combination of the following: sports, cars, and anything with a “gross-out” factor. But Thomas Buchar had a deep affection for buildings and drawing. “I grew up watching my father build things and this [piqued] my interest to study the field of architecture. I was also good at drawing,” he remembers. Acknowledging his calling at a young age, Buchar perfected his drawing skills and paid particular attention to buildings. He decided to attain a degree in architecture from the University of Illinois–Chicago Circle and after college entered the industry through several architecture firms. “I worked for some local firms and realized I had the ability to go into business for myself,” he explains. Buchar started his firm—now
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BELOW: A rendering of North Central College in Naperville, IL. RIGHT: Extension of the Trinity Christian School, under construction in Shorewood, IL.
Buchar, Mitchell, Bajt, Architects, of which Buchar serves as president—in 1980. Since then, the firm has followed Buchar’s creative spark and created a plethora of building types, working on projects in housing, banking, retail, education, and medical fields, as well as in the industrial sector. With more than 41 years of experience, Buchar, Mitchell, Bajt, Architects, based out of Joliet, Illinois, has a sound foundation in the industry, but with the changing market and the push for sustainable design the firm is taking all the necessary steps to stay on top of changing trends. “We have been using sustainable practices for about 15 years now,” explains Buchar, who has noticed that many clients are beginning to welcome sustainable practices. “When our clients realize the long-term savings on heating and energy costs, it becomes an easier sell. Many of our clients want to have some sort of sustainable products in their building, but the biggest problem is that it’s expensive. We are typically walking on a tight wire with making clients happy about costs and getting a sustainable project done.” Understanding that fully embracing sustainability is a work in progress, Buchar, Mitchell, Bajt, Architects has still completed some noteworthy projects:
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Buchar, Mitchell, Bajt, Architects
“Due to the awareness, sustainability is more recognizable to clients. A lot has changed within the last 20 years. [I wonder what] it will look like 50 years from now.” –Thomas Buchar, President
North Central College, Naperville, IL • included a 200,000-square-foot residential and recreational center; • earned LEED Silver certification; • is able to house 250 students; and • features a six-lane NCAA track. Trinity Christian School, Shorewood, IL • included an extension to the existing school; • uses heat from a water-retention pond; and • has resulted in significant reduction in heating costs. As a company that has made a positive mark in the industry, Buchar is most proud of his returning clients. “It feels really good when a client calls us back to do repeat work,” he says. Taking pride in the firm’s reputation with clients, Buchar understands the importance of these relationships and doesn’t take a single one lightly. “As a firm,” he says, “we really get to know our clients. I have partners, but for each of us, if we personally meet with that client at an initial meeting, we work with them until the completion of the project. Our clients appreciate that one on one relationship.” The rapport is only one part of keeping the client happy— the other is completing a project that showcases excellence. Buchar and his staff stay on top of the latest changes within the world of sustainability and technology. “We read a lot—just about everything we can get our hands on,” he notes, mentioning also that he and his staff attend various manufacturer seminars. By staying educated when it comes to sustainability, Buchar remains optimistic about the future. “The green movement is here to stay, and they are doing a great job with getting the word out there to lessen your carbon footprint,” he says. “Due to the awareness, sustainability is more recognizable to clients. A lot has changed within the last 20 years. [I wonder what] it will look like 50 years from now.” gb&d
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deserving of its rank
decades to come,” he says. “Our team seeks venues to apply sustainable strategies in all facets of the architectural process.”
California’s Cass Sowatsky Chapman + Associates has aimed high with its government projects and is staying ahead of sustainable trends with its own LEED department
by Thalia Aurinko-Mostow
with a required leed silver rating for every project it does and an entire LEED department keeping its architects on track, Chapman Sowatsky Chapman + Associates (CSC+A) clearly deserves all the recognition it has received from the USGBC and the DBIA. Currently working on projects in various stages totaling more than $1 billion, the San Diego, California-based architecture firm’s principal and LEED AP Wyatt Chapman, AIA, explains what’s behind the firm’s stringent dedication. “CSC+A operates under the philosophy that by creating architecture that protects the environment and improves the lives of those whom it interacts, all parties have the opportunity for sustained growth and success for
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ABOVE: The Bachelor Enlisted Quarters and Activity Building showing native landscaping and artificial turf. Photos: Pablo Mason Photography.
Chapman explains this means using BIM to better understand building design and construction; applying the LEED-NC program to provide a certified high-quality product; using an integrated design-build process that allows the team to streamline delivery; and providing a high level of indoor environmental quality in its own work environment. CSC+A was founded 25 years ago as Edward J. Cass and Associates. It is now one of the country’s leading architecture/engineering firms, specializing in designbuild work for the government. On average, CSC+A and its 30 employees work on an average of 15 projects each year, which range anywhere from $10–150 million and span the country. Chapman has been with the company since 2000 and was made principal in 2005; the company’s name change followed shortly thereafter. Chapman’s days are all about going after new work, managing clients and general contractors and taking care of all aspects of overseeing projects. One thing that not only makes Chapman’s job easier but a majority of the
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Cass Sowatsky Chapman + Associates
“CSC+A operates under the philosophy that by creating architecture that protects the environment and improves the lives of those whom it interacts, all parties have the opportunity for sustained growth and success for decades to come.” —Wyatt Chapman, Principal work CSC+A does as well, is their frequent partnership with Harper Construction Company, with whom they’ve worked since the firm was still Edward J. Cass and Associates. As a team, they’ve completed more than 50 projects together, the majority of which were for the federal government. In 2005, CSC+A won the US Air Force National Merit Award for Sustainable Design for the Consolidated Support Facility on the Edwards Air Force Base in California; a very typical result for the work CSC+A has done for the military. Over the years, the firm has developed a special expertise in the design of residential facilities for single military personnel, serving as the Designer of Record on 34 projects to house 21,000 unmarried troops. Depending on the specific needs of the base, CSC+A has included various ancillary facilities in the
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ABOVE, LEFT: The Enlisted Dining Facility features an articulated roof structure and an exterior shade louver system. ABOVE, RIGHT: The Dining Facility interior showing exposed structure for enhanced volume interior, energy efficient lighting, and large ceiling fans for improved temperature control.
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barracks, such as dining halls, learning resource centers, and indoor and outdoor recreational areas. All included environmentally friendly design features as well as state-of-the-art anti-terrorism features. One of CSC+A’s more recent projects is its design-build work at Camp Pendleton in California. The $48.7 million project for multiple buildings on a single campus to support personnel of the Marine Corps Forces Special Operations Command for the NAVFAC Southwest included a 27,000-square-foot enlisted dining facility and two 150-room, multi-story, reinforced-masonry barracks. “Both the [enlisted dining facility] and the barracks facilities were designed to achieve a LEED Silver rating,” Chapman says. “The project design and construction focused on occupant health and long-term sustainability. In addition, the orientation of the barracks buildings was chosen to capitalize on the prevailing winds for increased natural ventilation. To further take advantage of natural ventilation, the barracks were designed as an L-shaped building with an interior open breezeway running the length of each wing for access to rooms. Several intermediate breezeways bisect the building at strategic locations to provide increased cross breezes and natural daylight.”
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Cass Sowatsky Chapman + Associates
Other sustainable features include: • water-conserving plumbing fixtures; • high-efficiency mechanical systems and high-efficiency chillers with non-ozone depleting refrigerant; • enhanced indoor air quality and thermostatically controlled forced air attic ventilation; • energy-efficient and extended-performance fluorescent lamps that also use occupancy sensors; • low-E, dual-pane windows, exterior window awnings, low-VOC paints and adhesives, as well as Energy Star appliances; • increased roof insulation, a low-maintenance native landscape, and an automatic irrigation system; and • a comprehensive waste-management program during construction. CSC+A is implementing similar features at a $54.1 million multi-phased design-build project with NAVFAC Southwest for a Master Planned Wounded Warrior Campus, also at Camp Pendleton. “The campus, which is the first Wounded Warrior project on the West Coast, is the cornerstone of the Marine Corps’ commitment to provide comprehensive resources for wounded, ill, and injured marines and sailors to either return to active duty or to make the transition back to civilian life,” Chapman says.
The project will be CSC+A’s first LEED Platinum project. Along with barracks, administrative space, and multipurpose areas, the campus also includes an indoor therapy pool, an outdoor lap pool, a climbing wall, and a running track. It also has space for counseling, employment support, financial management, physical rehabilitation, and other training and outreach programs. In the next few years, CSC+A expects to expand its business, merging new work with current clients, and plans on growing its LEED department, which is managed by John Ambert, LEED AP. It also plans to add consulting services. The firm’s greatest hope? Getting more individuals, companies, and clients interested in green building. “As more and more agencies begin to mandate sustainable-design goals as standard practice,” Chapman explains, “our efforts will be spent less on trying to convince owners the benefits of green building, and more about analyzing and implementing the most appropriate and life cycle cost effective sustainable features.” gb&d
using BIM to deliver Platinum...
cass | sowatsky | chapman + associates
architecture • planning • engineering • design/build •consulting 619.298.3480 | www.csc-a.com
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proud member
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defying the laws of sustainability Resolve and resourcefulness define The United Group of Companies, Inc.’s approach to the environment, real estate, and long-term success
by Matt Petrusek
corey aldrich, director of market development at The United Group, has a history of surmounting the insurmountable. “I clawed my way up from the bottom,” he says. Indeed, Aldrich’s upward trajectory included everything from lawn mowing, to building-maintenance services, to industrial and real-estate sales before finally landing in real-estate development as a senior marketing director. “It was always a matter of working harder than everyone else around me,” he recalls. Aldrich thus found an apt home when he joined The United Group of Companies, Inc. (UGOC) in 2001. Located in Troy, New York, UGOC has grown from a small start-up to a real-estate behemoth with four subsidiaries: United Development Corp. (development), American
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ABOVE: The United STEP 1 project in Malta, NY is part of the first technology park in the nation to be designed solely with a focus on renewable- and cleanenergy research and development and environmental technologies.
Construction Co. (construction management), United Realty Management Corp., AMO (management), and MCM Securities (financing). Altogether, UGOC has more than 37 years of experience acquiring, developing, and managing more than $2 billion of income-producing properties ranging from commercial, to residential, to student and senior housing. “[The company] encompasses the entire story of real estate,” Aldrich says. That story, like Aldrich’s, also includes its fair share of grit and perseverance. “Our company is like the little engine that could,” he laughs. In the mid-1980s, for example, UGOC won a major contract to build military housing at Fort Drum that required its crew to break ground and start erecting homes going into the middle of a bitter, upstate New York winter. The owner of the company, Walter Uccellini, thus spearheaded the creation of a system of giant, heated bubble tents, under which construction crews—and all their heavy equipment—could work. The project’s financing required similar ingenuity—so novel, in fact, that the company headquarters now proudly displays a framed napkin with the rudimentary scribblings of what became the complex loan structure that made the job possible. It’s this kind of anecdote that captures UGOC’s unique mixture of resolve and resourcefulness and—one might add—bravado. “We say, ‘that’s a great idea, let’s do it!” Aldrich says. “Then we figure out how to do it.”
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The United Group of Companies, Inc.
“We have great people who are creative, bright, dedicated, and committed to the cause of making a difference in people’s lives on a daily basis.” —Michael Uccellini, President & CEO
This spirit has also carried over to UGOC’s approach to sustainability. While the company has historically taken a pragmatic approach to green thinking, it has also, in recent years, demonstrated an increasingly vigorous commitment to incorporating and advancing environmentally friendly initiatives throughout its projects. Indeed, it’s a growing trend that the company’s president and CEO, Michael Uccellini, sees as critical to UGOC’s future. “Our residents and tenants are continuously asking us about green initiatives in our buildings,” he says. “It’s a culture we’re embracing and becoming very familiar with.” One of the greatest examples of UGOC’s dedication to environmental integrity appears in its recently completed United STEP 1 project. An acronym for Saratoga Technology + Energy Park, the building is part of the New York
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LEFT: Salvaged elements in United STEP 1’s lobby design contributed to the LEED Silver certification. RIGHT: The CityStation site plan in downtown Troy, NY, includes mixed-use housing and commercial lease tenants in addition to public space and infrastructure.
State Energy Research and Development Authority’s STEP Park, the first technology park in the nation designed solely for a focus on renewable- and clean-energy research and development and environmental technologies. The 105,500-square-foot building is nestled in a campus-like industrial park that, in addition to providing abundant green spaces, encourages its tenants to meet and collaborate within its thoughtfully designed indoor and outdoor meeting spaces (also known as “people places”) throughout the property. What’s more, the LEED Silver-certified building not only includes state-of-the-art sustainable materials and technologies, but also embodies strategic space allocation and value engineering that enables tenants from a wide variety of industries to precisely fit the spaces to their particular needs—a sustainable attribute that both enhances efficiency and increases the complex’s overall lifecycle. UGOC naturally takes pride in having created one of New York State’s hottest new commercial addresses. But the company’s greatest sense of satisfaction comes from its recognition that STEP 1 ultimately signifies something greater than another successful development; it serves as a major inspirational achievement on the path to a more sustainable future. “We’re helping to carve out a new way to do business and a new future that pushes our country towards energy independence,” Aldrich says. “This building is part of that.” The project, of course, would be nothing if it were not for the individuals who created and managed it, individuals who see their work in a broader context than profit or even short-term client satisfaction. “We have great people who are creative, bright, dedicated, and committed to the cause of making a difference in people’s lives on a daily basis,” Uccellini says. And making that difference, in the end, not only requires professional know-how, but also a willingness to work hard and take chances others are unwilling to take. It’s a formula for success Aldrich eagerly endorses from experience. “We don’t mind stepping over the line,” he says, “even if we don’t know what’s on the other side.” gb&d
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T&J Electrical Corporation main office:
florida office:
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T&J Electrical Corp. has been in business since 1977. We have offices in Troy, NY and Northport, FL. We have had the opportunity to participate in several high profile and challenging projects with the United Group. We recently had the privilege of being part of one of their most exciting projects-STEP ONE located in the new Saratoga Technology and Energy Park. This state of the art building is the first of its kind to obtain silver LEED certification in the park. We are proud to have been part of the United team taking the first step in leading us into the future.
For more information, please visit our website at: www.tandjelectric.com
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when the community is at stake
construction is simply in their blood. Buchholz says that the company’s success comes down to passion and commitment.
Warner Construction relies on the passionate direction of its leadership to fill the Frederick, Maryland, area with projects as notable and sustainable as the Spring Mills Primary School
by Suchi Rudra
“when people ask us what our hobbies are, well, we find ourselves living and breathing construction, even in our spare time, because we love it. This isn’t a 9-to-5 job. To be successful, you have to have that passion. I can guarantee that it’s what sets us apart. It’s not just a job for us. You’ve got to take ownership of the project.” There’s no mistaking the passion in Mark Buchholz, who serves as Warner Construction’s vice president and who grew up in the construction industry. For both Buchholz and president Ron Main, who also grew up learning the ins and outs of the business from his father and who Buchholz met shortly after college,
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BELOW: Main entry of the 6,400-squarefoot Olde Towne Youth Center.
The Frederick, Maryland-based firm is currently involved in building more than 200,000 square feet in and around the area, totaling more than $27 million in contract value. The majority of the projects, due to the current economy, are contracted with local governmental agencies. Main points out that he has never completed a project that the client wasn’t fully satisfied with, so he can always direct potential clients to contact any of the company’s past clients, “a referral process that is most uncommon in the construction industry,” he notes. Recently, Warner Construction completed work on a $3 million, 6,400-square-foot youth center (targeting LEED Silver) in the Olde Town district of Gaithersburg, Maryland—a project that Main and Buchholz are quite pleased with. The facility includes an activity room, an instructional computer lab, and a sound studio for mixing and recording. Sustainable features of the building include: • 95 percent recycled materials; • a vegetative green roof; • solar-electric panels; • geothermal heating-and-cooling systems;
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• passive-solar heating; • recycled fly-ash concrete; • waterless urinals; and • FSC-certified wood. Although the youth center project was designed for LEED Silver, the project has now earned enough points to attain LEED Gold and could ultimately achieve Platinum. One project that especially stands out in the firm’s portfolio is Spring Mills primary school in Martinsburg, West Virginia, scheduled for completion in early 2011 and slated to be the first LEED-certified school in West Virginia. Features will include daylighting, geothermal systems, local materials, and an ICF system throughout the building. Main says that he wanted to pursue the school project because of its particularly unique status, which would help the firm to continue to gain a foothold in the LEED market. “That’s definitely the way the industry is heading,” he says. Buchholz adds that the firm is finding out “that every architecture firm does a LEED project differently according to the geography of the site and the requirements of the owner. The school project has an ICF system—insulated styrofoam block form that you fill with concrete—and these are the bearing walls. This is very unique for any building in the area, to use this as the primary building component.” The firm also recently completed a 90,000-square-foot parking deck for the City of Frederick two months ahead of schedule, “proving that you can be competitively low and still turn over a project ahead of schedule,” Buchholz points out. The building featured a brick facade to emulate its location in the downtown historic district.
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“When people ask us what our hobbies are, well, we find ourselves living and breathing construction, even in our spare time, because we love it.” —Mark Buchholz, Vice President
ABOVE, LEFT: Rear view of the Olde Towne Youth Center highlighting vegetative roofing and photovotaic solar panels. ABOVE, RIGHT: The reception area also utilizes green materials, assisting in the center’s efforts to target a LEED Silver certification.
The team at Warner Construction has even applied its talents to the very building that houses the firm’s office, the first large-scale, Class A, multi-use office space in Frederick in more than 20 years. Main says that the company strives to survive the market and “retain all the employees that we put hard work into bringing on board with us. We want to stay committed to them, and find the next job for us to work on. We just want to continue to grow smart, and if that means taking our time, that’s fine. But when we leave a project, we want to walk away and be proud of it. And since it’s in our community, when we drive past, we have a sense of pride.”gb&d
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the ins and outs of ornamentation Shickel Corp. navigates the LEED requirements applicable to its metal manufacturing processes and sees a fortunate trend in the industry by Peter Fretty
the sizzle associated with technologyladen alternative-energy solutions and innovative HVAC systems tends to receive repeat attention whenever it’s incorporated into LEED projects. However, though important, these components only tell part of the story. After all, each project also includes a host of building materials—from lumber and structural steel to the finishing details that in many instances define a structure for years to come. Helping forge that lasting impression is where Bridgewater, Virginia-based Shickel Corp. enters the picture. Operating with a team of 85, including two LEED APs, the 72-year-old firm offers custom metal-fabricating services with an established niche
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ABOVE: Rendering of the west side of the Emily Couric Clinical Cancer Center in Charlottesville, VA. OPPOSITE PAGE: Artist’s rendition of an aerial view of the rooftop garden at the cancer center.
in architectural, ornamental, and structural-steel products. “We often take the concepts and create end products conceptualized and often designed by project architects,” says Mark Shickel, vice president. “Our strength is being able to deliver quality products when facing challenging projects that utilize our inhouse engineering skills and draw upon our extensive project-management experience.” As LEED has increased in popularity, it has prompted Shickel to increase its awareness around both sourcing and product installation processes. “Recycled content, regional location, and VOC credits are the most applicable to our business. As a result, we pay far more attention to where materials come from and remain diligent in obtaining documentation outlining recycled content for all of our raw materials,” project manager Mark Whalen explains. “To comply with VOC requirements, we pay close attention to the touchup paint and epoxies we use for anchoring. We need to make sure we remain under a certain threshold in order to help clients achieve desired credits.” According to Whalen, the most taxing aspect has been securing raw materials that adhere to the regional constraints of 500 miles or less from the jobsite. “This is especially true when there is a need for
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VOC compliance: • stair towers; • ornamental steel-screen walls for planters; • grating for a mezzanine platform; • glass and stainless-steel balcony railing, an • ornamental steel connector frame; • exterior stainless-steel terrace railing; and • a pergola placed in a manner to encourage vegetation. “It is interesting to see the incorporation of the environment into more structures. The goal used to be shutting the environment out,” Shickel says. “For instance, today we see more low-E glass to make the most of daylight, green walls using trellises and vines, creative rainwatercollection methods to move down chains rather than through gutters and into storm sewers.”
“Our strength is being able to deliver quality products when facing challenging projects that utilize our in-house engineering skills and draw upon our extensive projectmanagement experience.” —Mark Shickel, Vice President unusual size. We are often limited by mill locations and inventories,” he says. “Fortunately, most of our vendors are starting to embrace LEED as well, which often helps make sure we meet the requirements.” Working on LEED projects has also prompted the firm to master its ability to manage the paper trail for accountability. “We have an extensive inventory, so we have learned how to accurately track our stock materials,” Shickel says. “We want to do this with integrity, so if we say the beam is from South Carolina, we want to make sure that is accurate. Fortunately, the steel industry as a whole has a solid history in recycling, which means it is relatively easy to certify that most of our products have 95 percent recycled content.” Everyone is still learning, Whalen notes. “One of the keys to making LEED work is to have the continual communication and tracking so that you are certain you are meeting your credit requirements along the way,” he says. The firm recently finished working on a LEED Silver project in Washington, DC, which primarily involved structural steel renovation for a 12-story structure, and it has two active LEED projects on its books, including the University of Virginia hospital system’s Emily Couric Clinical Cancer Center. To help achieve Silver certification, Shickel is providing the following components, while remaining focused on recycled content, regional sourcing, and
According to Shickel, the ability to work on LEED projects is an exciting, thought-provoking opportunity. “We welcome the challenge of continually improving how we produce our products,” he says. “As we embrace LEED, we want it to be real, so we take the time to see the big picture rather than making kneejerk actions. It is a matter of asking a lot of questions. Cost is always a factor, and you need to be able to analyze the true impact of your actions. Long-term sustainability is our goal.” gb&d
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work worthy of the future
developments of human stem-cell technology, and NanoSolar, a California-based photovoltaic company, the complex, captivating designs give the distinct impression that one is traveling forward through time.
For CAS Architects, Inc., a constant understanding of cutting-edge technology bears conceptual and financial benefits by Thalia Aurinko-Mostow
the first thing you find on cas architects’ website is a virtual office tour. Bright graphics, new technologies, floor plans, images, models. You’re able to navigate your way through projects past and present and tour the workspace while admiring the view. The clouds move past the window. It is clear that CAS Architects, Inc. keeps things up to date—it’s all fresh, polished, with a hint of new car smell—and the work feels like it might be from the future. With projects coming up for StemCells, the world leader in discoveries and
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ABOVE: The Y2E2 building set new sustainability standards at Stanford University with its dramatic reduction in energy and water usage. Photo: Tim Griffin.
CAS Architects stays on the cutting edge both with its practices and the kinds of projects it chooses to devote itself to. For more than 30 years, CAS has been involved with all areas of developing technology in the Silicon Valley; with 22 employees, 5 LEED APs, and about 120 projects per year, its president and principal architect, Ron Ronconi, describes the company as a “full-service architectural firm that has built its success on principal involvement, project-sensitive design solutions, and the attention to complex program requirements.” These three foundational aspects work in conjunction with the firm’s commitment to push the envelope in developing technologies, always a priority for the Mountain View, California-based company. “We started with the semi-conductor sector in the ’70s and ’80s, added biotechnology in the ’90s, and most recently added
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alternative energy,” Ronconi explains. “We are also involved with the Center for Nano Scale Science & Technology at Stanford University.”
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“We will pursue all areas of advanced technology while continuing to develop our relationships with current clients as they grow and move forward with their projected business plans.” —Ron Ronconi, President & Principal Architect
For more than 15 years, CAS Architects have been working with Stanford, primarily with the School of Engineering. The firm is part of the design team that has been developing the new Science & Engineering Quad, a four-building complex that aligns itself with the original campus master plan, where each building will house a specific engineering curriculum. The architects are in charge of designing all of the common and specialty laboratories required for teaching and research, and their plans have received a Savings by Design award from PG&E for the Y2E2 building’s innovative energy efficiency. Along with its long-term clients, CAS Architects enjoys working with startups; for Ronconi, there’s something about the cutting-edge. “State-of-the-art projects driven by entrepreneurial clients that know they have a better way to solve a technology-market issue are my favorite,” he confides. “Most of the time these are startup companies that have venture capital backing and need to design a facility to test their technology theories at the lowest capital outlay possible. If they are successful, the next step is scale-up and development of a manufacturing operation.” One such operation is Solyndra, a manufacturer of photovoltaic systems. CAS Architects is designing a complete renovation of an existing half-million-squarefoot building for Solyndra’s back-end operations. The entire building will take more than two years, though
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ABOVE: The Y2E2’s axonometric plan shows the different departments in different colors as a study of their adjacency relationships. RIGHT: The award-winning building redesign for the Stanford Children’s Surgical Research Lab sought to give the building new life for the next 25-plus years. Photo: Marco Zecchin.
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spaces/institutional they recently moved into stage two of the project. Recognition for its creative design solutions has come through the LEED-CI Gold certification of a corporate headquarters and two additional commercial projects that should achieve Silver certifications.
xlconstruction.com/green
CAS Architects remains focused on technology and all that is new, a plan that bears long-term benefits. “We will pursue all areas of advanced technology while continuing to develop our relationships with current clients as they move forward with their projected business plans,” Ronconi says. “We feel that as these markets continue to develop, they will spur additional infrastructure/support businesses that we will also be able to service. To some degree this is already starting as we are developing facilities that produce the equipment necessary for the scaleup of solar-panel manufacturing.” For CAS Architects, the future is now. gb&d
Clean + Green: XL’s depth of experience includes more than 1 million square feet of LEED certified and cleantech projects.
XL Construction Corporation
851 Buckeye Court
Phone: 408-240-6000
Milpitas, CA 95035
C A S A r c hi te c ts , I nc . 1 0 2 3 N . S h o re l i n e B l v d . M o u n t a i n Vi e w, C A 9 4 0 4 3 w w w. c a s a rc h . c o m
Leaders in innovative architecture in the Silicon Valley for over 30 years
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PROJECT SPOTLIGHT
conserving water inside and out one of the aia’s top ten green projects this year was a project whose building and function put water at the forefront. The Watsonville Water Resource Center is a joint project between the City of Watsonville and the Pajaro Valley Water Management Agency and is designed by San Francisco’s WRNS Studio. Housing a laboratory, administrative offices, and educational space, the center seeks to manage the area’s wastewater to provide clean water for agriculture and also to track the depletion of the region’s freshwater, which has resulted in salt-water intrusion. Targeting LEED Platinum, the interpretive center and recycling plant were designed to take advantage of all natural cooling and ventilation and water conservation techniques, including swales and retention basins, solar-powered faucets, and radiant tubes for additional heating. Photos: Bruce Damonte.
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bridging the housing gap a commitment to sustainability includes social responsibility, but architecture firm Overland Partners has taken that thought a little further. The Bridge Homeless Assistance Center, in Dallas, became the largest homeless shelter in world to be LEED certified this year. It is only one of two LEED Silver shelters in the United States. The design includes five buildings on a previously developed site that offer housing, emergency care, and transitional services. Including eco-friendly elements like a green roof on the dining room, a greywater recycling system, radiant heat, and a landscaped courtyard, residents are given the opportunity to escape the harsh urban environment in which they live. The project has received awards from the AIA, Chicago Athenaeum, and HUD. Photos: Charles Davis Smith.
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synergy in silicon valley XL Construction lives up to its name as it serves the surging clean-energy market, drawing technological expertise from years spent in microelectronics by Sarah Lozanova
as large recipients of venture-capital funds, the Silicon Valley and San Francisco Bay areas are home to numerous biopharmaceutical, healthcare, and advanced technology firms. XL Construction Corporation, with extensive in-house technical knowledge gained from working on research and development laboratories, pilot plants, and manufacturing facilities, excels in serving such clients. “There are a lot of opportunities to construct leading-edge facilities for firms trying to establish new products in the marketplace,” says Eric Raff, president of XL Construction. As clean-technology and renewable-energy firms become more prevalent, the company continues to apply its wealth of knowledge within this emerging market.
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ABOVE: More than 400,000 square feet of space is readied for a client’s solar-panel manufacturing facility.
Last year alone, it was involved in more than 500,000 square feet of clean-technology work and has completed three solar manufacturing plants to date. It has found similarities in each solar-manufacturing project, despite the application of different solar technologies. The company has also seen crossover between clean technology and the technologies that serve the microelectronics industry. Having worked in the microelectronics industry in Silicon Valley for more than 15 years, XL Construction was able to take its experience and apply it for clean-technology clients. The industry is particularly competitive, and timely delivery is crucial for such jobs; construction times need to be short, without compromising quality. XL Construction has proven again and again that it has the ability to fast-track projects with accelerated schedules. “It is a very competitive industry, and they’re very motivated to get their manufacturing facilities up and running so they can get their product out there,” Raff explains. Solarmanufacturing projects, specifically, are very technical in nature, particularly the infrastructure and utilities. XL Construction’s ability to understand the needs of each client, particularly in accommodating changes in the manufacturing tools to be installed, results in successfully constructed projects.
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“Because it is a new industry, the plant operators don’t necessarily know all of the tools they will be putting into their manufacturing space,” Raff says. “We need to bring in the infrastructure and utilities in a manner that will provide flexibility, so if the tools change during construction or after they start production, they can be switched efficiently.” Such abilities demonstrate some of the core competencies of XL Construction; as exceptional problem solvers, employees utilize the skills that they’ve acquired over the years while working on numerous microelectronics, aerospace, and telecommunications projects. “We have a real can-do attitude and find the best possible solutions for the challenges our clients bring to us—we are innovative in the way we do that,” Raff says.
XL Construction
“There are a lot of opportunities to construct leading-edge facilities for firms trying to establish new products in the marketplace.” —Eric Raff, President
environmentally friendly. Or the implementation of interior-air-quality measures during construction, including the use of low-VOC paint and other construction products. This mindfulness is particularly welcomed in the San Francisco region. “Most people in the San Francisco Bay Area are environmentally conscious and that has boosted the green-building movement,” Raff says. “The U.S. Green Building Council even has some of its roots right here in San Francisco. Our clients are very aware of green building. With just about every single project that we start, we have a conversation with our clients about whether they want to incorporate green-building elements and pursue a LEED-certified facility.”
In fact, XL Construction got its name because the founders envisioned the company excelling at each and every job. Such an approach has also made the company a good match for green-building projects: with more than half of its professional staff having achieved LEED accreditation, the company has worked on 500,000 square feet of LEED-certified projects and is headquartered in a LEED Silver facility. “We’ve even built a laboratory that is LEED Gold,” Raff says. “The pairing of the technical skills of our staff in laboratory work, which we do quite a bit of, with knowing how to manage a LEED project is a unique combination.” Mindfulness of green building is not exclusive to LEEDcertified projects and is apparent in every XL Construction job. Take, for example, the company’s 50-percent recycling rate for all jobsites and its encouragement for all clients to consider features that save resources and are
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ABOVE: XL Construction’s 500,000 square feet of LEED project experience includes their own LEED-CI Silver corporate headquarters.
Looking to the future, XL Construction is enthusiastic about working on more clean-energy facilities, as use of such technologies becomes more prevalent. Raff says that XL Construction is ready to help move this emerging technology forward. “We are passionate about building projects that help our customers develop products, which have a positive impact on the environment and our community. This passion is reflected in our company purpose: We Build To Improve Lives.” gb&d
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lessons from the past Sabatini Architects’ founder draws from the studies of anthropology and history to achieve truly integrated design for Kansas’ only hydroelectric power plant by Thalia Aurinko-Mostow
mies van der rohe is quoted as having said, “God is in the detail.” It is a short, but complex phrase, and it is a statement that is echoed in all of Sabatini Architects’ work. The 13-year-old company believes that anything that is done should be done thoroughly, down to the smallest detail. “We engage in an integrated design decision-making process,” explains Dan Sabatini, AIA, LEED AP, and the firm’s founding principal, “where we emphasize offering expertise by our design consultants and ourselves in a collaborative process where we engage directly with our clients to uncover the exceptional design approaches to respond to their needs. We believe in a very detailed programming process where goals are confirmed, as an outcome to direct design approaches.”
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ABOVE: The proposed addition to this hydroelectric plant highlights the firm’s commitment to natural light and durable materials. With the original plant visible from across the river dam, the new 6,000-square-foot facility will boost total energy production of 6–7 megawatts, enough to power nearly 5,000 homes.
After 14 years with Craig Patterson Architects, in 1997, Dan Sabatini left to start his own firm as a way to work on a more personal and creative basis with clients. The 7-person company currently features two administrative employees and five architects, three of whom are LEED APs. Sabatini Architects works on everything from commercial projects to lab work, preservation work, singlefamily homes, and student housing, with budgets ranging anywhere from $30,000 to $13 million, all of it—every home, every room—focused on longevity and quality. Sustainable building was important to Sabatini Architects right from the start, a passion Sabatini credits to his early education in anthropology. “It’s about how people used to live and how we live today,” Sabatini says of the study. “Thousands of years ago, structures were made to stand for one hundred, two hundred years. That’s true sustainable building, and we try to incorporate that into our model.” Sabatini’s ultimate goal: holistic designs with fantastic aesthetics. “Civilizations before had to figure out how to live in harmony with the environment or face a harsh reality. In other words, you cannot keep doing what is status quo and expect different results,” the architect says. “Because 40 percent of the waste generated in the United States
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“Civilizations before had to figure out how to live in harmony with the environment or face a harsh reality. In other words you cannot keep doing the status quo and expect different results.” —Dan Sabatini, Principal & Founder
is from the construction industry, and building operations account for 76 percent of energy consumption…we believe architecture has a very significant impact on the environment. We take that as a serious challenge to rethink the standards for design and construction.” Not only is Sabatini Architects focused on creating sustainable structures, it’s building them for others interested in operating green. A recent project was for the Bowersock Power Company, Kansas’ first and currently only hydroelectric power plant, located on the banks of the Kansas River. The plant was built in 1874 and currently provides up to 2.35 megawatts of renewable, nonpolluting electrical power, enough to power nearly 1,800 homes. Sabatini Architects’ role involved the construction of a new 6,000-square-foot generation facility located directly across the river from the existing facility, which will boost total energy production for both plants to be between six and seven megawatts. Sabatini describes its design: “The design solutions we developed incorporate as many passive strategies as possible; daylight will provide interior illumination via a large clerestory, operable windows and a stack ventilation strategy will pull cool air from the floodway up through the building to provide passive cooling and ventilation, a composting toilet will create compost from waste, and water from hand washing and plant maintenance will be collected. The roof will be constructed to incorporate solar panels to offset the plants energy use in the future.” Sabatini Architects also designed a modular, precastconcrete-panel cladding system for Bowersock to withstand constant exposure to moisture, something that has caused difficulty in maintaining the existing plant’s brick-masonry façade due to its proximity to the river. Precast-insulated-concrete panels also offer the potential to explore non-traditional casting techniques that incorporate different textures, colors, insulating materials, and byproduct materials such as fly ash, a residual material generated in the combustion of coal.
Before the economic downturn, Sabatini Architects was also hired to work with Toyota Motors USA, who had invested millions of dollars to upgrade several distribution and service-training facilities. “Toyota’s corporate architects hired us to double the size of its existing facility because our design team’s values aligned with their corporate values and their understanding that we would provide high-quality design and documentation,” Sabatini explains. “We met our client’s goal to reduce operational costs with minimal increases to construction cost.” When economic situations improve, Sabatini plans on continuing with the project and incorporating many sustainable strategies throughout the facility, such as solar-tracking skylights tied to daylight sensors that control light fixtures to reduce energy consumption, a high-recycled-content steel and precast-concrete structure, as well as a rainwater-collection system and rain garden. The firm will use the experience it gained working on the newly completed and LEED Silver-certified Western Extralite Sales and Distribution building to achieve LEED Silver on the Toyota project, just one of many LEED accomplishments surely in Sabatini Architects’ future. gb&d
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PROJECT SPOTLIGHT
restoring a waterfront brownfield as the 2010 shanghai expo came to a close, its living welcome piece, Shanghai Houtan Park, has been transitioned into a permanent waterfront park. Designed by internationally renowned Kongjian Yu, founder of Turenscape, the 34-acre linear site was a former brownfield before it became a wetland that offers recreational areas, ecological flood control, urban agriculture, and a restorative aesthetic to the Huangpu riverfront. The constructed wetland running the length of the park was especially innovative and economically efficient; its terraces are used to treat contaminated river water, which were used for nonpotable uses during the expo. Photos: Kongjian Yu.
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untamed luxury responding to travelers’ desires to experience more raw forms of luxury, Sanctuary Retreats began designing and building lodges and camps across the African continent. To infiltrate its suites with natural beauty and connectedness, the structures are made of local, indigenous materials. The Sanctuary Baines’ Camp, in Botswana’s Okavango Delta, is the company’s smallest site, with five suites whose walls are made from recycled aluminum cans in a wire mesh and covered in plaster. The eco-friendly design is naturally insulating and provides a sound barrier; additionally, the suites use locally purchased thatch and mopane poles. Sanctuary Retreats is committed to the preservation and empowerment of both the local communities and the natural African habitats it works in.
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PROJECT SPOTLIGHT
translucent as a shade of green transparency is key to sustainability, and one boutique hotel, The Green House, in the United Kingdom not only provides luxury accommodations but also publishes the suppliers and manufacturers of its interior products; via the website, guests can find out who made the hotel’s tiles, floors, beds, televisions—even the hairdryers. Proclaiming itself as the “greenest hotel in the UK” since opening in April 2010, the 32-room hotel in Bournemouth uses solar heating, low-flow faucets and showerheads, and recycled furniture or solid-wood furniture made from storm-felled trees. Wallpaper is FSC certified, company cars run on cooking oil from the kitchen, and the rooms are carpeted in 100-percent Scottish wool. At the restaurant, guests eat local, organic fare and drink organic, biodynamic wines and beers brewed only in the United Kingdom. Photos: Tony Harris.
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growth is the objective ARC International, Inc. is providing the opportunity for young architects to flourish in sustainable design
Arc International’s successes come directly from the individuals that Broberg handpicked to join his team. Kelli Trebil, a LEED AP and interior design specialist at ARC, credits her career to Broberg, who gave her a job directly out of college—not just hiring her, but creating a position for her. “I worked with Donovan to find a perfect fit,” she says. “We created my role and worked to find how it would best interact with consultants and clients and members of the project management staff.” Broberg adds, “Our firm includes a core group of individuals (architects, interior designers, and LEED APs) who have been hired because of their creative design talent and commitment to carrying this through to their work. We complement this creative effort with sub-consultants who bring necessary specialization, engineering, or design as tailored for each individual project.”
by Thalia Aurinko-Mostow
eleven-year-old, south dakota-based architecture and design firm, ARC International, is certain that its success stems from its three core values: teamwork, design, and process. According to Donovan Broberg, president and principal architect, “ARC International...is a firm dedicated to providing a quality and creative design product in every project for every client. Our core values shine through in everything we do.” Broberg started the company after feeling that there wasn’t enough room for him to grow within the company where he currently worked. His answer? Not only to start his own firm, but also to create one where growth was the objective. There is not a single employee, besides Broberg himself, who has ever worked as a professional at another firm. The office is full of youthful, inspired designers, architects, artists, and individuals whom Broberg finds pleasure in mentoring, with the goal of one day handing the company over. “When I started the company in 1999, I wanted to build a firm
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that would be able to offer young professionals a place to start, grow, develop, and stay in the long term,” he explains.
ABOVE: South Dakota Game, Fish & Parks Outdoor Campus West. The east elevation featuring the educational classrooms, interpretive center, and Region 1 offices overlooking the entrance bridge and front pond.
A recent project near and dear to Trebil’s heart is Terra Sancta, which began as a pre-K–5 remodel of the existing St. Martin’s Monastery & Academy for the Rapid City Catholic School System and eventually expanded to include a Spiritual Life Center, or retreat facility, for the Diocese of Rapid City, South Dakota. The project grew from there to include future phases for the Diocese offices and the eventual relocation of the entire RCCSS system—now extending through high school—to the campus.
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Arc International, Inc.
spaces/recreational
“Our firm includes a core group of individuals...who have been hired because of their creative design talent and commitment to carrying this through to their work.” —Donovan Broberg, President & Principal Architect
ARC is currently in the design phase of the project with hopes of beginning work in 2010 on the original structure, which was built in 1962. The $9–11 million educational facility should be 45 percent more energy efficient by the time it is completed in 2011 and will include features like improved building insulation and roofing, higher-efficiency doors and windows, and a closed-loop geothermal HVAC system. Low VOC materials will also be used, and a blend of hard/soft surfaces will provide spaces that are attentive to the rising number of students that suffer from asthma and allergies. Another ARC project under development is the South Dakota Game, Fish & Parks Outdoor Campus West. There is currently an existing campus in Sioux Falls, but a strong desire to have another campus in western South Dakota, brought ARC on board. “The design is literally built around the GF&P mission of developing, promoting, and educating about wildlife and their habitats. It is built in the beautiful Black Hills region of western South Dakota, which is laden with wonderful natural resources of both wildlife and habitats (streams, lakes, mountains, and forests),” Broberg says.
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LEFT: The Outdoor Campus West’s Interpretive Center used a wide range of materials selected to contribute to the unique space and to LEED certification. RIGHT: The site of the Outdoor Campus West, overlooking the existing pond, prior to construction.
The facility will be LEED Silver certified or higher, as South Dakota law mandates that all state facilities must achieve LEED Silver status. This won’t be a problem for ARC, which has focused on green building and sustainable design since its inception. Some of the green features include an energy-efficient building envelope and a geothermal HVAC system, occupancy sensors for light and heating controls, a range of recycled content materials including reclaimed Wyoming snow fence as an interior product, and a building design that emphasizes the connection of the GF&P mission to the outdoors as well as large expansive views and natural lighting for all of the public and corporate spaces. With more LEED projects in ARC’s future, Broberg hopes to implement more progressive, greener ideas as the company expands. The close-knit team recognizes they can only continue moving forward from here. “Balancing our growing experience with new ideas gets us to a place where we can take designs farther than we could even a few years ago,” Broberg says, “and hopefully even farther in the future.” gb&d
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“Going green, never looked so good.” CONSTRUCTION / MANAGEMENT / DEVELOPMENT
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yverson Tile & Stone is your complete source for the world’s finest materials. This gorgeous loft condo rehab project features products with recycled content from two of our many vendors who have embraced “Green” building trends. Whatever your style and whatever the budget, we are ready to help you exceed your client’s expectations.
• 4015 S. Western Avenue Sioux Falls, SD 57105 Phone: (605) 336-1175 • 1321 Concourse Drive Rapid City, SD 57703 Phone: (605) 348-6003 • 3345 7th Ave NW Fargo, ND 58102 Phone: (701) 277-9745
“We believe in the quality of execution.” 1300 South 51st Street, Richmond, CA 94804 510.412.9090
www.oliverandco.net
syversontileandstone.com
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solutions
working hand in hand is key Family-owned Oliver & Company Inc. succeeds in making sustainable beauty affordable environmentally friendly systems and design aspects have become easier to sell to clients as overall social awareness of the issue has increased in recent years. However, though many consumers and companies are only now beginning to understand the importance of sustainable practices, Oliver & Company Inc. has been using green-building techniques for more than 20 years, says Steven H. Oliver, CEO of the construction-management company. The company was environmentally friendly before green was [the] word people used to describe it, Oliver says. Green building has
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ABOVE: The Marin Country Day School in Corte Madera, CA, includes a green roof with a cistern to capture rainwater for plumbing systems, a cooling tower, photovoltaics, and solar hot water. Photos: Oliver & Company.
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Oliver & Company Inc.
Freight & Salvage Coffeehouse Berkeley, CA All existing wooden roof structures (trusses, girders, joists, and sheathing) were salvaged from the existing building. Trusses were rebuilt and incorporated into new structure. Joists and sheathing were cleaned, fire treated, and used as architectural paneling on the walls and ceilings in the auditorium, lobby, and offices. A living roof was installed on approximately half of the roof area. A planter contains a filtering system similar to the living roof and the water not treated by the living roof is treated by the filter. All stormwater is treated via the living roof or the planter filter system.
“Being environmentally friendly affects everything—from your image to the people you meet. You connect to them in a broader way than just your economic interests.” —Steven H. Oliver, CEO
now become important socially, and as a result “it is much easier to sell today than 20 years ago or even 10 years ago.” For instance, completing a LEED-certified building 10 years ago was impossible, but the company currently has five under construction. It completed another four last year alone, he says. These are 9 of the company’s total 15 LEED-certified projects. “There’s a huge interest in it now,” he says. The firm, which Oliver’s father founded in 1946, manages clients’ construction needs throughout the building process, from the initial land purchase to the final building inspection. It works hand-in-hand with architects and designers to ensure projects meet budget and schedule guidelines. “We have won awards for buildings of great beauty, but they all finish on time and on budget,” Oliver says. The architects “make it beautiful, and we make it affordable.”
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Oliver divides his team’s work between for-profit and non-profit clients that range from independent entrepreneurs to large-scale non-profit organizations. In the non-profit sector, typical projects include churches, museums, and affordable housing. On the for-profit side, projects include industrial warehouses, distribution facilities, and office buildings. Past ventures often drive the type of projects the firm takes on. “It’s often driven by clients we’ve had,” says Oliver, noting that 90 percent of the company’s projects come from referrals. For example, Oliver & Company is currently working on a private school, and the client has already referred the firm to a friend. Now the company is in talks with the new potential client for another school project. Oliver estimates that the company has completed more than 1,000 buildings overall, though the firm didn’t start tracking its
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solutions/construction management projects until the 1970s, Oliver explains. He puts the true total closer to 2,000 buildings. Of the company’s 140 employees, two are LEED accredited, and two are in the process of attaining the distinction. Oliver’s company uses multiple green techniques when working on projects. Renewable energy is very important, and the firm strives to implement sustainable heating-and-cooling systems that help take buildings “off the grid,” Oliver says. As is well understood in the building world, Oliver is tasked with educating and encouraging clients to consider sustainable systems. Elements that reduce gas and electric bills may cost more initially, but the client can see a return on the investment within between five and eight years, he says. It has helped that the cost of green building
is shrinking every day as more companies enter the field and competition drives down prices. An internal company practice is recycling supplies from construction sites. “We’re doing a lot of buildings where we are recycling the building materials,” Oliver explains. “We take some buildings apart and restore the timbers and beams and trusses before installing them once again in the building.” The result not only is cost effective but is architecturally desirable as well. Oliver includes sustainable aspects in projects everywhere he can, he says. Some commercial developers may be building warehouses and want “generic boxes” because they don’t know the end purpose of the space. But despite the need for flexibility, the developer can still prepare the space for energy
efficiency in a way that will satisfy a variety of different end users, and Oliver’s firm frequently encourages developers to take such a path. The company’s many successes are largely related to the quality of its employees, says Oliver, noting the firm is very much a family company. Many employees have been with the firm for more than 20 years—several more than 30 years. Though remaining successful is important, Oliver believes the company has reached a comfortable size for conducting quality business. “We’ve gotten as large as we want to be. If we start doing larger projects, it changes the way we staff each one,” he says. He intends to retain the hands-on approach that has kept Oliver & Company in business for more than 60 years. —by Meghan Boyer
visiting artist studios Sonoma County, CA Like the Walden Studios, geothermal coils at the bottom of small lake heat this project, which was selected by the Wall Street Journal as one of the five homes to appear in the article, A Decade’s Most Remarkable Homes. The two seemingly parallel poured-in-place concrete walls cut through the hill, diverging at the north and converging at the south. The stepped floor creates a shifting section through the building to accentuate the perspectival phenomena of elongation and foreshortening of space.
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solutions/building materials
fighting fire with foam
LEFT: This home was one of many rebuilt after the Angora Wildfire, which destroyed 250 homes. The concrete exterior makes it essentially fireproof, while the configuration of insulation and thermal mass make it extremely energy efficient.
The former firefighter behind 3D Smart Structures Inc. maintains the sustainability of fire-resistant structures and offers alternative building system jim bolton knows how devastating fire can be. As the director of Reno, Nevada’s Urban Search and Rescue team and a 20year fire-department veteran, he has seen his fair share of disasters. Almost ten years ago, Bolton started looking for fireproof products for his own home. The quest led Bolton to a unique paneling system that has become the basis for 3D Smart Structures Inc., which he incorporated in 2003. 3D Smart Structures builds homes using TridiPanels, which are resistant to fires, earthquakes, floods, and other natural disasters. As the concrete-and-foam panels are erected, walls form a solid bond without wood, which eliminates additional problems such as mold, mildew, and termites. Bolton says the product was developed more than 20 years ago but is rarely used in American construction. “The concrete shell is enormously strong and fire resistant. It just makes sense to build with this method,” he explains. After 3D built its first house, Bolton bought a distributorship for these prefabricated panels that contain a super-insulated core of polystyrene layered between engineered slabs of steel-welded wire-mesh fabric. Truss wires bisect the core to add strength. The process creates a three-dimensional panel that Bolton says can be used in lieu of wood, metal, and brick. Additionally, 3D offers a concrete additive that eliminates carbon dioxide, significantly increases compression strength, and helps the product perform in freezing temperatures. Although many builders overlook fireproofing, Bolton argues that the process is an important ingredient in sustainable construction. “More cities are expanding to border grassland and undeveloped forests. Homes
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3D PANEL DIAGRAM field applied concrete 2” x 2” wire mesh in different gauges— conforms with ASTM A1885 insulating core typically type 1 modified expanded polystyrene 9 gauge galvanized wire—conforms with ASTM A82
built with wood, paint, and other chemicals have lower ignition temperatures and are at higher risk of being destroyed,” he explains, noting that alternatively, concrete has a higher ignition temperature so flames won’t always cause it to burn or sustain combustion. “If a fire burns through the area rapidly, the concrete won’t catch fire like a traditional home would.” Unlike ICFs, TridiPanels are appropriate for every home surface. Bolton encourages builders to use the panels for roofs and floors because structures are then completed
without any combustible material. The concept resonates in and around the Reno area, where the Angora wildfire destroyed 250 homes in 2007. Area owners have hired Bolton to help rebuild three homes in the region. The TridiPanels are exceptional because they also boast energy-efficient properties, having been tested by the federal government’s lab at Oakridge. Although the products are used in many markets, results rank the panels as having the best energy configuration for materials used on residential structures. The
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solutions/building materials
3D Smart Structures Inc.
“The concrete shell is enormously strong and fire resistant. It just makes sense to build with this method.” —Jim Bolton, Owner
system is an effective configuration because it provides more surface area and puts thermal mass in contact with the outside temperature and inside living space while protecting it with insulation in the center. Bolton explains: “When the sun rises, the east side of the exterior takes in heat. As the sun moves throughout day, it warms the next part of the house. As the sun sets, the east side of the house is starting to release energy back out. All that while, the inside thermal mass stays consistent, keeping the interior temperature consistent.” The panels avoid thermal bridging because the thermal mass is divided by insulation, which is not the case with solid mediums like ICF and wood.
Bolton didn’t stop after launching his company with TridiPanels—he continued searching for other efficient and sustainable products. He now carries a top-performing window from a European company and also supplies solar panels for water heating. As he continues to educate himself, Bolton is also educating the public at events like West Coast Building’s convention. “I hope to use the distributorship as a way to educate others on the importance of fire resistance and energy efficiency,” he says. In fact, Bolton is starting a development corporation called Envirotech to bring his principles to larger facilities. A building constructed with 3D panels may cost a bit more up front, but Bolton argues that the rewards and benefits are many. When compared to a 2x6-frame house, he says, ICF construction costs 12–15 percent more whereas the overages with 3D Smart Structures are just 3–5 percent. 3D structures are almost 10 times stronger than traditional buildings and are built with less labor and less hardware. Though an average-size home might cost $5,000 more if built using
TridiPanels, maintenance costs are far less and the return on the investment is estimated at two years. This innovative, cost-effective safety solution isn’t only available in Nevada; Bolton can provide 3D products and services to all 50 states. Though the product is inherently green, Bolton has found ways to increase its sustainable qualities. Core material is made using recycled foam and all 3D steel comes from recycled vehicles. When the company cuts into panels to create doors and windows, the scraps are saved and used to create fences, retaining walls, and other elements. Bolton has even built a hot tub from scrap paneling. This creative thinking typifies 3D Smart Structures, as the entire company was born out of a desire to find a new and better method. Originally, Bolton was looking for a safe way to build his own house—what evolved was a full-service company that now provides a sustainable alternative to mainstream construction. —by Zach Baliva
Tested and proven to be the most energy efficient product on the market. Imagine a material designed to withstand even the fiercest of Mother Nature’s attacks. • 100% recycled, structural building panel • Concrete that eliminates CO2 emissions • Protection against Wildfire, Hurricanes, Earthquakes and Termites. • Solar hot water and radient floor heating. • Short cost recovery construction. There’s nothing we can’t create with the Tridi panel building system. Please visit our website for more information or give us a call.
smart structures inc. t: 775.742.0360 | f: 775.345.9902 | www.3dsmartstructures.com
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solutions/fuel storage
innovation underground Kinetik Industrial Group is the go-to constructor of eco-friendly fuel-storage solutions in florida, where 92 percent of the drinking water comes from groundwater, every underground fuel-tank leak is potentially catastrophic for the water supply. Distressingly, it’s estimated that the majority of tanks that have been in the ground for more than 15 years are continually leaking. This problem—one that affects every region, not just the Sunshine State—was deemed so severe that the federal government recently allocated $200 million to Florida alone for the purpose of cleaning up underground leaks. The state has in turn addressed the problem legislatively, by requiring that all new and
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replacement storage-tank systems be outfitted with secondary containment and setting a deadline of 2010 for all remaining singlewall systems to be replaced. All this puts Kinetik Industrial Group, a Miami company that specializes in providing comprehensive petroleum-storage facilities and storagetank-management services, in a good place: good for sales and for the people of Florida. “Florida is really at the forefront of environmentally responsible petroleum legislation,” says Ralph Calderon, co-president of Kinetik. “And in Florida, Kinetik is a market leader in petroleum-storage services. So we’re in a strong position to opine on this topic.” According to Lissette Calderon, Ralph’s sister and co-president, “This is quickly becoming a national movement, and our expertise in the area gives us credibility and allows us to influence aspects of the movement.” Kinetik’s credibility stems in part from its leaders’ 15 years of experience in the construction and development of energy-sector
projects. Over time, they began to envision what the next decade of energy construction might look like; two years ago, they determined that in order to be a leading energy contractor moving forward, they would need to be both vertically integrated and socially conscious. So they formed Kinetik and set about bringing together the areas of construction and storage in an environmentally sustainable manner. Today, the company, which employs 15–20 people, not including subcontracted employees, offers preconstruction and construction services for petroleum, natural-gas, and alternative-fuel projects. Clients include end users (such as a petroleum-dispensing facility) and storage facilities that hold fuel for eventual distribution. “The goal is to bring 21st-century solutions to the energy-contracting industry that will result in a cleaner, more sustainable future,” Lissette says. A typical job for Kinetik might entail being contracted by a large petroleum distributor to go into all the distributors’ gas stations
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solutions/fuel storage
Kinetik Industrial Group
“When we build, we’ve made it a habit to leave provisions in place to accommodate these new, alternative approaches to energy production.” —Lissette Calderon, Co-President
OPPOSITE PAGE: A Sunoco gas station Kinetik completed in 2009. RIGHT: Ralph and Lissette Calderon, co-presidents of Kinetik. MIDDLE: Kinetik strives to be the market leader in the environmental and construction industries delivering the best customer experience for clients, stakeholders, and employees. BOTTOM: Example of drilling equipment used by Kinetik.
that still use single-wall containments and install double-wall piping. “We show up, excavate the piping and tank work and all other existing components of the fuel system, gut it, and install the double containment—which is basically a tank within a tank,” Ralph explains. “We install these new systems to avoid future leaks, with monitoring components that alert the home office of the exact location of any leaks, and with technology that can actually contain the leak.” Stations are then built back up after the installation. More and more, Kinetik is looking at accommodating trends in alternative fuels. The company has developed its own selfcontained ethanol-fueling system, featuring an aboveground tank with a mounted dispenser that can be put on a trailer. “You just drop it on a site, connect to power, and soon you’re pumping with an alternative fuel,” Ralph says. The company is also working with clients to develop solar-photovoltaic systems for canopies at service stations and distribution stations, which could result in 25-percent reductions in energy and major monetary savings. With a number of municipalities making the switch to natural gas for public transportation, Kinetik is among those pioneering a mainstream method of fueling and operating in this area. “There’s constantly better technology and systems available to energy distribution—it’s just a matter of putting the pieces together to work in unison,” Lissette says. “When we build, whether it’s from the ground up or a renovation, we’ve made it a habit to leave provisions in place to accommodate these new approaches to alternative-energy production.”
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Kinetik has traditionally worked regionally— in Florida and throughout the Southeast. But as petroleum-storage legislation pops up in more and more states and at the federal level, the company sees far-reaching opportunities. By the end of 2010, it will have opened a new branch on the Pacific coast, where mandates similar to those in Florida are on the way. The location is strategic beyond California, as many other adjacent Southwestern states are set to adopt similar mandates soon as well. “We want to ensure that we continue to be a market leader in this area,” Lissette says. “We want to be a part of building the foundation for the future of transportation fuel. And we feel like we’re making a difference.” —by David Hudnall
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THE EVOLUTION OF ENERGY
mechanical & electrical service contractors
Kinetik Industrial Group A 21 Century Energy Contractor specializing in the design and construction of fueling facilities. st
call us today at
847.541.0029 TF 877.380.8283 www.kinetikgroupllc.com
251 Holbrook Drive | Wheeling, Illinois 60090-5826 | F: 847.541.0272
service after the sale is extremely important at Bornquist and that is what keeps customers coming back to us. With four factory trained service technicians and trucks available 24/7, we can provide all your requirements in servicing our products.
services: Warranty service start-Up service Parts smarts seminars Local repair parts inventory Pump fabrication shop equipment commissioning and surveys Little red schoolhouse Maintenance seminars 7050 N. Lehigh Ave. chicago, iL 60646 Phone: (773)774-2800 / Fax: (773)763-6534 email: bornquist@bornquist.com Website: www.bornquist.com
GBD Nov 2010 Therm Flo Inc - Bornquist 1/2.indd 1
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solutions/mechanical contracting
scientific data Under Therm Flo, Inc.’s contracting services, data rooms get the full energy-efficiency treatment it used to be thought that data rooms were green, due to the fact that our increasing reliance on electronic information saved paper. But now the struggle is to get those data rooms—those cold, buzzing closets where companies keeps hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of computer servers and other equipment—to function as sustainably as was always assumed. This new challenge is seen with optimism by Jeff Sode, vice president of Therm Flo, Inc., a Wheeling, Illinois, design-build mechanical contractor, who says that designing data rooms the right way can save energy—a lot of it. Therm Flo should know. The company designs and installs HVAC and electrical systems for commercial and light industrial businesses, but its niche market has become data rooms. “With every installation, we try to make a data room as energy efficient as possible through the design we create and the type of equipment we install,” Sode says. “One key feature is reducing the bypass air within the server rows so that the heat generated from the servers is directly forced into the air-conditioning equipment and expelled outside.” What that means, for those who aren’t intimately familiar with data rooms, is that the rooms, which have hot aisles and cold aisles, are designed in a way to keep air temperatures separate. The fronts of servers
“Nothing’s cheap, of course, but once clients see the payback, they pretty much embrace energy-efficient design and equipment.” —Jeff Sode, Vice President
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Mechanical Systems Fit for a Garden Although Therm-Flo is known for its data rooms, it’s a full-service mechanical contractor with a number of projects under its belt—including the mechanical services at the Chicago Botanic Garden’s Daniel F. and Ada L. Rice Plant Conservation Science Center. Managed by the Chicago Horticultural Society, the new 38,000-square-foot center—which will serve as a laboratory and research facility for the garden’s staff of 31 full-time scientists and research assistants—is on track to receive LEED Gold certification. According to Sode, the goal of the project was to deliver a high-performance building by maximizing the use of sustainable practices in the design and construction of the building. “The building was a great candidate for both radiant heating and cooling since the building design is elevated to provide natural drainage under the building, and therefore the floor is exposed to the outside,” he says. “There is also a heat-pipe system in the air handlers to temper the outside intake air, using the lab exhaust.” Therm-Flo installed two Aerco high-efficiency boilers, as well as radiant-floor tubing and manifolds by Rehau, for the project. Other HVAC system components included a Carrier 135-ton screw chiller that uses pond water for condenser water; Bell and Gossett pumps; Carrier air handlers; Titus VAV boxes; Dri-Steam gas-fired humidifiers; variable-frequency drives for the pumps and fan systems; and a Honeywell building automation system. “The design minimized the amount of energy required to operate the building, resulting in long-term savings to the owner,” Sode says. “We estimate the energy savings at approximately 15 percent.”
are placed along the cold aisles because the servers need to take in cold air to keep from overheating; hot air is then expelled out the backs of the servers into the hot aisles. “Cold aisles need to stay cold, and hot aisles needs to stay hot; you don’t want hot air mingling with cold air because that reduces efficiency of your air conditioning equipment,” Sode explains. “And it works in both directions. You don’t want cold air going into your air conditioning equipment, because that’s wasteful. And you don’t want hot air leaking into the cold aisle. So we make sure the aisles are delineated, then we take the air from the hot aisle and pull it back directly into the air conditioner.” Sode says the energy savings achieved from such a setup are typically in the range of 10– 20 percent. As one example, he cites a financial company in downtown Chicago that was running two 20-ton air conditioners. “By introducing a more effective concept—essentially, by pulling hot air directly into the air conditioners—we got to the point at which this company was only running one 20-ton air conditioning unit,” he says. “That reduced their energy consumption by 30 to 40 percent.”
Sode says clients are quick to embrace the systems Therm-Flo designs and installs, despite the cost. “Nothing’s cheap, of course, but once clients see the payback, they pretty much embrace energy-efficient design and equipment,” he notes. “We’ve seen companies running 30-horsepower motors utilizing only 50 percent of them—and by installing variable-frequency drives (VFDs), which are not cheap, they’ve seen a payback within a year or two. A 30-horsepower motor with a VFD running at 50 percent will use the same power as if it were a five-horsepower motor.” —by Julie Schaeffer
A MESSAGE FROM BORNQUIST Bornquist is proud to have professionals like Mike Klimek who work with quality contractors like Jeff Sode at Therm-Flo to deliver reliable, innovative, and energy-efficient system solutions to projects in the Chicago-land area. In this case, at The Chicago Botanic Gardens, the B&G Pumps and accessories, CEMLINE chilled water buffer fanks, and PEP filtration are part of a low-maintenance and energy-efficient hydronic heating and cooling system.
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solutions/plumbing
shifting the professional paradigm
a job is complete, Petri asks each client’s permission to be photographed for inclusion on the website. It is a level of service not typically found from a plumber, but one Petri is sure keeps his business at the top of its game.
Petri Plumbing & Heating, Inc. has a single vision: changing the way its profession is viewed
And he continues to up the ante. Petri is stepping up his game on another level—his company is the first licensed green plumber in New York City. Educating clients on methods to conserve water by more efficient usage and fixtures, Petri is steadily creating a niche in the green market. “Green is the way to go,” he says, noting that green plumbing concepts seem to be more readily accepted by clients in the 25–45 age range because they understand the impact of conservation and the carbon footprint. “Older people suffered the Great Depression, so money was an object,” he explains. “It’s more expensive to go green in plumbing, and many people are not ready for that.”
“petri plumbing & heating; how can i make you smile?” This is the greeting clients hear each time they call the Brooklyn, New York, company. The greeting is just one way Michael Petri is helping change the way the plumbing profession is viewed. “We want clients to have a world-class experience,” he says. “Our goal is to exceed expectations.” As president of Petri Plumbing & Heating, Inc., he has watched the family-owned company evolve and has been influential in bringing it into the 21st century with a focus on water conservation and other green initiatives. Started in 1906 by Petri’s great-grandfather, Petri Plumbing & Heating does residential and small commercial repair-and-maintenance work in the five boroughs of New York City. The unique value that Petri brings to each job is his knowledge of the industry and his ability to educate clients on the importance that plumbing has had throughout history. “Plumbing changed modern civilization. Before plumbing, all sorts of diseases impacted people. The plumber helps protect the health and welfare of the nation,” he says proudly. It’s a rare perspective—but one not difficult to understand and that has its full basis in history. Unfortunately for the industry, according to Petri, plumbers have been their own worst enemies because they haven’t taken their businesses to more professional levels. Customer service and education are priorities for Petri Plumbing & Heating. From the state-of-the-art vans to the shoe booties that each plumber wears before entering a home, Petri says his company philosophy is to service the customer beyond their expectations. He requires each of the plumbers on his staff to have polished shoes, be clean-shaven, and dress in a uniform. Once
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“We’re spoiled on the northeast coast. People believe there is an endless supply of water, but it’s our job to conserve it.” —Michael Petri, President
Yet, water and energy conservation practices do not have to be expensive, Petri says. A few simple lifestyle changes or inexpensive fixes could save consumers significant money in the long run: • using drip irrigation in landscaping instead of sprinklers, which can often cause overspray; • installing low-flow showerheads and toilets; • turning off the water hose when washing a car; • adding a timer to the water heater, particularly for tankless water heaters; and • not rinsing dishes before placing them in dishwasher. A member of GreenPlumbers USA—the US division of an Australia-based trade organization committed to water and energy conservation practices among plumbers worldwide—Petri finds that the East Coast is generally slower to adopt green developments than other states. “In California, they know about drought,” he says. “We’re spoiled on the northeast coast. People believe there is an endless supply of water, but it’s our job to conserve it.” Petri is doing his part to get his clients on the right page. Through the company’s website, as well as several social media sites, Petri Plumbing & Heating is sharing the information people need to know to make informed decisions about water conservation. “If you’re not in social media, you’re not in the game at all,” he says of the medium from which a large percentage of business comes; second only to word-of-mouth referrals. One could say that plumbing is in Petri’s genes, but it is clear that the clients are close to his heart. “It’s nice to be able to solve people’s problems,” he says, mentioning that an important part of that is having a well-trained staff that understands the company’s philosophy. “I love when a customer has something good to say about one of our staff.” And it seems the staff is always ready and willing to help, even at one o’clock in the morning. As Petri describes, a client had an emergency and called the office. The call was forwarded to Jeanne the receptionist, who sleepily answered, “Petri Plumbing & Heating; how can I make you smile?” Now that’s customer service. —by Anita R. Paul
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solutions/cleaning
merging concepts through maintenance Innovative green cleaning is the standard for fast-growing 2006 start-up Servi-Tek Janitorial Services you wouldn’t know from servi-tek Janitorial Services’ current success that it had such humble beginnings. The company was born in 2006, when two friends—Eric Friz, 49, and Kurt Lester, 46—met in an Encinitas, California, parking lot. The two friends, who had worked in the janitorialservices industry for more than 20 years, were partners in another organization but were unhappy—with their jobs and with each other—so they met to talk. “We were either going to go to blows or start our own company together,” Friz says. “By the time the conversation had ended, we had decided to start our own company.” It seemed like a workable concept given the friends’ experience in the industry, but money was a problem. For initial funding, Friz, Lester, and another friend—Bryan McMinn, who, at the time, was working for a software company and had significant financial expertise—each put up a little of his own cash for capital and pledged the equity in their houses as collateral. It was a big risk given that the company was just a concept, but the bet paid off: in March 2006, Servi-Tek Janitorial Services opened its doors without a single account. Today, the company’s work spans Southern California as well as Arizona, Hawaii, and Nevada and has more than 350 employees. According to Friz, the company was founded on two premises—environmental friendliness and technological innovation—both of which have played a big part in its widespread success. 1. Environmental Friendliness “When we started the company green cleaning was becoming a sexy way of selling janitorial services,” Friz says. With that in mind, the company began using environmentally friendly cleaning products and equipment
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(such as specialized vacuums and mops to improve air quality and reduce chemical usage) and commits to cleaning one floor at a time to save energy. What is unique about Servi-Tek’s approach, however, is that for this company, green cleaning is a standard, not an option. “We believe in standardizing everything the company does, so cleaning products and processes we use are the same everywhere,” Friz says. “As a result, we’re green everywhere. Unlike some companies who say they can do green cleaning, green cleaning is all we do.” 2. Technological Innovation Building on its green-cleaning expertise, Servi-Tek specializes in utilizing technology in its janitorial practices. The partners attribute much of the company’s growth to an online-tracking system called Servi-Trak. Developed in-house, the system lets clients use a Web-based portal to view detailed inspection reports of their facilities and create work orders in real time. “The concept came from a book I read years ago from a big entrepreneur sales guy, who said to try to put two things together that don’t go together,” Lester says. “I thought, Servi-Tek—service with technology—two things that typically didn’t work hand-in-hand.” Friz says that other systems, such as Tenant Handbook and Angus, touch on elements of Servi-Trak by allowing tenants to log on and report a maintenance problem, then sending that problem to technicians who can solve it. But Servi-Trak does much more. “We had to create our own platform because we wanted something that would do janitorial from cradle to grave,” says Friz. “We meet with tenants, find out what their needs are, load that information into Servi-Trak so it doesn’t get lost or diluted, translate that information to the native language of the folks who are doing the work for us, then download it.” The Result: Widespread Success As a result of its innovative two-fold approach, Servi-Tek went from no accounts to numerous accounts—very quickly. The company has signed some impressive contracts, in¬cluding Legoland California Resort, where Servi-Tek provides
ABOVE: Servi-Tek’s green cleaning methods are standard operating procedure and are changing the landscape of the building-service industry.
“Unlike some companies who say they can do green cleaning, green cleaning is all we do.” —Eric Friz, Owner janitorial, maintenance, and day-porter services for both a 128-acre theme park and its 36,000-square-foot aquarium. Since its founding, Servi-Tek’s revenues have grown substantially—from $1.5 million in 2006 to $4.8 million in 2008, in which it grew 229 percent, putting it at number five on the San Diego Business Journal’s list of fastestgrowing privately held companies. In 2009, its revenues reached $6.3 million. Despite its success, Servi-Tek continues to push for innovation. In the past year Friz and his partners hired two new programmers to update Servi-Trak and a public relations firm to make the company website more user friendly and capable of incorporating social marketing. “We really believe in constant improvement,” Friz says. “Just because we were successful last year doesn’t mean we can sit on our haunches, do exactly the same thing, and expect the same results.” —by Julie Schaeffer
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At Servi-Tek, we combine technology and a team approach to building services that ensures customer satisfaction. Our earth-friendly methods are changing the janitorial and landscape industry. We can can help you cut costs; expect substantial savings of at least 10%. Give us a call for a personal, no obligation assessment of your property, or visit us on the web at Servi-Tek.net to set up an appointment.
1-866-454-6185 info@servi-tek.net | www.servi-tek.net SHERW1518 Grass_AD_3.678x4.9375:BG&H 6/21/10 12:02 PM
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showrooms
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architect to watch
cindy grant
Extolling the value of aesthetics within the spectrum of architectural styles by James Askew
These days, with energy and water prices higher than ever and threatening to go higher, most new homeowners are thinking about energy efficiency. Cindy Grant is an architect in and around Los Angles, California, and she says that most of her clients do consider sustainable options when designing a home, though what option they choose differs from client to client. “A lot of times it has to do with cost,” Grant says, “but I think most people, if you present them with the opportunities, will at least make a conscientious decision to do it or not do it.” What Grant would like, however, is to see more people winding up in the ”do it” category. >
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Cindy Grant
“A lot of people, when they buy a new structure, want to put their imprint on it, but the more you can do to make sure that the bones of that structure are good, the less they are going to want to change it. Like those great historic houses, people buy them because they are beautiful and wouldn’t dream of tearing them down.”
1. The Interior of the Sherman Oaks home includes bamboo floors, west windows shaded by exterior bamboo trees, and operable skylights above for night cooling. 2. Interior view at Sherman Oaks’ south exposure. 3. South exposure of Sherman Oaks. 4. Evening view of Sherman Oaks. Cindy Grant specializes in custom residential and commercial projects, varying from remodels to new construction in both traditional and modern styles.
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Grant is the owner of Cindy Grant Architecture, Inc., a boutique architecture firm in Sherman Oaks, California, a San Fernando Valley district of Los Angles, just north of Bel Air. Grant’s passion and concern for the environment began when she was in her teens. As an undergraduate at the University of California-Santa Barbara, Grant began her schooling as an environmental-studies major but later transferred to the UCLA School of Design to study architecture and design. She then obtained her master’s degree at the UCLA Graduate School of Architecture and Urban Planning, concentrating on sustainable design. Throughout the next 14 years, Grant continued to develop her experience in both architecture and sustainable design, retaining a passionate interest in where these two often-disparate pursuits intersect. From her days spent at UCLA, Grant still recalls what she then considered a “rift” between the design and sustainability faculty, where aesthetics and sustainable designed was seen, by some, to be at odds. Much, of course, has changed since then, with sustainability and aesthetics now inseparable aspects of design. Grant founded Cindy Grant Architecture in 2005 with the expressed intent of focusing on sustainable residential design, and one of her core philosophies, she says, is that sustainability should not come at the sacrifice of an aesthetic design. “One really important element of sustainable design,” Grant says, “is to either preserve good architecture of the past or to make sure that you are designing architecture that will stand the test of time. A lot of people, when they buy a new structure, want to put their imprint on it, but the more you can do to make sure that the bones of that structure are good, the less they are going to want to change it. Like those great historic houses, people buy them because they are beautiful and wouldn’t dream of tearing them down.” Grant, however, also recognizes that beauty comes in many forms. “I don’t consider myself to have my own particular style,” she says. “I prefer to live in a modern space, but I very much appreciate good traditional architecture.”
architect to watch
Grant’s own space, in fact, is a stunning example of the intersection of beauty and sustainable design. With her husband, Grant designed and built the modern 2,400-square-foot home ten years ago. Large, double-height windows open to the south for passive solar gain in the winter, while overhanging sunscreens shield against the summer sun. The wood floors are bamboo, and low VOC paints and natural stains were used for the finishes. On the roof, a rooftop vegetable garden helps regulate the building’s temperature, a rainwater collection system drains into a fishpond in the back garden, and over-flow from the pond irrigates several garden fruit trees. Though Grant personally prefers her own home to be modern, her work on other projects spans the gamut of architectural styles and is often influenced by historical design motifs, some of which are centuries old. Take, for example, Grant’s design work for a recent Habitat for Humanity competition, held in conjunction with the Southern California chapter of the Institute of Classical Architecture (ICA). The challenge of the competition, Grant says, was to design an affordable home, in a Southern California vernacular, that could be constructed with volunteer labor for less than $150 per square foot. Grant worked with interior designer Brooke Gardener and architects Tierra Sol y Mar Inc. to design a 1,350-square-foot, strawbale Spanish Colonial that won the competition’s Best Overall Design and first place in the Spanish Colonial category. Grant says now that most people are on board with energy and water efficiency, her goal is to push sustainable design a step further. There are several reasons clients choose sustainable options: those interested in sustainable design from a personal motivation, for health and the money it can save, and those also concerned about the environment. “And now that I am doing my own work,” she says, “my goal is to inspire more clients to choose make sustainable choices in their designs.” gb&d
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last look
Ruin. Walls, floors, ceilings, and/or structural columns that appear in a raw state and blatantly expose scars gradually accumulated over time.
Slat. Screens composed of regularly spaced thin strips of material, typically wood, and oriented in either a horizontal or vertical direction.
Corrugate. The cladding of interior surfaces with corrugated sheet material.
Pompidou. Like its namesake building (Centre George Pompidou), Pompidou is high-tech, industrial aesthetic that exposes the skeleton and mechanical systems in an interior.
Billboard. A treatment for an entire planar surface as a blank canvas for art, text, graffiti, or photography. In some cases Billboard encompasses more than one plane.
Light Body. A large translucent threedimensional architectural object, or element, such as a column, that is lit fully from within to produce a glowing light. A Light Body is not planar.
Halo. Exists when an object is visually separated from a background plane through a concealed light. Illumination occurs on the background plane behind the majority of the perimeter of the object, thus throwing the object into relief.
Light Seam. The continuous edge of illumination created on the vertical wall planes through the use of Infinite Wall.
Color Flood. The practice of filling a volume of space with highly saturated colored light. The space, planes, furnishings, and occupants become imbued with the hue of light.
naming the unnamed Cornell University creates new vocabulary to define contemporary interior design “The Intypes approach gives credence and relevance to the history and legacy of interior design as a profession, as a discipline, and a viable and vital contribution to society as a whole,” says Cheryl Durst, executive vice president and CEO of IIDA. The Intypes Research and Teaching Project at Cornell University was founded to create a typology of archetypical interior design practices that have not been named, generates a designspecific vocabulary, and produces a new knowledge base from practice-led research. Archetypical design practices are appropriate to examine in relationship to sustainable principles, because some Intypes contain embedded non-sustainable traits. The project affords students and professionals the opportunity to identify design practices that are well entrenched in the culture, and it focuses on future opportunities for best practices in their design process and implementation. The project’s research is disseminated through a free and open Web database, intypes.cornell.edu, which was launched at NeoCon in 2009 by founding partners, the IIDA, and Interior Design. The easily navigated website offers an ever-expanding catalog of in-depth research and photographs of published interior-design work. Organized by practice areas, the research and website create a common language between academic research and professional practice. Studies are complete for apartment, artificial light, house, material, resort and spa, and restaurant. In process studies include: adaptive use, art museum, bar and club, healthcare, hotel, retail, showroom, transformational interior, and workplace. For questions or comments, e-mail professors Jan Jennings, Director, at jj20@cornell.edu or Kathleen Gibson, Director of Industry, at kjg4@cornell.edu.
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NeoCon® World’s Trade Fair Chicago June 13–15, 2011 neocon.com
IIDEX/NeoCon® Canada Toronto September 22–23, 2011 iidexneocon.com
NeoCon® East Baltimore December 15–16, 2010 neoconeast.com
National Exposition of Contract Furnishings To exhibit or register to attend, visit merchandisemartproperties.com or call 800.677.6278.
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