As a company, DPR Construction has a deep-seated commitment to sustainability, its employees, and the communities it serves. A couple of years ago, when the lease for its Phoenix office came up, the firm seized the opportunity to create an ultra-green environment for its 101-person Phoenix office and field staff.
Working with A/E firm SmithGroupJJR, DPR converted a vacant 16,533-sf one-time “adult-themed boutique” in the city’s reemerging Discovery Triangle into a LEED-NC Platinum office, one that is on target to be the first net-zero commercial office building in Arizona.
The Building Team—including sustainability consultant DNV KEMA and consulting structural engineer PK Associates—forged numerous paths to energy reduction. They used an 87-foot zinc-clad solar chimney to create a convection current that draws air into the building through four evaporative cooling “shower towers” equipped with internal misters and showerheads. The pre-cooled air then flows through the open office space, and hot air exhausts back through the chimney.
PROJECT SUMMARY
DPR CONSTRUCTION, PHOENIX REGIONAL OFFICE
Phoenix, Ariz.Building Team
Submitting firm: SmithGroupJJR (architect/MEP engineer), in conjunction with DPR Construction (owner/developer/GC)
Structural engineer: PK Associates Consulting Structural Engineers
Sustainability consultant: DNV KEMA Energy & SustainabilityGeneral Information
Size: 16,533 sf
Construction cost: $3,762,000
Construction time: February 2011 to October 2011
Delivery method: Design-build
Twelve eight-foot-diameter fans, three oversized roll-up doors, and 87 operable windows installed along the east and north façades further support the building’s passive cooling system. Eighty-two solar optical tubes bring additional daylight into the workspace, helping to cut artificial lighting by 70%.
LEDs provide exterior site lighting, but the team decided against using LEDs on the interior because they did not meet the project goal of a maximum 10-year return on investment. A phantom-load reduction “vampire” switch cuts off 90% of plug loads at night.
The tally: Net energy use intensity was cut to 28.85 kBtu/sf/year; lighting power density was reduced to 0.96 watts/sf. Net-zero energy was achieved through the installation of a 79.6 kW PV-covered canopy over half the parking lot.
To further its commitment to the community, DPR has opened its building to host meetings for local business groups, students, and nonprofit organizations. +
Related Stories
| Nov 10, 2011
Skanska Moss to expand and renovate Greenville-Spartanburg International Airport
The multi-phase terminal improvement program consists of an overall expansion to the airport’s footprint and major renovations to the existing airport terminal.
| Nov 10, 2011
Suffolk Construction awarded MBTA transit facility and streetscape project
The 21,000-sf project will feature construction of a cable-stayed pedestrian bridge over Ocean Avenue, an elevated plaza deck above Wonderland MBTA Station, a central plaza, and an at-grade pedestrian crossing over Revere Beach Boulevard
| Nov 10, 2011
Thornton Tomasetti’s Joseph and Choi to co-chair the Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat’s Outrigger Design Working Group
Design guide will describe in detail the application of outriggers within the lateral load resisting systems of tall buildings, effects on building behavior and recommendations for design.
| Nov 9, 2011
Lincoln Center Pavilion wins national architecture and engineering award
The project team members include owner Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts, New York; design architect and interior designer of the restaurant, Diller Scofidio + Renfro, New York; executive architect, FXFOWLE, New York; and architect and interior designer of the film center, Rockwell Group, New York; structural engineer Arup (AISC Member), New York; and general contractor Turner Construction Company (AISC Member), New York.
| Nov 9, 2011
Sika Sarnafil Roof Recycling Program recognized by Society of Plastics Engineers
Program leads the industry in recovering and recycling roofing membrane into new roofing products.
| Nov 9, 2011
American Standard Brands joins the Hospitality Sustainable Purchasing Consortium
American Standard will collaborate with other organizations to build an industry-wide sustainability performance index.
| Nov 8, 2011
Transforming a landmark coastal resort
Originally built in 1973, the building had received several alterations over the years but the progressive deterioration caused by the harsh salt water environment had never been addressed.
| Nov 8, 2011
WEB EXCLUSIVE: Moisture-related failures in agglomerated floor tiles
Agglomerated tiles offer an appealing appearance similar to natural stone at a lower cost. To achieve successful installations, manufacturers should provide design data for moisture-related dimensional changes, specifiers should require in-situ moisture testing similar to those used for other flooring materials, and the industry should develop standards for fabrication and installation of agglomerated tiles.
