Two years ago, The Walsh Group, a $4 billion construction firm that traces its roots in Chicago back to 1898, found it needed more space for a new training and conference center. Unfortunately, there was no room at its West Loop headquarters for such a facility.
The fourth-generation, family-run firm could easily have built a new structure. Instead, the Walsh Group chose what it considered to be the more environmentally responsible path and rebuilt an underused 90-year-old warehouse/factory building. The project earned 86 points on the way to achieving LEED Platinum certification—at the time, the sixth-highest number of LEED points ever awarded.
PROJECT SUMMARY
WALSH GROUP TRAINING AND CONFERENCE CENTER
Chicago, Ill.Building Team
Submitting firm: The Walsh Group (owner)
Architect: Solomon Cordwell Buenz
Structural engineer: CS Associates Inc.
Mechanical/electrical engineer: McGuire Engineers Inc.
General contractor: Walsh Construction Co.General Information
Size: 93,000 sf
Construction cost: $24 million
Construction time: April 2010 to June 2011
Delivery method: Design-build
With its Building Team partners—architect Solomon Cordwell Buenz, structural engineer CS Associates, and M/E engineer McGuire Engineers—Walsh Construction, acting as its own contractor, turned the former automobile showroom and paperboard package facility into a 93,000-sf showcase of sustainable design and construction.
Most of the original three-story structure, including 30,000 bricks, was salvaged, and 96% of construction waste was diverted from landfill. A fourth story was added, and the designer created a central atrium that provides natural daylighting through a massive skylight in the roof.
Sustainable features included a vegetated roof, a rainwater recovery system, and smart building technology that allows for partially localized environmental control.
Sophisticated MEP systems were employed: an HVAC system that uses solar thermal technology to pre-heat outdoor air before being inducted into the air-handling units, resulting in a projected 42% savings in energy costs; boilers with an 88% efficiency rating; and chemical-free water treatment for the evaporative condenser. The building’s exhaust air provides primary heating for the garage.
In the opinion of BD+C’s Reconstruction Awards jury, The Walsh Group made the right decision, for itself and for its home town. +
Related Stories
| Apr 19, 2013
Must see: Shell of gutted church on stilts, 40 feet off the ground
Construction crews are going to extremes to save the ornate brick façade of the Provo (Utah) Tabernacle temple, which was ravaged by a fire in December 2010.
| Apr 18, 2013
Survey seeks info from managers of high-tech facilities
The International Institute for Sustainable Laboratories (I2SL), and Laney College in Oakland California, a National Science Foundation-funded Building Efficiency for a Sustainable Tomorrow (BEST) Center, are collaborating to identify education and training needs and strategies for high-tech facility operators.
| Apr 18, 2013
SOM, CASE team up to launch crowd-sourced apps library
SOM and CASE have formally launched AEC-APPS, the first crowd-sourced, web-based library for applications used by architects, engineers and construction professionals. This is a one-of-a-kind initiative in the AEC Industry and is a non-profit online community that allows digital tool users and toolmakers to share ideas, tips and resources.
| Apr 18, 2013
Calatrava projects encounter issues with water, structure, Guardian says
A dozen years after Calatrava built the spectacular Ysios winery in the rainy Alava region of northern Spain, the building's dramatic, undulating roof continues to let in the damp.
| Apr 17, 2013
Frank Lloyd Wright's Park Avenue showroom demolished
New York loses another architectural gem by Frank Lloyd Wright as new owner razes auto showroom.
| Apr 17, 2013
First look: Renzo Piano's glass-domed motion pictures museum
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences last week released preliminary plans for its $300 million Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences museum in Los Angeles, designed by Renzo Piano and local architect Zoltan Pali.
| Apr 16, 2013
5 projects that profited from insulated metal panels
From an orchid-shaped visitor center to California’s largest public works project, each of these projects benefited from IMP technology.
| Apr 16, 2013
AIA/NCARB survey shows rosier picture for emerging professionals
In 2010, the AIA/NCARB Internship and Career Survey of emerging professionals took a snapshot of young designers during a time ofintense economic contraction, when they were often the first to suffer. But in the two years since, emerging professionals have begun experiencing a rebound.
| Apr 15, 2013
Seattle school certified as world's fourth Living Building
Bertschi School, an independent elementary school in the Capitol Hill neighborhood of Seattle, Wash., is now home to the first Living Building on the West Coast and the world’s fourth fully-certified Living Building.
| Apr 15, 2013
Advanced lighting controls and exterior tactics for better illumination - AIA/CES course
To achieve the goals of sustainability and high performance, stakeholders in new construction and renovation projects must rein in energy consumption, including lighting. This course presents detailed information about lighting control strategies that contribute to energy efficient buildings and occupant well-being, as well as tips for lighting building exteriors effectively and efficiently.
