The Center for Sustainability at Johnson County Community College (JCCC), Overland Park, Kansas, set aggressive goals for the College, including becoming a 100% renewable energy campus by 2050. This commitment affected every building project on campus, including Galileo’s Pavilion, a 3,000-square-foot academic building. Super-efficient practices and products, including Mitsubishi Electric Cooling & Heating Variable Refrigerant Flow (VRF) technology, have made Galileo’s Pavilion a true showcase of sustainability and earned LEED® Platinum certification.
The JCCC contacted Studio 804, a not-for-profit in Lawrence, Kansas, comprised of KU School of Architecture, Design and Planning graduate students. These students design and construct technologically sophisticated, green buildings under the direction of Dan Rockhill, distinguished architecture professor and Studio 804 founder. Rockhill said, “We designed Galileo’s Pavilion using our current knowledge of sustainable design. We took advantage of the daily and seasonal cycles of nature to passively cool, heat and daylight the building, as well as supply electricity and utility water.”
For HVAC, Rockhill said, “We had three distinctly separate spaces. Although they’re in the same building, the loading on them is different. So that resulted in three separate air-conditioning and heating solutions” – or, zoning. “We pride ourselves on promoting sustainable everything, so HVAC is no exception.” VRF was the clear choice.
Rockhill had been impressed with Mitsubishi Electric VRF on a recent project. “Mitsubishi [Electric] is a leader in its field. Many of the others follow, but Mitsubishi [Electric] developed the variable refrigerant concept. For Galileo’s Pavilion, we wanted the most technologically advanced equipment in the industry. So VRF and its capacity to simultaneously cool and heat all of the spaces within the building was a fit.”
He continued, “Mitsubishi [Electric] was also very generous in working on the engineering aspect of the Center for Design Research. Mitsubishi [Electric] gets passive solar, and gets that it’s the sum of the total of all the parts that makes the systems positive. And there was never any pushback from them. It was always, “Yeah, that’s great.”
“Installation went quite well. The Mitsubishi [Electric] units are compact and easy enough to install that the whole thing really was pretty simple,” said Rockhill.
“The school monitors the whole thing,” explained Michael Rea, JCCC’s sustainability project manager, “through our building automation system. The Mitsubishi [Electric] system is integrated so we can see humidity or change set points, for example.”
He continued, “Everything with the Mitsubishi [Electric] system has been going well. No compressor failures, no leaks, no fan problems, nothing. Our maintenance is easy, too – just changing the filters and making sure the condensers are clean.”
Another sign of success: LEED Platinum certification. Rea said, “For us in the Center, we were excited to get above Silver, our current standard. Galileo’s Pavilion is a showcase about what a sustainable building can be on a campus. We were also honored to receive the 2013 CSI Kansas City Chapter Innovation in Sustainability Award for the building.”
Related Stories
Wood | Nov 1, 2022
A European manufacturer says its engineered wood products can store carbon for decades
Metsä Wood, a Finland-based manufacturer of engineered wood products, says its sustainable, material-efficient products can store carbon for decades, helping to combat climate change.
40 Under 40 | Oct 19, 2022
Meet the 40 Under 40 class of 2022
Each year, the editors of Building Design+Construction honor 40 architects engineers, contractors, and real estate developers as BD+C 40 Under 40 awards winners. These AEC professionals are recognized for their career achievements, passion for the AEC profession, involvement with AEC industry organizations, and service to their communities.
Green | Oct 5, 2022
In California, a public power provider’s new headquarters serves as a test case for an innovative microgrid and for reducing greenhouse gas emissions
Sonoma Clean Power (SCP), the public power provider for California’s Sonoma and Mendocino Counties, recently unveiled its new all-electric headquarters.
Resiliency | Sep 30, 2022
Designing buildings for wildfire defensibility
Wold Architects and Engineers' Senior Planner Ryan Downs, AIA, talks about how to make structures and communities more fire-resistant.
| Sep 23, 2022
High projected demand for new housing prompts debate on best climate-friendly materials
The number of people living in cities could increase to 80% of the total population by 2100. That could require more new construction between now and 2050 than all the construction done since the start of the industrial revolution.
| Sep 7, 2022
Use of GBCI building performance tools rapidly expanding
More than seven billion square feet of project space is now being tracked using Green Business Certification Inc.’s (GBCI’s) Arc performance platform.
| Aug 22, 2022
Less bad is no longer good enough
As we enter the next phase of our fight against climate change, I am cautiously optimistic about our sustainable future and the design industry’s ability to affect what the American Institute of Architects (AIA) calls the biggest challenge of our generation.
| Aug 19, 2022
Manassas Museum renovated to reimagine a civic design & engage the community
Manassas, VA has recently added to its historic Manassas Museum.
Daylighting | Aug 18, 2022
Lisa Heschong on 'Thermal and Visual Delight in Architecture'
Lisa Heschong, FIES, discusses her books, "Thermal Delight in Architecture" and "Visual Delight in Architecture," with BD+C's Rob Cassidy.
| Aug 16, 2022
DOE funds 18 projects developing tech to enable buildings to store carbon
The Department of Energy announced $39 million in awards for 18 projects that are developing technologies to transform buildings into net carbon storage structures.