The American Institute of Architects (AIA) and its Committee on the Environment (COTE) have selected the U.S. General Services Administrationās (GSA) Federal Center South Building 1202 in Seattle, as the recipient of the Top Ten Plus award. The Top Ten Plus, now its third year, recognizes one past AIA COTE Top Ten Project Award recipient which has quantifiable metrics that demonstrate the true impact the sustainable design has achieved.
The Federal Center South Building 1202, designed by ZGF Architects LLP and built by Sellen Construction, was selected in 2013 as a recipient of the AIA/COTE Top Ten Project Award program. More information on the design elements and images are available here.
The redevelopment project was part of the 2009 American Recovery and Reinvestment Act and was delivered on time and within the original $72 million budget. The new building transformed a previously toxic brownfield into a new standard for a high-performance, cost-effective, and sustainable workplace environment for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. Far from typical in government projects, the design and construction of the facility was completed in just 31 months as part of a rapid project delivery model.
Ā
Ā
Following a one-year measurement and verification period, it was established that the buildingās energy performance is meeting the goal of more than 30% better than ASHRAE 90.1āthe benchmark for commercial building energy codes in the U.S.
After the first year, the facilityās metered energy performance has met every design target, including the contractually required energy performance and the AIA 2030 Commitment. At of the end of last year, the Federal Center South building was using 61% less energy than the national average for similar buildings and 46% less water than a current plumbing code defined baseline.
āThis project demonstrates the success of performance-oriented contracting and the value of both energy modeling and post-occupancy monitoring,ā said Todd Stine, AIA, partner at ZGF Architects LLP. āThe energy modeling done in the design phase showed a $55,000 energy cost savings each year associated with the high-performance systems integrated into the building. The post-occupancy evaluation looked at energy and workplace performance and has been crucial in determining how to best optimize all facets of how the building was intended to function.ā
The COTE Top Ten Plus jury commented, āWe admired ZGF Architects for their persistence over time to improve both their understanding of the planned performance of the building and its actual performance; they were genuinely curious about how the building was working out. There are signs of science and research in the relationship between daylighting and employee performance, along with evidence that the building has caused an enhanced environmental culture amongst its occupants.ā
Ā
Ā
āThe AIA COTE+ recognition is an honor and a testament to the teamwork between GSA, ZGF, and Sellen Construction to build a facility that not only exceeds GSAās sustainability goals but delivers bottom line results that will save taxpayers money for years to come,ā said GSA Regional Administrator George Northcroft.
To further enhance the buildingās sustainable performance, the team developed, tested and evaluated enhancements to the base design during the design and construction of the project so that the GSA could incorporate upgrades into the project as funding became available. Through this process, the team was able to add rainwater harvesting, a geothermal system, enhanced lighting controls, an energy dashboard and improved glass in the main skylight.
This project was designed to meet GSAās requirement for a building with a 50-year minimum lifespan, and mechanical equipment that lasts a minimum of 20 years. The campus site can also accommodate the 30-yearexpansion and redevelopment requirements for a number of federal agencies.
Ā
Related Stories
| Nov 29, 2010
Data Centers: Keeping Energy, Security in Check
Power consumption for data centers doubled from 2000 and 2006, and it is anticipated to double again by 2011, making these mission-critical facilities the nationās largest commercial user of electric power. Major technology companies, notably Hewlett-Packard, Cisco Systems, and International Business Machines, are investing heavily in new data centers. HP, which acquired technology services provider EDS in 2008, announced in June that it would be closing many of its older data centers and would be building new, more highly optimized centers around the world.
| Nov 29, 2010
Renovating for Sustainability
Motivated by the prospect of increased property values, reduced utility bills, and an interest in jumping on the sustainability bandwagon, a noted upturn in green building upgrades is helping designers and real estate developers stay busy while waiting for the economy to recover. In fact, many of the larger property management outfits have set up teams to undertake projects seeking LEED for Existing Buildings: Operations & Maintenance (LEED-EBOM, also referred to as LEED-EB), a certification by the U.S. Green Building Council.
| Nov 23, 2010
Honeywell's School Energy and Environment Survey: 68% of districts delayed or eliminated improvements because of economy
Results of Honeywell's second annual āSchool Energy and Environment Surveyā reveal that almost 90% of school leaders see a direct link between the quality and performance of school facilities, and student achievement. However, districts face several obstacles when it comes to keeping their buildings up to date and well maintained. For example, 68% of school districts have either delayed or eliminated building improvements in response to the economic downturn.
| Nov 16, 2010
Brazil Olympics spurring green construction
Brazil's green building industry will expand in the coming years, spurred by construction of low-impact venues being built for the 2016 Olympics. The International Olympic Committee requires arenas built for the 2016 games in Rio de Janeiro meet international standards for low-carbon emissions and energy efficiency. This has boosted local interest in developing real estate with lower environmental impact than existing buildings. The timing couldnāt be better: the Brazilian government is just beginning its long-term infrastructure expansion program.
| Nov 16, 2010
Green building market grows 50% in two years; Green Outlook 2011 report
The U.S. green building market is up 50% from 2008 to 2010āfrom $42 billion to $55 billion-$71 billion, according to McGraw-Hill Construction's Green Outlook 2011: Green Trends Driving Growth report. Today, a third of all new nonresidential construction is green; in five years, nonresidential green building activity is expected to triple, representing $120 billion to $145 billion in new construction.
| Nov 16, 2010
Calculating office building performance? Yep, thereās an app for that
123 Zero build is a free tool for calculating the performance of a market-ready carbon-neutral office building design. The app estimates the discounted payback for constructing a zero emissions office building in any U.S. location, including the investment needed for photovoltaics to offset annual carbon emissions, payback calculations, estimated first costs for a highly energy efficient building, photovoltaic costs, discount rates, and user-specified fuel escalation rates.
| Nov 16, 2010
Where can your firm beat the recession? Try any of these 10 places
Wondering where condos and rental apartments will be needed? Where companies are looking to rent office space? Where people will need hotel rooms, retail stores, and restaurants? Newsweek compiled a list of the 10 American cities best situated for economic recovery. The cities fall into three basic groups: Texas, the New Silicon Valleys, and the Heartland Honeys. Welcome to the recovery.
| Nov 16, 2010
Landscape architecture challenges AndrĆ©s Duanyās Congress for New Urbanism
AndrĆ©s Duany, founder of the Congress for the New Urbanism, adopted the ideas, vision,Ā and values of the early 20th Century landscape architects/planners John Nolen and Frederick Law Olmsted, Jr., to launch a movement that led to more than 300 new towns, regional plans, and community revitalization project commissions for his firm. However, now that thereās a societal buyerās remorse about New Urbanism, Duany is coming up against a movement that sees landscape architectureānot architectureāas the design medium more capable of organizing the city and enhancing the urban experience.