A new 96,000-sf building designed by B+H Architects and mcCallumSather will provide students of Ontario’s Mohawk College with solar-powered state-of-the-art labs, workshops, open study spaces, and a lecture theater when construction completes in 2018.
The Joyce Centre for Partnership & Innovation will become one of the first net-zero energy institutional buildings in the region. The architects worked with manufacturers and building scientists to develop a new curtain wall system that incorporates isolation gaskets in order to achieve the energy conservation targets. This new curtain wall system has an effective R20 thermal performance.
Rendering courtesy of B+H + mcCallumSather.
The new building will be powered by solar panel “wings” on top of the four-story structuure. “We really wanted to elevate the concept of capturing the sun’s energy and making it a design feature as opposed to a series of panels that are going on the roof,” says Joanne McCallem, Director and Co-Founder of mcCallumSather. These solar wings become the most distinctive aspect of the design.
Inside of the building, a large atria flows into modular classrooms that are organized around a central common area. The layout encourages social learning. The architects want the design to make people aware of the energy they use and force them to change their habits. For example, visitors will not be able to leave their laptop plugged in for hours on end throughout the day.
Rendering courtesy of B+H + mcCallumSather.
The Joyce Centre for Partnership & Innovation is expected to be ready for students for the fall 2018 term.
Rendering courtesy of B+H + mcCallumSather.
Related Stories
| Jun 18, 2013
Report: HVAC occupancy sensors could slash building energy demand by 18%
Researchers at the DOE's Pacific Northwest National Laboratory conclude that significant energy savings can be achieved by varying ventilation levels based on the number of people in a given space.
| Jun 17, 2013
DOE launches database on energy performance of 60,000 buildings
The Energy Department today launched a new Buildings Performance Database, the largest free, publicly available database of residential and commercial building energy performance information.
| Jun 5, 2013
USGBC: Free LEED certification for projects in new markets
In an effort to accelerate sustainable development around the world, the U.S. Green Building Council is offering free LEED certification to the first projects to certify in the 112 countries where LEED has yet to take root.
| May 28, 2013
LED lighting's risks and rewards
LED lighting technology provides unique advantages, but it’s also important to understand its limitations for optimized application.
| May 9, 2013
Post-tornado Greensburg, Kan., leads world in LEED-certified buildings per capita
Six years after a tornado virtually wiped out the town, Greensburg, Kan., is the world's leading community in LEED-certified buildings per capita.
| May 3, 2013
'LEED for all GSA buildings,' says GSA Green Building Advisory Committee
The Green Building Advisory Committee established by the General Services Administration, officially recommended to GSA that the LEED green building certification system be used for all GSA buildings as the best measure of building efficiency.
| Apr 25, 2013
Colorado State University, DLR Group team to study 12 high-performance schools
DLR Group and the Institute for the Built Environment at Colorado State University have collaborated on a research project to evaluate the effect of green school design on occupants and long-term building performance.
| Apr 22, 2013
Top 10 green building projects for 2013 [slideshow]
The AIA's Committee on the Environment selected its top ten examples of sustainable architecture and green design solutions that protect and enhance the environment.
| 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 12, 2013
Nation's first 'food forest' planned in Seattle
Seattle's Beacon Food Forest project is transforming a seven-acre lot in the city’s Beacon Hill neighborhood into a self-sustaining, edible public park.