Environmental Design + Construction - October 2008 - (Page 10) NEWSLINE ELEMENTARY SCHOOL RECOGNIZED FOR SUSTAINABLE DESIGN, CONSTRUCTION ACHIEVEMENTS ronment is healthy and comfortable as well as that it provides a high level of indoor air quality, effective lighting, thermal comfort and suitable acoustic conditions. Key environmental features of the building include a state-of-the-art evaporative system to address its cooling load and allow for the elementary school to be air-conditioned year-round, a super-insulated building envelope, high-efficiency boilers and operative windows that ensure 90 percent of the building’s space will be day lit. For more information, visit www.thegbi.org. NEW VENTILATION DESIGN REQUIREMENTS FOR HEALTHCARE FACILITIES Atlanta — Requirements to ensure high-quality ventilation can be found in a new standard written by ASHRAE and the American Society for Healthcare Engineering (ASHE). ANSI/ASHRAE/ASHE Standard 170-2008, Ventilation of Health Care Facilities, defines ventilation system design requirements that provide environmental control for comfort, as well as infection and odor control. The standard is the first ANSI standard in the nation to specifically address ventilation in healthcare facilities and is available for adoption by various authorities for healthcare facility construction such as city, state and federal Timnath, Colo. — The Green Building Initiative (GBI) recognized Poudre School District’s Bethke Elementary School, a 63,000-squarefoot, two-story building, for its achievements in sustainable design and construction, which were identified using the Green Globes environmental assessment and rating system for commercial buildings The school was recognized for, among other things: • Outstanding achievements in integrated design, which ensured a team approach was used throughout the progressive stages of the design process and involved collaboration between the project’s architect, engineers, consultants and other stakeholders; • The minimization of the building’s energy consumption through the integration of energy-efficient systems and renewable energy as well as alternatives to automobile transportation; and • Ensuring that the building’s indoor envi- ENERGY STAR CHANGES BY JUDITH M. PETERS, LEED AP ENERGY STAR, THE NATIONAL ENERGY PERFORMANCE RATING SYSTEM SPONSORED BY THE UNITED STATES ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY (EPA), HAS UNDERGONE A SIGNIFICANT REVISION EFFECTIVE OCTOBER 2007. COMMERCIAL BUILDING OWNERS AND PROPERTY MANAGERS WHO PREVIOUSLY STRUGGLED WITH A LOW ENERGY STAR SCORE MIGHT BE PLEASANTLY SURPRISED BY RECENT CHANGES IN THE RATING CALCULATIONS. PRIOR TO THE OCTOBER 2007 REVISION, LKPB ENGINEERS, INC. (LKPB) NOTICED THAT BUILDINGS WITH ATTACHED PARKING GARAGES RECEIVED LOWER RATINGS THAN THEIR COUNTERPARTS WITHOUT PARKING GARAGES. FURTHER INVESTIGATION REVEALED THAT THE PRESENCE OF A PARKING GARAGE RESULTED IN A SIGNIFICANT DETERIORATION IN A BUILDING’S ENERGY STAR RATING. FOR THE SAME INPUTTED ENERGY, LARGER SQUARE FOOTAGE (BUILDING PLUS PARKING RAMP) RESULTED IN A LOWER RATING THAN JUST THE BUILDING ALONE. WHEN BROUGHT TO THE ATTENTION OF MEMBERS OF THE EPA TECHNICAL STAFF, THEY REVIEWED THEIR RATING SYSTEM AND PROMISED TO RESOLVE THE ISSUE IN THE OCTOBER 2007 REVISION. FROM LKPB’S PRELIMINARY TEST CASES, IT APPEARS THAT THE PROBLEM HAS BEEN CORRECTED. AS ONE EXAMPLE, SEPTEMBER CALCULATIONS ON A BLOOMINGTON, MINN., OFFICE TOWER RESULTED IN AN ENERGY STAR RATING OF 65. RECALCULATIONS IN DECEMBER RESULTED IN AN ENERGY STAR RATING OF 85. THE TOWER PREVIOUSLY FELL SHORT OF THE 75 THRESHOLD, BUT NOW QUALIFIES FOR THE ENERGY STAR DESIGNATION. BUILDING OWNERS AND PROPERTY MANAGERS WITH COMMERCIAL BUILDINGS THAT HAVE ATTACHED PARKING GARAGES SHOULD BE ENCOURAGED TO RESUBMIT THEIR ENERGY STAR DATA AS SOON AS POSSIBLE TO SEE IF THEIR RATING IMPROVES. THE ENERGY STAR RATING SYSTEM CONTINUES TO BE BASED ON DATA FROM THE COMMERCIAL BUILDING ENERGY CONSUMPTION SURVEY (CBECS). THIS SURVEY SAMPLE OF MORE THAN 6,000 BUILDINGS ACROSS THE UNITED STATES IS CONDUCTED EVERY FOUR YEARS BY THE UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY’S ENERGY INFORMATION ADMINISTRATION. THE SURVEY COLLECTS COMPLETE BILLING DATA AND OPERATIONAL DETAILS FOR A WIDE VARIETY OF COMMERCIAL BUILDING TYPES. WWW.EDCMAG.COM A COMMON MISCONCEPTION IS THAT ENERGY STAR PERFORMANCE RATINGS ARE BASED ON INFORMATION FROM OTHER BUILDINGS THAT APPLY FOR THE ENERGY STAR RATING THROUGH ITS ON-LINE PORTFOLIO MANAGER. THE RATING IS ACTUALLY BASED SOLELY ON THE DATA COLLECTED BY THE CBECS AND THE AFOREMENTIONED FORMULA. JUDITH M. PETERS, LEED AP, IS AN ENGINEER WITH LKPB ENGINEERS, INC., A CONSULTING FIRM IN SAINT PAUL, MINN., THAT HELPS PUBLIC AND PRIVATE CLIENTS WITH THEIR MECHANICAL AND ELECTRICAL DESIGN NEEDS. 10 http://www.thegbi.org http://www.EDCmag.com
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