Public Power - September 2008 - (Page 38)

Greater Glass, Greater Savings Multi-Cavity, Suspended Film Insulating Glass Near You Multi-cavity, suspended film insulating glass technology has yielded energy savings around the world since its introduction in 1981. Mountain View Public Library, California This 60,000-square-foot facility in the Silicon Valley significantly downsized its HVAC system as a result of using over 6,000 square feet of internally suspended film insulating glass. 284 Barracks Fort, Wainwright, Fairbanks, Alaska One hundred and fifty windows containing Argon gas and equipped with over 3,000 square feet of suspended film insulating glass were installed in this U.S. Army facility in 2008. Museum of Flight, Seattle, Wash. This six-story glass and steel exhibit hall, located adjacent to historic Boeing Field, houses 30 full-size aircraft, many of which are visible through 90,000 square feet of suspended film insulating glass. Glass selection played an important role in the building’s compliance with stringent energy code requirements. Mount Rushmore Visitor Center, South Dakota Seeking to preserve the majesty of what has been called the greatest mountain carving in the world, the National Park Service selected 8,200 square feet of suspended film insulating glass to provide maximum insulation in South Dakota’s harsh winter. The technology’s very limited light reflectivity optimizes visitor viewing especially at night when the mountain is illuminated. Hyatt Regency, Cambridge, Mass. Turning the top floor of a parking garage into a glass-enclosed swimming pool for guests and swim club members demanded a glass that would tame the chill of New England winters. The choice: 4,500 square feet of suspended film insulating glass. Belgian Princess Elisabeth Polar Research Station, Antarctica Open for research duties between November and February, the International Polar Foundation facility is home to as many as 20 researchers whose comfort, well-being, and productivity is enhanced by daylighting via 35 fixed suspended film insulating glass units. As the first zero-emissions polar research station, it is 20 times more energy-efficient than typical facilities in the Antarctic. struction. In addition to superior insulating performance, suspended film insulating glass blocks ultraviolet radiation, reduces noise and increases occupant comfort more effectively than low-e glass alone. Windows perform two major energyconserving functions. First, they impede the flow of heat. In winter, the warm air is trying to get out. In summer, the warm air is trying to get in. A window’s ability to insulate—or block the transfer of heat—in either direction is a measure of its ability to save energy and reduce carbon emissions. “Heat reflective” low-e coatings were initially designed to impede the flow of heat 38 SEPTEMBER 2008 and increase insulation performance. Second, windows need to reduce the solar radiation caused when the glass heats up. Because solar radiation occupies a different wavelength than the heat from a furnace or the heat in the outdoor air, “solar reflective” low-e coatings have been designed specifically to reflect solar heat. This means low-e coatings are not all equal. Many only impede heat transfer, providing insulation against heat loss. Others reflect direct solar radiation that often is a problem for homes and commercial properties with significant glass on their south and west sides. Fortunately, both generic low-e glass and suspended film insulating glass units can be equipped with both types of low-e coatings, simultaneously providing maximum insulating performance and the ability to reflect solar radiation. Glass equipped with dual performing coatings should be the standard in buildings that require both heating and cooling. Electric utility managers should know that insulating glass technologies superior to standard low-e glass enable the selection of more energy-efficient glass as part of a building’s integrated energy conservation system. With its performance capabilities, suspended film insulating glass offers an opportunity for a project to positively influence the U.S. Green Building Council’s (USGBC’s) Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) program. The thermal and solar shading performance of suspended film insulating glass allows for glazing solutions that can help achieve up to 21 LEED credits, or 54 percent and 40 percent, respectively, of the total required credits for gold and platinum certification. (There are four levels of LEED certification: certified, silver, gold and platinum.) For instance, the selection of suspended film insulating glass at Manheim Township High School in Lancaster County, Pa., played a key role in the school’s ability to quality for a LEED silver designation. This high school consists of renovated and newly constructed buildings totaling 432,000 square feet. The use of suspended film insulating glass enabled project engineers to specify a smaller HVAC system, which provided considerable up-front cost savings, making high performance insulating glass much more attractive than otherwise would have been the case. The suspended film insulating glass cost Mannheim about three times more than that of generic low-e glass, but it cut annual energy costs by 40 percent, bringing a payback of 11.5 years. But the payback fell to 6.5 years when the reduced up-front costs for a smaller HVAC system were factored in. The smaller HVAC system shaved $90,000 off of the up-front investment. For electric utilities, installing energy efficient windows and enticing customers with financial incentives to build more effiPUBLIC POWER

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Public Power - September 2008

Public Power - September 2008 Contents Perspective 10 Questions What’s Good About RTOs? Capturing Coal’s Carbon Carbon Safety Valves Greater Glass, Greater Savings Getting Customers to Embrace Compact Fluorescent Lights LEEDing Green Kansas City Shows How to Build Green For Governing Boards Safety Community Broadband Hometown Connections Parting Shot

Public Power - September 2008

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