ATLANTA – Buildings designed for a range of occupant types and uses – including penguins, patients, skaters, students, government employees and water testers – are being recognized for innovative design with ASHRAE Technology Awards.

The awards recognize outstanding achievements by ASHRAE members and building owners who have successfully applied innovative building design.  Their designs incorporate ASHRAE standards for effective energy management and indoor air quality and serve to communicate innovative systems design. Winning projects are selected from entries earning regional awards.

First place awards are presented at the ASHRAE 2015 Winter Conference, Jan. 24-28, Chicago, Ill.  

Following are summaries of the nine projects receiving first place.

Antarctica: Empire of the Penguin

William C. Weinaug Jr., P.E., vice president, exp U.S. Services Inc., Maitland, Fla., receives first place in the existing industry facilities or processes category for the Antarctica Empire of the Penguin animal exhibit and ride attraction, Orlando, Fla. The facility is owned by Sea World Parks and Entertainment Inc.

The building includes a 6,000 square foot immersive dark ride and penguin exhibit in a 30,000 square foot space, including spaces for bird holding, brooding and life support systems. The project included a major expansion and renovation to an existing penguin encounter, with a portion of the original space, animal pools and life support spaces reused to save costs.

When creating a 32°F space in hot and humid Orlando, the efficiency of the systems and envelope is crucial.   The facility is designed to minimize energy use while providing a habitat for penguins to thrive.

Another important factor in design is indoor air quality for both penguins and guests. In regard to thermal comfort, the criteria were driven by birds’ comfort instead of humans. Human comfort was measured by how well odors were controlled, particularly guest perception of the natural odor of penguin guano. Designers also had to protect the birds from mold and fungi not common to their native environment.

The facility contains many innovative systems, such as use of condenser water for heating and defrosting of iced coils. To ensure proper envelope was maintained while allowing thousands of people to flow through the building, sally ports and quick acting doors were added to keep cold in and moisture out. For the queue, ride and exhibit spaces; control and concern focused on dew point. Self-contained liquid desiccant air conditioning units were used to control the space dew point by creating cold and dry air as efficiently as possible.

Centre Civique de Dollard-des-Ormeaux

Kateri Héon, Ing., project manager; and Pietro Guerra, Ing., mechanical-electrical director; exp, Montreal, Quebec, receive first place in the existing other institutional buildings category for Centre Civique de Dollard-des-Ormeaux, Quebec. The building is owned by the Ville de Dollard-des-Ormeaux.

The 225,000 square foot building features three National Hockey League regulation-size skating rinks, swimming pools, the town’s city hall and library and a cultural center.

An energy efficiency program was developed to increase the performance of the refrigeration system for the three indoor rinks and then to recover the energy rejected from the center compressors to heat the building. The design team chose a system that featured a direct carbon dioxide heating and regeneration of a dehumidifier desiccant wheel, which is the first time this system has been used in a rink in North America. The system also is the first to use carbon dioxide in a multi-rink complex and the first to use carbon dioxide to cool the brine, thereby avoiding having to re-do the slabs in the rinks.

Other efficiency measures included:

Four-pass brine distribution reduces by more than 50 percent the brine pump power compared to the old two-pass distribution.

Low-e ceiling above the skating rinks to limit the radiative heat exchange between the hot ice rinks ceiling and the cold ice sheets.

Expanded water storage by the use of an existing 600-L tank to accumulate preheated domestic hot water.

New dehumidifiers for the pool using heat pipes to preheat entering air and energy recovery system.

Sensitive energy recuperators on the exhaust vents for the arena and pool changing rooms to preheat fresh air.

The annual electricity savings for the project totaled $247,000 or a 31 percent cost reduction from the previous baseline. Achieving a return on investment will take approximately 8.3 years. The implementation of recovery and energy saving measures decreases overall consumption by 4.7 million kWh.

Federal Center South – Building 12021

Benjamin Frank Gozart, engineer; Tom Marseille, P.E., managing director; WSP; Charles Chaloeicheep, P.E., WSP Built Ecology; Seattle, Wash.; Tom Boysen Jr., P.E., senior project manager, Sellen Construction, Seattle, Wash.; receive first place in the new commercial buildings category for Federal Center South, Building 12021, Seattle, Wash. The building is owned by the U.S. General Services Administration.

Federal Center South is a three-story, 209,000 square foot facility with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Seattle District as the exclusive tenant.

The project used an integrated design approach that focused on energy conservation measures vs. expensive on-site energy generation strategies.  Floor depth, façade design and daylighting are optimized to reduce heating and cooling requirements and the amount of artificial lighting. Several innovative technologies are included: passive chilled sails; thermal storage using phase change material; a 100 percent outside air ventilation system with heat recovery of exhaust serving a raised floor ventilation air distribution system; and heat recovery chillers tied to a high efficiency low temperature heating/high temperature cooling hydronic system.

The project includes use of ground loop heat exchange piping in almost 50 percent of the building’s grout-filled steel pipe piles that provide needed structural support for the building. These 100 tons of “energy piles” efficiently reject waste heat and extract heat from the ground. In the summer, waste heat is rejected into the ground as a priority over an evaporative fluid cooler to save both energy and water. In the winter, heat is extracted from the ground and elevated to useful temperatures for heating the building through the use of the heat recovery chillers. The ground loop heat exchanger improves the building’s energy use intensity substantially, reduces the building’s carbon footprint and saves water.

The total building energy cost usage was shown to be 40.5 percent less than the ASHRAE baseline. The yearly total building energy cost was modeled at $80,740 compared to baseline of $135,791.

Janesville Ice Arena Addition and Renovation

Jason Troy LaRosh, P.E., mechanical engineer, Angus-Young Associates, Janesville, Wis., receives first place in the existing public assembly category for the Janesville Ice Arena addition and renovation. The building is owned by the City of Janesville.

The project included renovation of the existing 26,000 square foot arena with the addition of 2,000 square feet that included new locker rooms, an ice resurfacing melt pit and resurfacing equipment storage area.

The original ice refrigeration system, installed in 1964, was a direct refrigeration system that used R-22 refrigerant circulated in piping embedded in the floor. The new system incorporates a pond loop geothermal system to handle the high refrigeration needs of the arena. The system uses a city owned pond as thermal storage to pull and reject heat to the ice refrigeration system which is made up of three water source heat pumps. The use of a pond loop geothermal system as it relates to an ice sheet refrigeration system is unique as the system takes advantage of the pond’s ability to maintain relatively constant temperatures.

The water source heat pumps use R-410A refrigerant, which does not contain bromine or chlorine and is considered a non-ozone depleting refrigerant. The geothermal system transfers energy to and from the pond without burning fossil fuels.

The updates to the building energy systems resulted in an annual natural gas energy savings of 33.5 percent from 2010 to 2013. The overall facility energy usage intensity was reduced by 24.1 percent: from 234.6 kbtu/square foot per year in 2010 to 178 kbtu/square foot per year in 2013.

Peace Island Medical Center

Mark Stavig, P.E., principal, CDi+Mazzetti, Lynnwood, Wash., receives first place in the new health care facilities category for Peace Island Medical Center, San Juan Island, Wash. The building is owned by PeaceHealth.

The building, a 40,000 square foot high performance, critical access hospital and clinic, contains 10 inpatient beds, emergency and imaging areas, surgery departments and an ambulatory outpatient clinic with a cancer care center.

Island resources are limited, which made sustainable choices vital and simple design necessary. The mechanical system was designed to use only electricity, the only available energy source on the island. The project employs numerous energy efficiency measures and achieves an average EUI of 87.7 kBtu/square foot per year.

Passive design strategies provide for load reductions and facilitate natural ventilation. A conscious effort was made to reduce cooling demand resulting from building envelope and plug loads. The orientation allows for controlled penetration of sun for passive solar heat in exam and waiting areas. Unwanted heat gain is minimized on the east and west exposures. Heat gain from solar is further controlled with the use of appropriate overhangs. Roofs are sloped to the south allowing for future installations of solar collectors. A major contributor to energy reduction was the use of decentralized systems sized to specific loads. This approach allows for systems to be tailored to the individual needs of each program area.

Other measures include operable windows, a ground source heat pump, a variable air volume system and heat recovery ventilators.

Tacoma Center for Urban Waters

Matthew William Longsine, P.E., associate, and Henry Di Gregorio, senior vice president, WSP, Seattle, Wash., receive first place in the new other institutional buildings category for the Tacoma Center for Urban Waters, Tacoma, Wash. The building is owned by the National Development Council, HEDC Public-Private Partnerships on behalf of the City of Tacoma.

The 51,000 square foot lab facility functions as a shared research facility for the City of Tacoma, the University of Washington and Puget Sound Partnership. It focuses on receiving and analyzing water samples from the waterways of Tacoma and surrounding areas.

Design features include heat recovery, energy efficient lighting, daylighting, natural ventilation, radiant floors, low-e glass and exterior operable shading, variable air volume low flow fume hoods, low flow plumbing fixtures, rainwater harvesting, green roof and energy efficiency HVAC&R components.

One of most innovative features is a geoexchange system. At depths below 12 feet, the earth is typically at a relatively constant temperature compared with the surrounding air (approximately 55°F in the Puget Sound Region). When feasible, this makes it an ideal medium to either reject heat from the building in the cooling cycle, or draw energy from the earth for heating the building. The geoexchange ground loop will last the life of the building without requiring replacement.

Another innovative component is rainwater harvesting. Two 36,000 gallon water storage tanks sit outside the building and collect both rainwater and rejected purified lab water which are used for toilet flushing and irrigation. Combined with low flow plumbing fixtures, this project provides a 46 percent reduction in water use.

Valley Middle School

Brian Haugk, P.E., mechanical principal, and Brian Cannon, mechanical senior associate, Hargis Engineers Inc., Seattle, Wash., receive first place in the new educational facilities category for Valley View Middle School, Snohomish, Wash. The school is owned by Snohomish School District No. 201.

The directive from the school district was to build on experience gained from two previous highly sustainable school projects and to make the building as energy efficient and maintenance‐friendly as possible.

A ground source system sized for 100 percent of the central plant heating and cooling capacity was selected. A water-to-water heat pump (WWHP) allowed the design team to utilize displacement ventilation, which requires very tight discharge air temperature control to maintain occupant comfort, only achievable with a WWHP system. This project was one of the first to use this technology in the region and fully integrate the factory controls with the building energy management system (EMS).

An EMS based energy dashboard system with touch screen monitors at multiple locations allows staff and students to learn about the sustainable features of the building. To further spark the interest of the student population, the EMS metering design of the lighting, plug and HVAC systems allowed for competition zones to be created in two classroom pods. This allows students to interact with the building systems to see what kind of impact they have on the overall energy usage.

The project saw a reduction in greenhouse gas emissions of 530 metric ton carbon dioxide equivalent reduction based on northwest region utility average emissions and 1,079 metric ton carbon dioxide equivalent reduction based on national utility average emissions.

Wayne N. Aspinall Federal Building and U.S Courthouse

Roger (Jui-Chen) Chang, P.E., BEMP, principal and director of engineering and sustainability, Westlake Reed Leskosky, Washington, D.C., receives first place in the existing commercial buildings category for the Wayne N. Aspinall Federal Building and U.S. Courthouse, Grand Junction, Colo. The building is owned by the U.S. General Services Administration, Rocky Mountain Region and was completed by WRL with The Beck Group.

The project converted a 1918 landmark into one of the most energy efficient, sustainable historic buildings in the country. To meet aggressive performance goals, including energy independence and energy efficiency, design included:

a roof canopy-mounted 123 kW photovoltaic array (generating electricity on-site to power 15 average homes)

addition of spray foam and rigid insulation to building shell

storm windows with solar control film to reduce demand on HVAC

variable-refrigerant flow heating and cooling systems tied to a 32-well geoexchange loop;

a dedicated outdoor air system with evaporative cooling and heat recover, wireless controls, and fluorescent and LED lighting upgrades

The project not only preserved a piece of cultural heritage and an anchor in the Grand Junction community, but also converted this 96-year-old property into one of the most sustainable and energy efficient buildings in the General Service Administration’s portfolio, showcasing how innovative technology and building preservation work hand-in-hand to create sustainable design.

Westhills Recreation Center

Art Sutherland, president, Accent Refrigeration Systems, Victoria, British Columbia, receives first place in the new public assembly category for the Westhills Recreation Center, Langford, British Columbia. The building is owned by the City of Langford.

The 75,000 square foot recreation facility includes a National Hockey League size indoor ice rink, an outdoor ice rink, a skating trail joining the two together, a bowling alley, offices and a restaurant.

The mechanical system for the three ice surfaces are integrated into the building HVAC system to the extent that no fossil fuels are used for the facility other than in the kitchen. The outdoor rink offers an interesting energy balance opportunity in winter by providing additional rejected energy during the heating season. Even with the extensive use of energy, only 40 percent of the waste energy is required within the complex. The remaining 60 percent is pumped 400 yards to the growing Westhills housing development as an energy source for their household heat pumps.

The project turned a typical arena sub-floor heating system into an enhanced geothermal field. It is the first in North America to use new ultra high efficient reciprocating compressors and the first total integration between an ice facility and an entire community. The center also is the first in North America to utilize ammonia heat pumps to heat a housing community and is one of only a few ammonia based air conditioning systems.

ASHRAE, founded in 1894, is a global society advancing human well-being through sustainable technology for the built environment. The Society and its more than 50,000 members worldwide focus on building systems, energy efficiency, indoor air quality, refrigeration and sustainability. Through research, standards writing, publishing, certification and continuing education, ASHRAE shapes tomorrow’s built environment today. More information can be found at www.ashrae.org/news.