Energy Efficiency and Water Self-Sufficiency in remote locations

In the summer of 2011, the Churchill Northern Studies Centre in northern Manitoba, moved into its new 2600m2 facility. The building is designed for 88 visiting scientists and 12 staff working year-round on sub-arctic scientific research and education. The goals for the new facility were to lower utility and operating costs, create a high-performance building that showcases best practice green building engineering design, meet the unique needs of a remote research building in a harsh northern climate, and meet budgetary and time constraints.

By Richard Lay

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Reno/addition creates new image for healing organization

This project consists of a two-storey, 4700m2 addition to an existing rehab hospital on a treed 9.5 hectare site in North Toronto. The hospital was originally owned and run by the Sisters of St. John the Divine who purchased the property in the 1930s so that the hospital could enjoy the benefits of the rural surroundings outside of the city centre. Since that time, the city has grown up around the hospital, but the large park-like site has been largely preserved.

By Terry Montgomery and Tye Farrow

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Spec building revitalizes moribund city block

This high-density office building set in a transitional area of downtown Victoria responds to twin challenges of how could a speculative office development help revitalize a moribund area and enrich the community at large; and how could the economics of typical high-rise office developments be made to work in a mid-rise, green building format.

By Franc D’Ambrosio

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It is becoming increasingly recognized that the majority of the building stock that will be in use in 20 or 30 years time is already built. This has brought the importance of addressing the sustainability of existing buildings to the attention of many in the construction industry.

By Dr. Mark Gorgolewski and Richard Roos

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Public-private partnership a model for sustainable projects

This major redevelopment project was made possible through a very unique and innovative transaction between the Toronto School Board and Tridel Builders. This partnership was designed to leverage construction funding for a replacement school facility by integrating it with a new residential development.

By Susan Spencer Lewin

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Lighting Retrofit of the Social Sciences Centre, University of Western Ontario

Located in London, Ontario, the University of Western Ontario has 239 faculty members, over 6,400 undergraduates and 550 graduate students.  The University has 76 buildings – many dating from the 1970s and earlier. As with many older structures, automation or energy control systems were not installed when the buildings were first constructed. As is common at many universities, lights remain on 24/7 all year long.  As a result, the cost of lighting classrooms, hallways and common areas can represent as much as 30% of the University’s total utility bill during prime operating periods.

By Daniel Noiseux

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Care of the Earth embedded in every design decision

An important goal of this project was to gain a deep understanding of the client’s vision and ideology and thus, through a process of collaboration, achieve an architecture that transcribes the gracious faith of he Sisters, their service to humanity and their commitment to ecology.

By Stephen Teeple

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In the past, architects have relied heavily on industry supplied data when designing and assembling different parts of a building. The majority of the time, the components of a typical wall in Canada are derived from several manufactures, each supplying the performance data for the material itself, but not taking into account other materials in the assembly. The reality is that after the final product is constructed, the wall may behave in a fundamentally different way because of how the materials react to one another in the seasonal Canadian environment.

By Mark Driedger, Melissa Smith and Eranga De Zoysa

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Samuel Brighouse Elementary School is a replacement K-7 school located in a single-family
neighbourhood in Richmond, BC. Construction of the new school followed a seismic analysis of the existing structure, which determined that upgrading to current code standards was not economically feasible and that deconstruction of all but the gymnasium was the most practical approach to renewal. Accommodating an enrolment of 505 students, the two-storey 4,777-square-metre structure includes classrooms, administration space, a library, community space, and a renovated gymnasium.

By Robert Drew

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Even in the innovative and rapidly changing world of green building, some of the old ways and traditional materials are often the best. For thousands of years, natural clay and lime plasters have been used to create beautiful and long-lasting interior and exterior finishes. While these materials continue to be used extensively throughout the world, they have been largely replaced in North America by cement and acrylic stuccos.

By Peter McGee

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