Controls are the brains of a building and are responsible for the performance of the mechanical and lighting systems. Because these systems are the primary consumers of building energy, the controls must be well designed, commissioned and maintained if energy performance is to meet design expectations.
By Richard Lay, Stan Holko,Tim Dietrich and John Kokko
by Robert Malczyk
Retrofitting urban areas to be greener is one of the most important aspects of sustainable development - but our cities have been designed to an earlier paradigm and dismantling the legislation that created and perpetuates them will be quite a trick.
By Jim Taggart
Nestled in BC’s Coast Mountains, and one of the world’s premier skiing destinations, the Resort Municipality of Whistler [RMOW] has a resident population of around 10,000. Seasonal workers increase this number to more than 20,000 during the skiing season. Weekenders, who own recreational property in the area, constitute the third significant element of Whistler’s unusual demographic. When these weekenders are in residence and tourist accommodation is full, the town can reach a population of 55,000.
Since the establishment of the RMOW in the 1970s, the cultural life of the municipality has been strongly connected to the environment. Principles of environmental stewardship were formalized in 2000, when RMOW became one of the first municipalities in North America to adopt the ‘Natural Step [TNS] program’ as a way of guiding its policy-making and development toward the goal of community sustainability.
Developed in Sweden in 1989, the overall objective of TNS framework is to maintain the natural balance of the Earth’s ecosystems through stewardship of resources and minimizing the negative impact of human activity – strategies dependent on social and economic systems that give individuals the power of choice. These strategies form the basis of RMOW’s community development plan known as Whistler 2020 that has been recognized internationally for its leadership in this area. Among its many attributes, Whistler has an extensive network of walking and cycling trails and a free public transit system.
The Whistler Public Library was established in 1984 and, in the absence of a suitable permanent facility, was located temporarily in two portable buildings near the town centre. After a long campaign to raise public awareness and funds for the project, the creation of a new 1,350m2 [14,500sf] library facility was designated as the RMOW’s millennium project.
The new building occupies a prominent corner location in the centre of Whistler, close to the main pedestrian route known as the Village stroll, and benefiting from unobstructed views of the adjacent park and distant mountains.
To give the building a civic presence on a site that slopes steeply down from Main Street, the-L-shaped library structure has been set on a podium that accommodates a parking garage and end of trip bicycle facility. To preserve the views, the remainder of the program has been arranged on a single level and maintains a low profile with a shallow shed roof.
Low at the entrance lobby with deep overhangs protecting the south-facing windows, the roof rises to the northwest where a high performance window wall floods the reading room with natural light. Although the shallow roof fit with both the urban design and environmental objectives of the project, its departure from Whistler’s chalet tradition was controversial.
Designing the roof structure was also challenging as it was required to carry not only the 250kg/m2 [50lb/sf] of an intensive green roof, but an 815kg/m2 [160lb/sf] live snow load. A conventional glulam and purlin structure would have required a depth of more than 1.5m [5ft], increasing the internal volume and external surface area of the building, and impacting both capital and operating costs.
As an alternative, structural engineers Fast + Epp devised a solid wood solution using locally available 100 x 300 [4x12] hemlock timbers. These were staggered horizontally and vertically and lag screw laminated to form prefabricated panels that could free span up to 13.5m [44ft] across the library, with a depth of only 400mm [16in]. This solution appeared to address the structural and life cycle cost concerns, particularly as the material was locally sourced, processed and fabricated.
The soffit of the hemlock panels is left unfinished and exposed internally, part of a palette of natural materials and finishes that also includes local stone, western red cedar siding, low VOC millwork and paints. The north-facing window wall is composed of high efficiency double glazing that reduces heat loss while admitting copious quantities of natural light. This potentially reduces the building’s dependence on artificial lighting and reduces lighting energy consumption.
The library has a geothermal heating system that uses 17 boreholes to extract heat from the ground during the heating season, and to dispose of excess heat during the summer months. A displacement ventilation system introduces conditioned air through a raised floor, delivering heating or cooling directly into the occupied zone of the building. High efficiency hot water radiators add to the comfort of the study carrel areas. Cross ventilation is achieved through operable windows, controlled automatically by sensors.
In addition to its quantitative environmental benefits, the Whistler Public Library has made a qualitative difference to the community, and has quickly become a de facto living room for local residents and seasonal workers alike.
Jim taggart, mraic is the editor of sabmag
Credits:
Project Performance:
Materials:
Andrew Frontini and Richard
Hammond
Claudette McKay Lassonde was an innovator in Canadian Engineering and instrumental in raising the profile of women in engineering practice and education. It is fitting that the addition to the UWO engineering school that bears her name, is equally committed to the spirit of innovation. Read the rest of this entry »
by Hugh Perry and Jim Taggart
In our very seasonal Canadian climate, home designers, builders and homeowners have to balance the desire for large windows that give style, views and natural light with the need to conserve energy. This article reviews the essential things to consider in choosing and sizing windows for a new home, or replacing old windows.
Andrew Oding and Chris Higgins
In Issue 1 of SABHomes, we provided an overview of the new LEED Canada for Homes rating system for single family homes and multifamily homes up to three stories. In this article we will describe what builders and homeowners can expect when embarking on a LEED Canada for Homes project.
by Oscar Flechas
While there is a lot of talk about reducing fossil fuel consumption to mitigate climate change, the reality is that conservation measures are roughly proportional to the price that consumers pay for energy. So it is not surprising that in Europe, where energy can cost about four times as much as it does in Canada, that energy conservation standards for houses are far more stringent than ours.
by Christine Lolley
A sustainable home should first and foremost be built to last using high-quality materials. Its design must take into account site conditions and take advantage of passive solar design strategies.
by Vince Catalli
The traditional model for the design, construction, operation, decommissioning, demolition and disposal of a building is a linear, sequence in which new materials, products and building systems are created at the beginning of a project and discarded at the end. Read the rest of this entry »
by Hugh Perry
Environmental groups were promoting the benefits of solar heating long before the federal government introduced its solar program in 1975. Over the next few years, domestic solar systems appeared on many buildings across Canada. But the program soon died from lack of commitment and maintenance. The infrastructure had not been as well established as it is now, 30 years later.