SolarWall Success |
| Released on May 17 2011 |
| SolarWall News >> Media |
Source: Construction Canada (May 2011) By: Birgit Siber, B. Arch., OAA, RAIC, LEE
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When the ribbon was cut earlier this year to open the CANMET Materials Technology Laboratory at Hamilton's McMaster Innovation Park (MIP), that ceremonial snip ushered in nothing less than a new approach to laboratory and industrial research facility design.
Natural Resources Canada (NRCAN) wanted its football field¬sized lab complex to be a showpiece of sustainable technology in the heart of the country's steel sector. As a centre of metallurgical research and development to support industry, CANMET's message would be unequivocal-industry can rise to the challenge and lead by example to counter the effects of climate change.
This author, a principal at Toronto-based Diamond and Schmitt Architects, was part of the project team. The CANMET facility was not the first building her firm designed with a Platinum rating in its sight; the Algonquin College Centre for Construction Excellence (opening in Ottawa) and the Centre for Green Cities at Toronto's Evergreen Brick Works are both targeting the highest level of performance within the Canada Green Building Council's (CaGBC's) Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) rating system. However, as each project engendered tailor-made solutions specific to its locale and program, the Hamilton laboratory entailed unique solutions.
CANMET was particularly demanding due to its complex industrial program, ranging from pilot scale casting, rolling, forming, and welding to corrosion and mechanical testing and microstructure evaluations. Aside from requiring the basics of leading-edge labs, a safe and flexible work environment, this building had to strive for something approaching energy self-sufficiency. It is still early, but CANMET is well on its way.
This article delves into the thinking behind the interconnectivity of the facility's passive initiatives and the building systems at work. It also highlights the solar wall system-one of the areas where the building is achieving some remarkable results.
Setting goals
The key to any sustainable design initiative is integrating the various components that serve the same goal: namely, reducing the energy load and minimizing operating costs without compromising functionality. By their very nature, research facilities consume significant energy and volumes of air for heating and cooling. However, CANMET is designed to lower energy consumption by as much as 70 per cent relative to the Model National Energy Code for Buildings (MNECB).
Last changed:May 17 2011
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