Design & Construction process
The Challenges of Net Zero Energy When It's Bigger than a Breadbox
Municipalities and other owners of large buildings are increasingly setting their sites on net-zero. This session will feature a case study of the 190,000sf Martin Luther King, Jr. School, the first of the Cambridge public schools to target NZE. Presenters will discuss the process, content and tools used at design workshops and user group meetings to gather, analyze, ideate and integrate information into design solutions while also facilitating cultural and behavioral change among users. They will highlight the challenges and gritty details involved in shepherding both this project and others—including issues related to codes, day-lighting, systems selection, load management, maintenance, and product selection. Attendees will learn what worked, what didn’t, and why.
Aiming at Zero: The Struggle to Get There
Everyone is talking about getting to zero energy by 2030. It’s easy to say, but very hard to do. What is the process and how do we ratchet down our EUI on each project? How can goal setting and Client priorities influence energy use and building performance? Can we actually get to zero? This lively moderated panel discussion will include the Architect, Engineer, and Owner/ Client on Weygand Hall at Bridgewater State University (completed in 2013) and on Keene State College (currently under construction). We will address the planning, design, and results of both projects as well as the ZNEB pilot study completed simultaneously with Weygand Hall. We will show best practices and lessons learned from each experience. We will focus on the continuum of these projects over time, how each process and learning experience influenced the next, and how this iterative approach leads to better energy performance and keeps us on track for 2030.
Success through Quality Management: Building a Stronger Company
Quality experts estimate that 25-40% of dollars spent by typical businesses is waste. Companies focused on quality spend less, reduce waste, cut operating costs, and invest in processes that result in: greater profits; stronger financial position; improved competitive capabilities; operational stability; greater customer success/satisfaction, and setting trends for the industry. Simply put, no service-based industry has ever made less money by doing things right the first time. For owners, partners, operation managers, and supervisors.
A Prototype Visualization Tool for Hygrothermal Analysis
Recent developments in the field of building simulation and computing power are allowing architects to effectively move performance analysis of designs into the early stages of the design process. These developments aim to allow for the rapid iteration of design solutions that examine various performance criteria. This presentation describes a prototype tool that can serve as a platform to merge large amounts of building performance simulation data coupling various performance criteria. A case study using the prototype tool that uses WUFI engine to simulate moisture movement and analyze the related risk for mold growth and for building component failure using ASHRAE standards. The conclusions show that key insights can be quickly obtained using this tool, demonstrating its potential to increase our understanding of building performance. It also lays the groundwork for a more seamless integration of hygrothermal modeling into the whole building analysis process.
Mainstreaming Resilience: Making Resilient Design Standard Practice
While few argue about the importance of resilience in an age of climate change (with more intense storms, rising sea levels, more frequent drought, and worsening heat waves), there remains little focus on resilient design in building codes, zoning bylaws, and voluntary building rating systems, such as Passive House, Living Building Challenge, and LEED. In this interactive session, the presenters will lead a discussion about how to make resilient design more of a mainstream focus. They will report on inherent resilience aspects of Passive House, recent changes to the Living Building Challenge that address resilience, and new LEED pilot credits.
When You Come to a Fork, Take It. Residential Choices and Performance
Decisons, decisions. Residential design is always part education, part therapy, and part architecture. This panel will showcase the work of two designers and a builder who have climbed high on the residential decision-making tree. Architect Chris Briley will explore the challenges of two Passive House projects, in the same climate, with different clients, as he worked with each to come to different conclusions and different strategies for the same high performance target. Jesse Selman and Kent Hicks (architect and builder) will discuss the complex process of navigating the sometimes conflicting goals of high performance, thoughtful design, and the needs of a client with an existing building, a beautiful site, and multiple chemical sensitivities.
Widening the Circle in High Performance Residential Design
Every project is a learning experience. On some projects, we set out deliberately to learn new tricks. Mark Doughty, a luxury home builder near Boston, sought out Zero Energy Design to help him design his own home. With ZED's Jordan Goldman, he got first hand experience in high performance home design, and will discuss how what he learned may influence what he builds for others. Architect Hank Keating sought out Mike Duclos, of DEAP Energy Group, to help him through his first Passive House project. From concept, construction and certification, Mike and Hank worked together to develop passive house strategies for a working farm, and to walk the talk through the sometimes steep learning curve that is Passive design.
On Eggshells: Residential Retrofits in Tricky Situations
Seasoned practitioners tackle the difficulties of residential Deep Energy Retrofits. When an architect experienced with Net Zero and Deep Energy Retrofits (DERs) spends his own money on his house, things get tricky. Starting with a house that used 700 gallons of oil, Tom Hartman’s been working on it for fifteen years. Now it’s not quite super-insulated, pretty air tight, once haunted by flying squirrels, but now using almost no oil. With a young family whose financial priorities did not include a whole house renovation; this project is a case study of a DGR- damn good renovation. Outside Boston, David Foley and Paul Eldrenkamp ought to know better, but decide anyhow to attempt a DER on a 1928 home they thought WASN’T located in Historic Preservation District. This panel discussion will address the challenges – political, economic, and technical – of high performing renovations in existing housing stock.
Moving Iconic Buildings into the 21st Century
This panel will present the in-depth story how each of their three buildings were upgraded to protect use, design, and quality. The presenters will dive into the details of how they have modernized the buildings without losing the integrity of the original design and how they managed a seamless transition for the users.
The Building Process as Infrastructure
Every building is tied to a series of infrastructure systems through government, wires, cables, energy, and humans. In this session an architect examines the "meta-infrastructure" that buildings nestle into.
Passive House: Affordable, Retrofit, and Huge
Probably the most adopted newer certification in the building industry, Passive House is a US and international standard that small to very large owners are using to build and retrofit. Simple, affordable, and durable, this standard works in many types of buildings. Learn from four experienced practitioners about how smaller buildings are retrofitted, how affordable housing is built within budget, and how large scale dormitories and other buildings will be built in the future.
Benefits of Cx and RCx: Compliant Buildings, Healthy People
This discussion will examine multifamily and commercial commissioning and retro-commissioning projects with an emphasis on: code compliance; increasing energy savings; preventing building system failures; resolving operations and maintenance issues; and improving indoor environmental quality (IAQ). The session presentations will describe some of the most common aspects of buildings, such as ventilation, to lesser-known measures, like user tools and resources available in the marketplace to start commissioning buildings for compliance, efficiency, and health.
Airsealing and Firestopping: Smart Science
Air leaks cause comfort, energy, fire, durability, and vermin problems throughout buildings. Recent studies have shown that: stack effect losses in high rise buildings leak large amounts of treated air (who knew?); airsealing as part of new construction helps meet performance standards and increase comfort; and airsealing individual apartments as part of retrofit projects saves occupants money and increases comfort in those units. Listen to three diverse presentations on methods and results in airsealing projects.
Show Me the Money: If You Can't Pay for It, You Can't Do It
If a building owner feels they can’t afford to internally finance a retrofit job, they drop the ball, the associated savings, and the business for our sector. To avoid these business losses, practitioners need to understand local and regional incentives, traditional financing methods, and cutting edge ways to get your projects done. These three knowledgeable and highly experienced financial gurus will walk you through many ways to help close the deal.
Demand Response Strategies
This session will explore the incorporation of techniques to increase performance in utility-based energy programs and to draw insights from current Demand Response (DR) uses in New York City. Speakers will review the benefits, concerns, and solutions encountered in actual DR projects, successful DR integration at one of the City’s well-known landmark buildings, going beyond traditional building efficiency initiatives during design and construction, and including backup power sources to ensure grid reliability.
Old Tools, New Tricks: Creative Solutions for Common Energy Problems
Many of us think we know the story when it comes to fixing and optimizing energy systems in NYC buildings. It’s easy to fall back on industry accepted measures and methods to energy efficiency. But do they actually work as well as we think? What new approaches are out there? This rapid fire presentation features innovative thinkers showcasing unorthodox ways to fix common issues in typical multifamily buildings. Each speaker will have 20 slides displayed for 20 seconds each... Ready, set, go!
The Property Manager's Perspective: Getting Value from Benchmarking and Audits
Large multifamily buildings in New York City are required to conduct benchmarking and ASHRAE II audits of their buildings by law. Learn from leading property managers how to use these mandates to net real returns for your building. Property managers will discuss the use of benchmarking in routine building operations. Case studies of retrofit projects that resulted from audit recommendations will also be explored.
Living on the Edge: Resiliency, Energy, and Affordability
With every passing year, temperatures and storms are becoming more extreme in our region. Protecting both tenants and building systems requires a new way of thinking about floodproofing, thermal comfort, and power loss. Speakers will review best practices and design solutions that have been implemented in affordable housing developments and retrofits to address a wide variety of environmental stressors. Speakers will also explore the public and private sources used to fund the projects.
BQDM: Retrofitting for Reliability
From Brownsville to Woodhaven, new policies and practices that are changing how we identify, finance, and implement energy conservation projects. This session will provide an overview of Con Edison’s Brooklyn Queens Demand Management (BQDM) program then dive into the innovative strategies that are improving grid reliability and savings dollars. From big to small, commercial to residential, we’re covering it all.
Active Design and Healthy Housing
Active Design is an evidence-based approach to the development of buildings and communities that uses architecture and urban planning to make physical activity and healthy foods more accessible. Affordable housing represents an ideal target for incorporating these strategies, since lower-income communities are disproportionately affected by obesity and chronic disease, and often have less access to health-supporting resources. This multi-disciplinary panel will share how Active Design supports healthier housing for people of all incomes and abilities.
The Future of Homebuilding Can't Wait: Making Sustainable, Low Energy Dwellings the Norm
It is said that homebuilding can look back at 300 years of history unimpeded by progress. It’s a bit of an exaggeration, but the energy-sucking, defect prone truth is unacceptable. Homeowners, society, and even the health of our planet have been underserved by the quality standard of our homes. As the vicious cycle of climate change accelerates, we must achieve a home quality paradigm shift now. That will mean thinking differently, acting differently, and doing differently.
Speaker: Tedd Benson, Bensonwood & Unity Homes
Sustainable Design for Developing Countries
This active-learning workshop will explore the challenges of sustainable design in developing countries. Following a brief presentation and discussion of recent projects, participants will be divided into small groups for a charrette focusing on two current projects where resilient design and energy independence are critical. One project is at the very beginning stage while the other is further advanced, leading to a variety of design challenges to address. The workshop will conclude with group presentations and an open discussion.
Closing Forum: 100 Years of Experience
The closing forum will feature 6 Pecha Kucha 20x20 presentations (20 slides, each for 20 seconds) followed by a discussion moderated by Matt Root. Participants will include three sages—John Abrams, Chuck Silver and Terry Brennan and three rising stars - Declan Keefe, Ace McArleton and Stephanie Horowitz. In 90 minutes, this session will teach you more about building, design, business, and life than you could learn in 10 years on your own.
Applying Passive House Principles to 160 Units of Affordable Housing - Lessons Learned
Fairfax Gardens was a 150 unit dilapidated public housing development in Taunton, MA. The THA selected Trinity Financial to be the developer, owner and operator of a 160 unit replacement program on two sites. The Hope VI Program requires a very competitive funding application that includes strong sustainability incentives measured using Leed and/or Enterprise Green community checklist criteria. The Fairfax Gardens funding application was successful in part because it committed to very aggressive energy conservation measures.
Tiny Bubbles: The Deal With Spray Foam
“Is Foam Evil?”—that’s how this session was originally titled. Saner heads prevailed: foam is so highly insulating, so airtight, so slick on the jobsite, how could we ask such a question? Wait—it’s just those wonderful features that suck us in and make us love foam and forget about those toxic chemicals, occupational hazards, climate impacts, and faulty installations. Is that evil? Come discuss design choices, material options, and building science with our panel.