Renovating facilities using sustainable design can be an economically feasible means of making older buildings relevant again. Elements such as passive ventilation and natural lighting reduce utility bills by more than 75 percent and increase the appraised property value, with the potential to achieve net-zero energy consumption and a 10-year return on investment.
Curtin University (CU) has adopted the InVision FM software platform to maximize savings and increase operational efficiency. InVision FM from PenBay Solutions is helping CU as they embark on a visionary master planning project for the next 100 years of campus growth and development. Based on the Esri® ArcGIS® platform, InVision gives facility managers a better understanding of their facilities through a rich spatial representation and map-based visualization of their assets, spaces, and buildings across a campus, region, or portfolio.
Cage and rack washers, while not the industry standard for large-scale animal cage washing, are more efficient and cost-effective to operate than tunnel washers, according to a study by two Boston architects with decades of experience designing animal facilities. Their research shows that the long-term operating savings compensates for the higher up-front cost.
The California Institute of Technology uses facility condition assessment and data-driven analysis to determine the best investment strategy for limited recapitalization funds. Combined with the institutional discipline to demolish or mothball buildings, Caltech minimizes costs and maximizes immediate functionality, while making funding decisions that support the institutional mission.
The University of East Anglia will break ground in June of 2013 on the $12.2 million Norwich Research Park Enterprise Centre in the United Kingdom. Designed by Architype, the high-performance facility is expected to attain the highest BREEAM and Passivhaus energy ratings and will feature an advanced HVAC system, triple-glazed windows, and ultra-low embodied carbon.
The University of British Columbia is partnering with Cisco Systems to develop advanced energy management technologies. The project includes the use of the UBC campus as a living laboratory to create new industry benchmarks for sustainable operations. Cisco will invest up to $1 million over five years to develop an integrated campus-wide energy management network and new automation technologies.
New analytical planning tools and HVAC technologies can dramatically ease the transformation of existing academic buildings into high-performance state-of-the-art science labs. Along with advances in quantitative methods to assess the potential of existing space, innovations in HVAC strategy offer compact and energy-efficient solutions that are well suited to campus structures erected for different purposes decades ago.
