June 28, 2001

Web site aids sustainable building design

Spokane architect James Choate-Deeds turned to betterbricks.com for tips to improve his design for the Modern Electric Water Supply building. He decided to limit the number of light fixtures and raise the ceilings to make better use of indirect and natural light.

Perhaps now more than ever, sustainable design and construction are vital.

Today’s energy crunch and economic uncertainty require that building owners, developers and architects all consider how buildings can be designed, retrofitted or built to reduce energy consumption. Obviously, it makes good environmental sense. It also makes smart business sense from a number of perspectives.

The Northwest Energy Efficiency Alliance, a nonprofit partnership of electric utilities, state governments, public interest groups and energy-industry representatives, works to help businesses understand the multiple benefits of energy efficiency. The group developed a public, Web-based program, betterbricks.com, to demonstrate how businesses can improve efficiency in commercial buildings.

When businesses implement energy-efficient practices, such as daylighting and individual temperature controls, worker productivity increases, and that increases a company’s profitability. A study by the Rocky Mountain Institute has shown the financial effect of employee productivity gains in energy-efficient spaces can outweigh the initial cost of these design elements by as much as 500 percent, in addition to the energy cost savings.

The betterbricks Web site contains case studies that show a direct correlation between worker comfort and productivity, as well as contributing to employee attraction and retention. Equally important, betterbricks.com arms businesses with straightforward building solutions (including free consulting, resources and tools) to improve workplace comfort, efficiency and productivity.

As a resource for developers, architects, building owners and designers, betterbricks.com offers a variety of services to focus building designs for both new and existing structures. The site can help commercial industry professionals consider sustainable design elements, wade through incentive programs, visualize energy-efficient solutions, meet mandatory compliance codes, and ultimately, create high-performance buildings that offer productivity gains for both owners and tenants.

A help desk offered through betterbricks.com arranges onsite visits from experienced consultants who help define performance areas, assist with the diagnosis of existing building performance concerns (or potential ones if a new building is under construction) and provide improvement options. There is no charge for the initial adviser visit and the site provides information on financing assistance such as utility loans or incentives to help fund recommended measures.

The Web site features interactive building case studies highlighting the productivity gains associated with increased daylighting, natural ventilation and individual heating and cooling systems. It also includes illustrative articles and audio quotes detailing workplace successes of buildings across the country.

Spokane architect James Choate-Deeds, now with the Northwest Architectural Company, used the online resource for his work on the Modern Electric Water Supply building in Spokane. Choate-Deeds took a sustainable approach to development, and ended up offering the owner long-term cost savings and projected productivity gains.

Choate-Deeds was charged with designing a functional and modern building that could serve as a model of a highly efficient, all-electric building. Using advice from the betterbricks resource, a few rather simple modifications and additions to the original design helped make the building much more energy efficient and improved the quality of the spaces.

“Cool daylighting” strategies were used to increase the amount of natural light and decrease artificial light in the space. Indirect T-8 fluorescent light fixtures, controlled by occupancy sensors in all private offices, were used to supplement natural lighting. The design decreases heat gain and glare inside the building by using fewer electric lights and properly shaded windows.

Two-foot-high daylight/aperture windows were added above all daylight/view windows to allow natural light to penetrate deeper into interior spaces. Properly sized sun screens were also added above all windows to reduce unwanted solar heat gain and glare from outside.

Glazing specifications were changed from standard, clear insulated units to tinted, low-e spectrally coated insulating units. These units have varying light transmittance levels to allow light deeper into the spaces and increase visual comfort. Electric lighting fixture quantities were reduced and ceilings were raised to use indirect light fixtures and the additional aperture windows.

Overall, the lighting design allowed a significant drop in the energy consumption for the electric lighting, but maintained acceptable lighting levels.

The owner accomplished the goal of having an energy-efficient, all-electric building that provides a flexible system responsive to improved air quality. The mechanical system for the building was designed to maximize comfort and efficiency by dividing the building into 14 separate zones, all controlled by water-source heat pumps, a central boiler and cooling tower. Incorporing these strategies and others allowed for the downsizing of mechanical and electrical systems, leading to less-expensive mechanical and electrical equipment purchases, as well as reduced operation and equipment replacement costs.

Ultimately, the building included design solutions and material selections to substantially decrease lifetime operating and maintenance costs, offering long-term economic benefits to the owner. The building was also designed to increase human health, satisfaction and performance by improving the workplace environment.

In the year since its debut, betterbricks.com has received positive feedback from a variety of sources, including architect David Sova of Design Build Management, which specializes in the design and construction management of corporate offices, retail spaces and automotive dealerships.

“I have been trying to get my clients to consider the betterbricks.com message for years,” Sova says. “Frequently, they just let it slide: the result being another mind-numbing workplace. The Web site gives me ammunition to move clients to seriously consider these issues and to start implementing these practices.”

Through betterbricks.com, the Northwest Energy Efficiency Alliance illustrates how an initial investment in good design pays dividends through not only saved energy costs, but also increased worker satisfaction, loyalty and production — all significant returns given today’s environmental concerns and competitive business environment.

To learn more about the betterbricks.com program, use the resources or to explore opportunities to be featured as a betterbricks project, visit the Web site at www.betterbricks.com.

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