Award

DECEMBER 2018 | 25 RENDERING BY HCMA ARCHITECTURE + DESIGN/COURTESY RJC ENGINEERS Green Building Design Based on the success of the BC Hydro Building Envelope Thermal Bridging Guide (BETBG), BC Hydro was asked by the American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers, Inc. (ASHRAE) Standard 90.1 Envelope Subcommittee to help develop a number of building envelope types to be considered for inclusion in the ASHRAE Standard 90.1. One example of a project that benefitted from the program was the Joseph & Rosalie Segal & Family Health Centre that features a number of green building design elements such as active chilled beam technology, a high-efficiency HVAC system, and high-performance glazing that will ultimately help save more than 800,000 kilowatt-hours per year of electricity and save 77 tonnes of CO2 annually. In addition, BC Hydro championed and submitted a project proposal to the Canadian Standards Association (CSA) to develop a Canadian national standard on Building Envelope Thermal Bridging Heat Loss Calculation Methodology that can be considered for adoption by the Canadian National Energy Code for Buildings. "The proposal has been approved by the CSA to proceed with the development work," says Toby Lau at BC Hydro. "It is estimated that by adopting the BETBG requirements would result in reduced heating losses and gains in newly- constructed and upgrade of existing buildings." FortisBC has also been actively involved with the BC Energy Step Code and has adopted it as the energy performance standard for its New Home Program. Owners who build a more energy efficient home than the minimum BC Building Code requirements qualify for a whole-home rebate. In May FortisBC recognized 10 regional organizations that achieved outstand- ing energy savings in their sectors with the annual Efficiency in Action Awards. Through their combined efforts, this year's award recipients reduced natural gas use by more than 12,000 gigajoules annually, which is equivalent to the annual natural gas use of approximately 140 homes in B.C. When it comes to regulations, Leslie Peer, technical specialist for building science and restoration at RJC Engineers, says they are only just catching up, as technologies, systems, and our understanding of low energy and carbon neutral building design are well evolved. "We know how to build buildings to Passive House level and we have three window manufacturers in B.C. that meet Passive House standards. We know how to do it, now it's just a matter of getting it done, and I can't wait to start," says Peer. RJC Engineers is working on four of CaGBC's 16 projects that have been chosen to participate in a two-year pilot of Zero Carbon Building Standard. Among those projects is the City of Vancouver's zero emissions Fire Hall, whose design will incorporate the generation of on-site renewable solar PV energy in order to offset all of the remaining greenhouse gas emissions. RJC Engineers is also involved in the structure and building envelope of EcoLock in Kelowna, a five-storey personal storage and co-work facility that will utilize a patented High-Performance Building Block System with a negative carbon material classification. While Peer says that retrofits are indeed a little more challenging, he adds that great strides are being made by organizations such as the Toronto Atmospheric Fund on analyzing each building and better understanding where to invest to get the biggest return on investment in reducing carbon emissions in existing buildings. It goes without saying really that the commitment of architects to green build- ing design is essential in its evolution, and Lindsay Oster, principal architect at Prairie Architects Inc., says that practicing sustainable architecture in Manitoba continues to be a rewarding and collaborative endeavour. Fire Hall No.17, Vancouver, B.C. Williams Engineering.indd 1 2017-05-10 2:55 PM HEATING IS COOLING www.thermenex.com The heating of one thing occurs by cooling another. The cooling of one thing occurs by heating another. A simple pipe. An innovation. Developed by the rigorous application of common sense and first principles. Precise engineering and holistic application logic integrating all thermal energy systems into one. Resulting in the lowest possible: Carbon Emissions & Energy Consumption HVAC REIMAGINED Thermenex.indd 1 2018-07-16 2:28

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