About the Building
Construction start date: June 2005
Move in date: August 2007
Open for business: September 2007
Architects:
Teeple Architects Inc. (Toronto) and IBI/HB Architects (Vancouver)
Total Area:
Building: 80 000 square feet
Library: 51 000 square feet
Certification and Awards:
- LEED Gold designation (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) certification based on the Canada Green Building Council's performance standards for environmental responsibility and energy efficiency;
- SAB Award, May 2008, awarded by the Sustainable Architecture & Building magazine;
- Canadian Architecture Award of Excellence 2005 awarded by the magazine Canadian Architecture; and
- Holcim Foundation Award 2005 awarded by the Switzerland-based foundation that recognizes sustainable construction projects around the world.
Environmental Sustainability Features
Natural Ventilation:
- Four wind towers pull air upward through the building;
- undulating concrete roof increases pulling power of wind towers by increasing wind velocity; and
- sensor-controlled windows bring air into the building's heating and cooling.
Heating and Cooling:
- overall design is based on heat sink principles and features a geothermal loop formed by 78 bore holes drilled to a depth of 250 feet;
- waste heat is captured from exhaust air; and
- the building's exposed cast-in-place concrete and high-performance glass aid in energy transfer and storage.
Energy Efficiency:
- natural ventilation and heating/cooling design eliminate the need for conventional air conditioning; and
- building is expected to be 71% more energy-efficient than the baseline established in Canada's National Energy Code for Buildings Water efficiency.
Water Efficiency:
- low-flow washroom fixtures; and
- rainwater harvesting landscaping.
Landscaping:
- greening of the campus.