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2017 Best of Design Awards for Green – Civic

Low Carbon Lab

2017 Best of Design Awards for Green – Civic

2017 Best of Design Awards for Green – Civic: Princeton University Embodied Computation Lab

Architect: The Living
Location: Princeton, New Jersey

This simple but forward-thinking lab will host research on the future of buildings. Designed to evolve over time, the project features components and systems that can be swapped and upgraded—students and faculty will continually rewrite and adapt the structure. The Princeton University Embodied Computation Lab is a model for new sustainability and low-carbon features, including extremely low embodied energy through a glulam structure and envelope made of local timber. It is the first engineered wood building in North America with a five-ton gantry crane. The radiant floor uses waste condensate from the building next door, with no additional energy required. The building envelope is made of reclaimed New York City scaffolding boards that otherwise would have ended up in a landfill. The facade involves the use of custom algorithms trained to detect knots in wood—bringing the power of machine-learning technology to the physical world.

“A lot is achieved in a relatively small built space.  The idea of an open source building with swappable components made from reused or repurposed materials with simple yet thoughtful detailing is pretty extraordinary.” —Nathaniel Stanton, principal, Craft Engineer Studio (juror)

Architect of Record:
NK Architects

Structural Engineers:
Buro Happold

General Contractor:
Epic

Glulam Manufacturer:
Structural Wood Systems

Ceiling Fans:
Big Ass Fans

 

Honorable Mention 

Project Name: United States Courthouse, Los Angeles
Architecture, Structural Engineering, Interior Design, Graphics: Skidmore, Owings & Merrill LLP
Location: Los Angeles

United States Courthouse, Los Angeles (Bruce Damonte)New United States Courthouse meets an energy target of 35k BTU/GSF annual consumption through a variety of sustainable design features. The most visible sustainable design feature is the facade—a solution that gracefully responds to the solar orientation of the site as well as principles of classic, federal architecture.

Owner:
General Services Administration

General Contractor:
Clark Construction Group

Facade Contractor:
Benson Industries LLC

Blast Engineering:
Applied Research Associates Inc.

Mechanical and Electrical Engineering:
Syska Hennessy Group Inc

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