Innovation is brewing in the Bay Area, and it’s not coming from another app development. FLEXLAB, a laboratory dedicated to studying energy efficiency, just opened up at the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory in the hills above UC Berkeley.
The lab is supported by the U.S. Department of Energy, and as of now, it is the only one of it’s kind in the world.
“It’s the first that tests system level technologies,” says Cynthia Regnier, FLEXLAB’s executive manager. “[FLEXLAB] provides a platform upon which we could test these systems and revalidate performance and improve it before it gets committed and built in the order of hundreds of thousands of square footage and millions of dollars of investment.”
According to local newspaper Contra Costa Times, startups, architects, designers, utilities and manufacturers in the Silicon Valley are invited to use FLEXLAB for fees adjusted to specific needs.
There are four separate labs to test-drive different technologies: Heating, ventilation and air-conditioning systems, lighting, windows and the building envelope.
Find out more at FLEXLAB’s official website.
Related Stories
Giants 400 | Aug 30, 2023
Top 75 Engineering Firms for 2023
Kimley-Horn, WSP, Tetra Tech, Langan, and IMEG head the rankings of the nation's largest engineering firms for nonresidential buildings and multifamily buildings work, as reported in Building Design+Construction's 2023 Giants 400 Report.
Building Team | Aug 28, 2023
Navigating challenges in construction administration
Vessel Architecture's Rebekah Schranck, AIA, shares how the demanding task of construction administration can be challenging, but crucial.
Laboratories | Aug 24, 2023
Net-zero carbon science center breaks ground in Canada
Designed by Diamond Schmitt, the new Atlantic Science Enterprise Centre (ASEC) will provide federal scientists and partners with state-of-the-art space and equipment to collaborate on research opportunities.
Multifamily Housing | Aug 24, 2023
A multifamily design for multigenerational living
KTGY’s Family Flat concept showcases the benefits of multigenerational living through a multifamily design lens.
Multifamily Housing | Aug 23, 2023
Constructing multifamily housing buildings to Passive House standards can be done at cost parity
All-electric multi-family Passive House projects can be built at the same cost or close to the same cost as conventionally designed buildings, according to a report by the Passive House Network. The report included a survey of 45 multi-family Passive House buildings in New York and Massachusetts in recent years.
Regulations | Aug 23, 2023
Gas industry drops legal challenge to heat pump requirement in Washington building code
Gas and construction industry groups recently moved to dismiss a lawsuit they had filed to block new Washington state building codes that require heat pumps in new residential and commercial construction. The lawsuit contended that the codes harm the industry groups’ business, interfere with consumer energy choice, and don’t comply with federal law.
Government Buildings | Aug 23, 2023
White House wants to ‘aggressively’ get federal workers back to the office
The Biden administration wants to “aggressively” get federal workers back in the office by September or October. “We are returning to in-person work because it is critical to the well-being of our teams and will enable us to deliver better results for the American people,” according to an email by White House Chief of Staff Jeff Zients. The administration will not eliminate remote work entirely, though.
Building Owners | Aug 23, 2023
Charles Pankow Foundation releases free project delivery selection tool for building owners, developers, and project teams
Building owners and project teams can use the new Building Owner Assessment Tool (BOAT) to better understand how an owner's decision-making profile impacts outcomes for different project delivery methods.
Transportation & Parking Facilities | Aug 23, 2023
California parking garage features wind-activated moving mural
A massive, colorful, moving mural creatively conceals a newly opened parking garage for a global technology company in Mountain View, Calif.
Giants 400 | Aug 22, 2023
Top 115 Architecture Engineering Firms for 2023
Stantec, HDR, Page, HOK, and Arcadis North America top the rankings of the nation's largest architecture engineering (AE) firms for nonresidential building and multifamily housing work, as reported in Building Design+Construction's 2023 Giants 400 Report.
