Embedding resilience into building solutions is the theme at the BUILDINGChicago/Greening the Heartland expo and conference, September 9-11 at the Holiday Inn Chicago Mart Plaza. From regional success stories to emerging technology presentations, the 70+ continuing education sessions will explore the various ways that sustainable construction and design adds value to the built environment.
One not-to-miss presentation, on Monday, September 9 from 1:30-2:30 p.m., will feature Procter & Gamble’s smart building management program. The premise of this "Smart Buildings and Sustainability" presentation is that smart building technology can lead to energy reductions of 15 to 20 percent—even in already-efficient buildings—through continual commissioning and identification of equipment malfunctions that would not otherwise be detected by building engineers.
How so? Recent advancements in technology are allowing owners to connect with facilities as never before, leveraging existing automation systems to achieve cost-effective energy improvements. Just as smart buildings are getting smarter, so is the ability to manage them by using real-time data to drive more informed decision-making and execution. Technology solutions that were once cost-prohibitive have now become affordable and are driving measurable returns. Utilities are investing in smart grid technology that will further enhance the value of smart building systems.
Using P&G’s IntelliCommand case study, this presentation will provide examples of how building data analytics enabled facilities managers to quickly find and address energy usage anomalies, saving more than the cost of implementation in the first year, and paving the way for LEED certification.
In terms of resilience, smart building technology delivers—with cost efficiency, business risk management tools, increased operational effectiveness and improved ability to meet environmental goals. For more information, register for the conference, or download the P&G case study.
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County building aims for the sun, shade
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| Oct 12, 2010
Holton Career and Resource Center, Durham, N.C.
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Guardian Building, Detroit, Mich.
27th Annual Reconstruction Awards—Special Recognition. The relocation and consolidation of hundreds of employees from seven departments of Wayne County, Mich., into the historic Guardian Building in downtown Detroit is a refreshing tale of smart government planning and clever financial management that will benefit taxpayers in the economically distressed region for years to come.
| Oct 12, 2010
Richmond CenterStage, Richmond, Va.
27th Annual Reconstruction Awards—Bronze Award. The Richmond CenterStage opened in 1928 in the Virginia capital as a grand movie palace named Loew’s Theatre. It was reinvented in 1983 as a performing arts center known as Carpenter Theatre and hobbled along until 2004, when the crumbling venue was mercifully shuttered.
| Oct 12, 2010
University of Toledo, Memorial Field House
27th Annual Reconstruction Awards—Silver Award. Memorial Field House, once the lovely Collegiate Gothic (ca. 1933) centerpiece (along with neighboring University Hall) of the University of Toledo campus, took its share of abuse after a new athletic arena made it redundant, in 1976. The ultimate insult occurred when the ROTC used it as a paintball venue.
| Oct 12, 2010
Owen Hall, Michigan State University, East Lansing, Mich.
27th Annual Reconstruction Awards—Silver Award. Officials at Michigan State University’s East Lansing Campus were concerned that Owen Hall, a mid-20th-century residence facility, was no longer attracting much interest from its target audience, graduate and international students.
| Oct 12, 2010
Gartner Auditorium, Cleveland Museum of Art
27th Annual Reconstruction Awards—Silver Award. Gartner Auditorium was originally designed by Marcel Breuer and completed, in 1971, as part of his Education Wing at the Cleveland Museum of Art. Despite that lofty provenance, the Gartner was never a perfect music venue.
| Oct 12, 2010
Cell and Genome Sciences Building, Farmington, Conn.
27th Annual Reconstruction Awards—Silver Award. Administrators at the University of Connecticut Health Center in Farmington didn’t think much of the 1970s building they planned to turn into the school’s Cell and Genome Sciences Building. It’s not that the former toxicology research facility was in such terrible shape, but the 117,800-sf structure had almost no windows and its interior was dark and chopped up.
| Oct 12, 2010
The Watch Factory, Waltham, Mass.
27th Annual Reconstruction Awards — Gold Award. When the Boston Watch Company opened its factory in 1854 on the banks of the Charles River in Waltham, Mass., the area was far enough away from the dust, dirt, and grime of Boston to safely assemble delicate watch parts.
| Oct 12, 2010
Cuyahoga County Soldiers’ and Sailors’ Monument, Cleveland, Ohio
27th Annual Reconstruction Awards—Gold Award. The Cuyahoga County Soldiers’ and Sailors’ Monument was dedicated on the Fourth of July, 1894, to honor the memory of the more than 9,000 Cuyahoga County veterans of the Civil War.
