The newly designed 312,000-sf Loyola University Campus in Seville, Spain has become the world’s first integrated campus to receive LEED Platinum, the highest environmental rating by the U.S. Green Building Council. The multipurpose facility, which also aims to be the first ‘5G Campus’ in the world, was designed to accommodate numerous aspects of learning and university life.
The $29 million project places all of the classrooms, laboratories, and common spaces (including the cafeteria and auditorium), which totals 265,000-sf, in a single, optimized building. The sports building, library, lockers, access building, and chapel, which totals over 47,000-sf of additional space, complete the complex.
Given Seville’s Mediterranean climate, where high temperatures are often the norm, special attention was paid to controlling sunlight. “The project makes use of the lessons learned in T2 at Heathrow Airport in the U.K., and incorporates textile technology – the design of an external element, ‘the candle,’ which controls the light that penetrates the buildings,” said Luis Vidal, President and Founding Partner at luis vidal + architects, in a release. “The campus also consists of a sequence of open and closed spaces, designed to provide self-shading.”
See also: Students aren’t the only ones who have returned to Austin College in Texas
Winter/summer plazas change with the seasons to provide comfortable outdoor space for students. During summer these plazas benefit from the sun shading of the buildings, generating spaces sheltered from the Western sunlight. In addition, the presence of water cools down the temperature and creates a microclimate of a certain comfort. During winter plazas heat up with sunlight, in its lowest angles of incidence and, they are protected from the prevailing winds.
The campus’ roof, facades, and windows were designed to minimize sizable energy losses. Photovoltaic panels were also installed to reduce the net-energy consumption of the building. A water recovery system was also incorporated. More than 20% of the building materials come from previous uses, and more than 30% of the materials were locally extracted from the surrounding area.
Project construction was wrapped in 17 months.
Related Stories
| Jul 28, 2014
Reconstruction Sector Architecture Firms [2014 Giants 300 Report]
Stantec, HDR, and HOK top Building Design+Construction's 2014 ranking of the largest reconstruction architecture and architecture/engineering firms in the U.S.
| Jul 23, 2014
Architecture Billings Index up nearly a point in June
AIA reported the June ABI score was 53.5, up from a mark of 52.6 in May.
| Jul 21, 2014
Economists ponder uneven recovery, weigh benefits of big infrastructure [2014 Giants 300 Report]
According to expert forecasters, multifamily projects, the Panama Canal expansion, and the petroleum industry’s “shale gale” could be saving graces for commercial AEC firms seeking growth opportunities in an economy that’s provided its share of recent disappointments.
| Jul 18, 2014
Contractors warm up to new technologies, invent new management schemes [2014 Giants 300 Report]
“UAV.” “LATISTA.” “CMST.” If BD+C Giants 300 contractors have anything to say about it, these new terms may someday be as well known as “BIM” or “LEED.” Here’s a sampling of what Giant GCs and CMs are doing by way of technological and managerial innovation.
| Jul 18, 2014
Top Construction Management Firms [2014 Giants 300 Report]
Jacobs, Barton Malow, Hill International top Building Design+Construction's 2014 ranking of the largest construction management and project management firms in the United States.
| Jul 18, 2014
Top Contractors [2014 Giants 300 Report]
Turner, Whiting-Turner, Skanska top Building Design+Construction's 2014 ranking of the largest contractors in the United States.
| Jul 18, 2014
Engineering firms look to bolster growth through new services, technology [2014 Giants 300 Report]
Following solid revenue growth in 2013, the majority of U.S.-based engineering and engineering/architecture firms expect more of the same this year, according to BD+C’s 2014 Giants 300 report.
| Jul 18, 2014
Top Engineering/Architecture Firms [2014 Giants 300 Report]
Jacobs, AECOM, Parsons Brinckerhoff top Building Design+Construction's 2014 ranking of the largest engineering/architecture firms in the United States.
| Jul 18, 2014
Top Engineering Firms [2014 Giants 300 Report]
Fluor, Arup, Day & Zimmermann top Building Design+Construction's 2014 ranking of the largest engineering firms in the United States.
| Jul 18, 2014
Top Architecture Firms [2014 Giants 300 Report]
Gensler, Perkins+Will, NBBJ top Building Design+Construction's 2014 ranking of the largest architecture firms in the United States.
