Toward a Greener Shade of Data Center

by Dave Macaulay

In addition to 14,700 sf of critical whitespace, the data center includes a high-end operations center, large tape storage room and support spaces such as build and main distribution frame (MDF) rooms. The building and systems are sized to support two more data halls of 14,000 sf each with 2.4 MW of critical power and cooling.

Data center design still places a premium on security, redundancy and uptime. Yet even as virtualization and cloud computing technologies continue to evolve dramatically, so too does the growing importance of operational efficiency within critical facilities. One new data center for a major West Coast public utility, now nearing completion, exemplifies this "new norm." It is innovation rich, relies on a broad set of sustainable MEP solutions and is on target to achieve LEED Gold certification.

Here, energy conservation is a top priority – designed to demonstrate sustainable technologies along with reliability, performance and scalability. The utility also aims to set a new benchmark for data centers within its regional market, showcasing the possibilities of efficiency, flexibility and energy savings through use of materials and design.

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Creating Gensler's "Jewel Box"

New Los Angeles Office is a Sustainable Showpiece

by Dave Macaulay

The building's HVAC system ensures comfort and energy efficiency.

It could have been an REI or Apple retail store, a high-end market, even a Mercedes-Benz showroom. Instead, it became a sustainability showcase – the new Los Angeles office for Gensler, one of the world’s top architecture, design, planning and consulting firms. Affectionately known as the “Jewel Box” by its owners, Thomas Properties Group, the three-story building wrapped in glass sits between two 52-story towers as part of the City National Plaza between South Figueroa and South Flower Streets. Key to Gensler’s move from Santa Monica to a more visible location downtown, the office now serves as a prototype workplace of the future: balancing comfort and energy efficiency through sustainable design. It is the perfect place to inspire innovation.

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Integrated Teamwork Propels Success

Early Team Formation Key to Complex Project

by Steve Carroll, P.E., LEED AP, CxA, Principal

Photo courtesy of Blake Marvin, HKS Architects

It was a tall order: designing the new Main Building at Phoenix Children's Hospital. The new environmentally friendly, 320-bed patient tower and new central utility plant were at the core of a 770,000 sf, $450-million expansion project that doubled the size of this leading pediatric facility.

The multi-faceted process of creating those systems, and all the complexities to match, required a strategic approach. That’s why Phoenix Children’s Hospital brought in the coordinated team of HKS Architects, consulting engineers ccrd partners, contractor Kitchell, and commissioning agents from Glumac.

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Glumac Puts Power Bills on Ice at SoCal Midrise

Thermal Energy Storage Freezes Bills, Cuts Daytime Consumption

by Richard Holzer, P.E., LEED AP, Glumac Irvine Managing Principal

Extron Electronics was able to earn a $615,000 municipal rebate against power bills at the company’s new headquarters in Anaheim, thanks to a thermal energy storage (TES) system Glumac engineered, commissioned and tested.

Completed in December, 2011, Extron's new headquarters is a six-story, 194,000 sf mixed-use office tower building that includes a restaurant and music venue on the ground floor, administrative offices on the middle floors, and a penthouse residential suite on the top floor. Given the climate of the region, cooling the building often requires a great deal of electricity, especially during peak demand hours (summer afternoons).