Building Envelope and Passive Design Features
This project is for the design of a two-story energy efficiency products lab and exhibition center to be located in Jasper Ridge, Stanford, California.
1. Design intent:
The design shall incorporate energy efficiency features while at the same time create a comfortable and spacious environment for researchers and visitors.
Sustainable features include:
– natural light atrium at the entrance of the building
– skylight on the roof directly above the atrium
– north-south orientation
2. Driving considerations:
The major concern of the building is sustainability. While achieving the sustainability features, many aspects are considered (openings, shading, material choices, etc.). All the aspects shall be designed with an optimized solution.
Another driving consideration is the design limits due to resources, project type, and local regulations. Such as:
– Working environment. The project is a lab & exhibition center, the working environment in the building and its ability to facilitate communication are important. So the building will be two floors – to allow easier communication among departments and avoid time consumed in climbing up/down stairs, and at the same time maximize the floor area, creating spacious working environment.
– Energy efficiency. The skylight is designed to incorporate more daylight into the building to reduce electricity usage in lighting. Big windows also provide natural light in the building. Building envelope shall be high in thermal heat-gain coefficient.
– Location. The project is located in Jasper Ridge, where there’s no local code for building orientation. The building will be oriented north-south to incorporate more sunshine.
– Area. Total floor area is 3600 sqft.
3. Phase One result – Building Envelop and Passive Design Features
Jieming Wei - BIM Expert 