Green Building with Automated Shading Systems
Made from Environmentally Friendly Materials
Although energy efficiency gets a lot of attention in the sustainable space, green building also emphasizes the use of products and materials that make a limited environmental impact over their lifetime. These life-cycle evaluations consider multiple facets of a product’s life, from the materials used during production and the excavation practices of those materials to their presence in an indoor environment and in disposal once the product has served its purpose.
One of the largest challenges facing designers who try to use sustainable materials is that it requires the disclosure by the manufacturers of their processes and secret sauces used to create their various devices, fabrics, paints, finishes, etc. As a result, these sustainable programs encourage and incentivize designers to work with manufacturers taking the extra steps to act in an environmentally responsible way and then take the time to disclose their product information so that the product may be evaluated by a third party.
Shade materials that have been reviewed and certified by a third-party organization, such as the GREENGUARD Environmental Institute (GREENGUARD) or Cradle-to-Cradle, can support sustainable efforts and contribute toward meeting sustainable materials thresholds required by these various rating systems and green building standards.
ASID HEADQUARTERS
Photo © Eric Laignel of Perkins + Will
The ASID Headquarters in Washington, D.C., is the first project in the world to achieve Platinum certifications in both LEED v3 and the WELL Building standard.
The American Society of Interior Designers’ (ASID) new corporate headquarters in downtown Washington, D.C., is the first project in the world to achieve Platinum certifications from both the WELL v1 Building Standard and the LEED v3 green building rating system. This accomplishment marks the ASID project as a beacon for designers in the pursuit of creating buildings that successfully satisfy the many different facets of sustainable design.
David Cordell, ASID, LEED AP, WELL AP, associate principal, Perkins + Will, Washington, D.C., office, was the senior technical coordinator and project manager of the ASID headquarters project. In an interview, Cordell shared the keys to this dual-Platinum success. “There are a number of areas between the two systems that overlap. There are 16 credits within LEED that correspond, almost directly, to 18 credits within the WELL standard. Many of these overlapping credits address elements of indoor environmental quality, which include providing access to glare-free daylight and unobstructed exterior views, and specifying products that are transparent about their chemical makeup and minimize the use of harmful materials. Working to achieve Platinum ratings in both systems put a priority on achieving the items that would satisfy both systems simultaneously. The automated shading system and PVC-free shade fabric specified on this project contributed toward satisfying these overlapping credits.”
The Automated Shading System and Shade Fabric at ASID HQ
At ASID headquarters, the automated shading system is designed to prevent glare and overly bright conditions from interfering with the interior visual environment, while maximizing the amount of ambient daylight allowed into the space and the amount of time that unobstructed views are available at the window. The system meets these three objectives by automatically adjusting the shade to its optimal height based on the exact position of the sun and its relation to the specific facade and elevation of the window, accounting for harsh reflections of the solar orb off adjacent buildings and current weather conditions. The weather is an important feature to consider because cloudy or hazy conditions may allow for the shades to be fully retracted, regardless of the time of the day or position of the sun. The shade fabric on the windows is PVC free.
The Automated Shade Decision
“There is a feature in the WELL standard which specifically requires automated shading systems. Because we wanted to achieve a Platinum rating, we went for every feature that we thought achievable,” explains Cordell. “Ultimately, the automated shading system helped the project satisfy glare-free daylight and views criteria and contributed toward some of the energy efficiency and thermal comfort goals by reducing potential solar heat gain.”
The PVC-Free Fabric Decision
The PVC-free shading fabric was created by a manufacturer that provided the necessary material disclosure forms to prove that there were no harmful materials in the fabric. “PVC is one of the substances that shows up on human health watch lists and has been proven to be detrimental to health and well-being,” said Cordell. “Finding PVC-free shading fabric was an important step in creating a healthy indoor environment that could achieve this elevated level of sustainable design success.”
Photo © Eric Laignel of Perkins + Will
An automated shading system and PVC-free shade fabric helped the project to satisfy many of the credits that overlapped between the two green building systems.
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