ASHRAE Headquarters, Peachtree Corners, Ga.
RETROFIT TEAM
GENERAL CONTRACTOR: Skanska
MECHANICALS INSTALLER: Shumate Mechanical
PLUMBER: FitzGerald & Sons Plumbing Co.
MATERIALS
A team of ASHRAE volunteers led a highly successful building campaign to garner support for the renovation project. Thirty-one corporate donors committed more than $9.7 million in monetary support and gifts of equipment and services. Among these, the plumbing and heating and cooling systems were major factors in influencing the building’s environmental quality.
The Uponor AquaPEX plumbing system in the ASHRAE global headquarters renovation features 3,600 feet of 1/2- to 2-inch crosslinked polyethylene (PEX) pipe. The flexibility and stable material costs of the pipe are what brought forth its initial popularity among installers who were looking for a system that was more economical and faster to install.
A radiant ceiling panel system is used in the headquarters for heating and cooling, as well as dedicated outdoor air system for outdoor air ventilation with enthalpy heat recovery. (Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, ASHRAE had already planned to provide 30 percent more outside air to the building than the required minimum ventilation rates from ASHRAE Standard 62.1, Ventilation for Acceptable Indoor Air Quality, and will implement other applicable guidance developed by the ASHRAE Epidemic Task Force [ETF] for commercial office buildings. Read about ETF’s guidance in “HVAC’s Role in Reducing Spread of Infectious Aerosols,” by Wade H. Conlan, P.E., CxA, BCxP, LEED AP, a member of ASHRAE’s ETF and leader of the task force’s Building Readiness Team, July-August 2020 issue, page 42.)
Wirsbo hePEX pipe, a PEX piping system with an oxygen barrier to protect ferrous components in a mechanical system, is the hydronic heating and cooling system’s answer to metallic piping systems of the past. For the ASHRAE global headquarters, 9,200 feet of 3/4- to 1 1/2-inch Wirsbo hePEX pipe delivers chilled water to the radiant ceiling panels through a network of 53 stainless-steel manifolds.
For hydronic heating and cooling systems, PEX’s light weight makes it easier to handle on the job site. Also, because PEX is naturally corrosion resistant, it requires fewer nitrites, azoles and other chemicals inside the piping to maintain a static hydronic environment.
PEX AND HYDRONIC DISTRIBUTION PIPING SYSTEMS MANUFACTURER: Uponor
THE RETROFIT
As one of the nation’s pioneers in advancing innovative, sustainable building practices, ASHRAE renovated an outdated, inefficient 66,700-square-foot building to become its global headquarters with net-zero-energy goals and an ASHRAE Building Energy Quotient Performance Score of 100.
As the hub for the development of building solutions for a healthier world and a teaching center for professionals, the project required thoughtful design, unique construction and exceptional products to create an economically successful retrofit model that was viable to replicate. In addition, the building design considers worker productivity and wellness through acute visual perception, abundant daylight, astute acoustic properties, exceptional thermal comfort and healthful air quality.
“Although new construction of net-zero energy buildings makes a lot of headlines, reuse of existing structures is a basic tenet of sustainability—the energy performance of existing buildings must be addressed to substantially impact the 40 percent of primary energy con- sumed by buildings,” says ASHRAE Building Ad Hoc Committee Chair Ginger Scoggins, P.E.
The photovoltaic (PV) system design is currently in progress. The building will be on its way to fully net-zero energy by March 2021 upon the completion of the PV system installation.
PHOTO: Uponor