KANSAS CITY, Mo., July 20, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Accolades for
the Independence Utilities Center keep rolling in. The U.S. Green
Building Council has awarded the new facility with a highly coveted
Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Platinum
certification. The City of Independence facility earned the highest
LEED designation for exceptional energy and water conservation,
site connectivity and development, sustainable construction
techniques, and a number of indoor, health, safety and user comfort
features. Burns & McDonnell provided a full range of
architectural, engineering and construction services for a
full-scale renovation of the former medical building on a larger
14-acre site.
The 47,500-square foot, three-story building, located at 17221
E. 23rd Street, was previously a medical building
located on a larger campus that included the former Medical Center
of Independence. Though the hospital had been razed, the medical
building was left standing.
Completed in October 2016, the new
Independence Utilities Center houses administrative and customer
service offices for Independence Power & Light along with
offices for the Independence Water Department and some large
training spaces.
The project also was recently recognized by the Kansas City
Business Journal as a winner of a Capstone Award in the green
design category.
"We are extremely proud to have achieved LEED Platinum
certification for a building that dramatically improves the
surrounding community," says Mayor Eileen
Weir of the City of Independence. "This is a real
achievement that will become a model for developers looking for
proof of how sustainable design can have a meaningful impact on our
built environment."
"The City of Independence now has a showcase facility that
demonstrates how renovated buildings can surpass the energy and
environmental performance of even newly constructed buildings,"
says Joe Williams, who served as
lead project architect for Burns & McDonnell. "Reinvestment in
a repurposed facility like this takes creativity and teamwork. But
it's worth it. During the course of this project, we heard
countless stories from people who spent time in the building when
it was home to the many medical practices associated with MCI
hospital. It has been an honor and privilege to return this
building to a place where it is once again a vibrant part of the
Independence community."
The project preserved more than 95 percent of the existing
structure. Key additions greatly improved aesthetics and energy
efficiency of the building envelope, including new wall and roof
insulation, thermal windows, aluminum exterior panels and sun
shades and a "cool" white roof to reduce heat gain. Almost 98
percent of construction waste was recycled or reused and diverted
from landfill. The interior was gutted and built-out with
high efficiency heating, ventilation, air conditioning (HVAC) and
new LED lighting. A large amount of reclaimed white oak sourced
from a thoroughbred horse farm in Kentucky was reused in public areas of the
building and over 97 percent of new wood purchased was
FSC-certified for sustainable forestry practices. New
low-emitting materials, finishes and furniture will protect the
health and productivity of the City's 130 employees who now occupy
the building.
The facility features a variety of energy conservation and
renewable energy features, including a rooftop solar array and wind
turbine capable of providing 15 percent of the building's annual
energy needs. The building is ventilated using a dedicated outside
air unit (DOAS) that has an energy recovery wheel to capture
heating or cooling from the building exhaust air to pre-condition
the ventilation air, minimizing the need for mechanical cooling or
electric heating. A variable refrigerant volume (VRV) heat
pump system allows units in different zones of the building to
modulate to match the load in each zone with high part-load
efficiencies to simultaneously heat and cool, as needed. The
combination of systems makes the building 51 percent more efficient
than a comparable baseline building.
In addition, ultra-high efficiency plumbing fixtures reduce
water use within the building by 40 percent. Exterior landscaping
features a number of native and adapted plant species that thrive
without the need for permanent irrigation and help slow and
infiltrate stormwater runoff from the site.
For photos and support materials, please visit our
MEDIA KIT.
About Burns & McDonnell
Burns & McDonnell is a family of companies made up of more
than 5,700 engineers, architects, construction professionals,
scientists, consultants and entrepreneurs with offices across
the country and throughout the world. We strive to create
amazing success for our clients and amazing careers for our
employee-owners. Burns & McDonnell is 100 percent
employee-owned and is proud to be No. 16 on Fortune's 2017
list of 100 Best Companies to Work For. For more
information, visit burnsmcd.com.
Contact: Roger Dick, Burns & McDonnell
816-822-3339
RDick@burnsmcd.com
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SOURCE Burns & McDonnell