Dick Bernauer’s Post

Purple-Roof Concept CASE STUDY: Princeton University! 🌿 Princeton University is set to install a cutting-edge 7,000 square foot Purple-Roof Concept system at the Environmental Studies & Commons Building in fall 2024. This innovative green roof features a 6+1+1 profile tailored for advanced stormwater management, showcasing the university's commitment to sustainability. Engineered to offer 1,405 cubic feet of retention and 1,967 cubic feet of detention, the Purple Roof system boasts a total stormwater storage capacity of 3,372 cubic feet. By significantly reducing the burden on local stormwater infrastructure, this integrated system will play a pivotal role in mitigating the impact of heavy rainfall. Noteworthy is the system's impressive 95% reduction in peak outflow, highlighting its exceptional efficiency in managing stormwater runoff. Princeton University's initiative underscores the importance of implementing sustainable solutions to address environmental challenges effectively. Design collaboration with Nitsch Engineering, Field Operations and Ennead Architects #Sustainability #GreenRoof #PrincetonUniversity 🌧️🌱

May 14, 2024 @ 1:30 pm PT. Join Veronica Madonna at the RAIC 2024 Conference on Architecture in Vancouver for her presentation: "Building Healthier Futures: Using LCA to Drive Industry Buy-In for Sustainable Construction.” In light of the urgent climate crisis, our session will explore mass timber as a pivotal low-carbon solution in construction, focusing on its application in educational buildings and northern housing projects. Discover insights from two critical feasibility studies in Ontario: one on mass timber in primary schools and another on modular housing in Northwestern Ontario's workforce communities. The presentation will illustrate the use of Life Cycle Assessment (LCA), cost-carbon analysis, and health metrics to present a robust case for mass timber's benefits across environmental, social, and governance dimensions. We're committed to driving industry innovation, shaping policy, and promoting the adoption of sustainable materials for a climate-resilient future. #SustainableConstruction #MassTimber #ClimateAction #BuildingTheFuture

The built environment—landscapes, buildings, infrastructure, and transportation systems—is responsible for 70 percent of annual global #greenhousegas emissions, and “three-quarters of the infrastructure that will exist in 2050 has yet to be built.” This presents an opportunity to transform the built environment into a climate solution through #landscapearchitecture. More about this from the American Society of Landscape Architects below. #greenspace #greenroofs

Wits Science Stadium - A Cool Approach to Harmonised Design, Climate, and First Principles The Wits Science Stadium (Urban Solutions and Savage and Dodd Architects) on Johannesburg’s Braamfontein West Campus is a resource-efficient science hub, balancing lecture and laboratory spaces with energy-efficient climate control. Leveraging Johannesburg’s temperate climate, the design integrates passive cooling strategies through night ventilation and exposed thermal mass. However, due to high-density student activities and heat-generating experiments, passive methods alone couldn’t meet comfort demands year-round. Our solution involved Thermally Activated Building Systems (TABS), embedding water-carrying pipes in 3,500 tons of concrete. This approach transforms the concrete into a climate moderator, absorbing and radiating heat as needed while minimizing energy demands. The TABS system operates quietly and efficiently, balancing natural convection and radiation to control temperature without traditional air systems. This project demonstrates how structural elements can be purposefully designed to create environmentally sensitive comfort. #ResourceEfficient #PassiveCooling #BuildingPerformance #ThermalComfort #InnovativeDesign PJC+Partners Spoormaker & Partners Simon Hough Gunther Wagner Paul Wygers Murray and Dickson Construction (Pty) Ltd Photography by Jason Buch

If this design-led approach is the future of infrastructure, I’m all in. For me, the Elizabeth Line winning the Stirling Prize is a recognition of the complexity of creating a system that fundamentally impacts the way people experience the city. It can open opportunities for jobs and offer sustainable transport opportunities but can also have unintended consequences of land values impacting local communities. With the Stirling Prize, however, we should celebrate the vision and accessible experience this multidisciplinary team has brought to reality over many years. What do you think? Thanks to Architects’ Journal and Richard Waite for asking me my opinion here. https://lnkd.in/eP2CSSS3 (Image screenshot from AJ website) #stirlingprize #architecture #planning #infrastructure #cities #urbanism #crossrail

Introduction to Building Science "What is Building Science? It's the study of how buildings perform and how construction techniques, materials, and environmental factors interact. From energy efficiency to indoor air quality, it’s all about creating better buildings! Stay tuned this week to learn more about the science behind the structures around us! Learn more: https://lnkd.in/gKapfK7B #BuildingScience #GreenBuilding #martechgroup

Back to school: Environmental enrichment strategies, including the incorporation of daylight, can be used to super charged student performance. Studies show consistently that good quality daylight enhances student learning, compared to those students who learned in environments that received the least amount of natural light. Country Day School, Farrow Partners, TriAxis Construction Managers. Environmental enrichment. Constructing heath. constructinghealth.ca #causehealth #constructinghealth #enrichedenvironments #architecture #salutogenesis #farrowpartners

Research by Architects Journal as part of its Blueprints for Change series suggests a new National Park between Oxford and Cambridge could solve water shortages and benefit biodiversity in that area. They suggest landscape needs to become an integral part of infrastructure planning, rather than an afterthought, as can be the case. It's an interesting piece: https://lnkd.in/ebRtvmGA #DiscoverNationalParks

🌍🏠 A U of T Engineering study reveals the tension between Canada's climate and housing goals. The study emphasizes the necessity for innovative approaches in urban design and #construction to reconcile housing demands with climate goals, aiming for a #sustainable built environment. Read more ➡https://t.ly/yXdBO

Valuing Green Infrastructure: a landscape, health and economic perspective Historically, the link between green infrastructure (plants, wetlands, forests, gardens, parks etc) and human health is the foundation of many societies. Contemporary Western societies are returning back to this relationship. Yet, while many disciplines including landscape architecture and the broader built environment, health and economics are independently forming these conclusions there is an opportunity for greater collaboration to maximize the benefits that green infrastructure provides people and place. In early 2023, Standards Australia released SA HB 214:2023 Urban Green Infrastructure - Planning and decision framework to kick start the conversation. Please come and join a discussion at the Herbarium at the Royal Botanic Gardens Melbourne on Tuesday 10 September with key speakers from the landscape, health and economic fields talk about their perspectives on the value of green infrastructure and what a more integrated approach to planning, design, construction and management might include. #AILA #GreenInfrastructure #sustainability #landscapearchitecture #ParksVictoria #DoctorsfortheEnvironment #universityofMelbourne #environmentaleconomics #StandardsAustralia #UniversityofTechnologySydney #Merribek #