March e-Newsletter 2010

Construction was completed on the PSE Factoria Service Center this January, a feather in the cap of Magellan Architects, one of our long time favorite clients. On the heels of this handsome project, PSE has employed Magellan to design the remodel of their Georgetown Operating Base, and Abossein is providing mechanical and fire protection design. We have had the good fortune to work with Magellan on many projects over the past 8 years, always with pleasure and pride.

In addition to PSE, some of our recent work with Magellan includes the Goddard School in Redmond, and the Brazillian Steakhouse in Bellevue. Magellan is also acclaimed for its highly functional, aesthetically beautiful buildings, and has garnered many awards for excellence.

The PSE Factoria building not only has energy efficient HVAC, low energy lighting fixtures, daylighting, but outdoor features as well, such as a green roof, drought proof landscaping, and an efficient building envelope. The interior includes a subfloor HVAC system, 100% dedicated outside air with heat recovery, direct digital controls and C02 sensors. The building is constructed with recycled materials, and provides an attractive, comfortable work environment. We are gratified to have completed this project for Puget Sound Energy with such an incredible group of consummate professionals. Go Gold!

See the newly published article in the Daily Journal of Commerce for the Puget Sound Energy Factoria Project at: http://magellanarchitects.wordpress.com.

Renovation of U.S. Federal Court Building

Cherokee General Contractors have been serving federal, state and local agencies since 1985. At Abossein Engineering, we have provided engineering services for Cherokee in conjunction with superbly qualified teams of subcontractors and architects.

Some of the more recent projects have included a U.S. Federal Court House for the General Services Administration. Abossein provided designs for the layout and power distribution of their upgraded chiller system. We were pleased to participate on a LEED Silver project for Cherokee, at the Navy Fire Training School at Whidbey Island, where Navy fire fighters learn to deal with aircraft combustion. Abossein had the opportunity to design the fire alarm system for the Naval Airport Control Tower, a system which is required to be active at all times, and not susceptible to power outages. And, one of our favorite collaborations was on the Naval Ocean Processing Facility, which monitors the Pacific Ocean for ship traffic by sound alone. Abossein helped design the power back up system, with two brand new 1 megawatt generators.

As a point of pride, Cherokee’s parent company, Doyon has been adding staff at all levels, drawing from their owner community where possible. Cherokee General has been a member of the Doyon Government Group since 2008.

The Doyon Group is one of the largest native owned corporations in the US. Rapidly The Doyon Group’s mission is to continually enhance its position as a financially strong, Native American corporation, in order to promote the economic and social wellbeing of its shareholders, and future shareholders, to strengthen its Native American way of life, and to protect and enhance its land and resources. The corporation has more than 16,000 shareholders and is one of the largest private landowners in North America.

We cherish our growing relationship with Cherokee and Doyon, as we expand the scope of our involvement with more of their projects.

The New Washinton State Energy Code

The new Washington State Energy Code will be effective July 1st, 2010, and has significant changes you might want to be aware of. Here is a short list of some of the highlights:

General

1. The default tables have changed in regards to metal framed buildings.

2. Default tables regarding glazing U-factors have changed.

3. Expanded tables have been added to the default values.

Residential Code -

1. Table 6-1 and 6-2 now applies only to single residences and not Multi-Family projects.

2. Table 9-1, there is a new section in the code with energy credits.

Non-Residential Code -

1. A new chapter 12 has been added regarding metering requirements.

2. All new Climate Zone Tables have been created for both zones and this applies to residential and non-residential code.

3. There are major changes in building commissioning compliance – including a checklist.

4. There are major changes regarding economizer compliance.

5. Chapter 14 equipment efficiency requirements have changed fairly significantly.

6. Chapter 15 Lighting Power Density requirement have changed fairly significantly. Exterior lighting requirements have change significantly (this whole section has been mostly revised).

7. Very major changes have been made in the building energy modeling for building base lines

Last Month's Answer: The size and construction type of a building is related to water availability. Any water availability less than 1500 GPM@20PISG is critical. Sprinklers have a significant positive impact in reducing the base criteria per IBC, NFPA and AHJ.

Question of the month (see next month's issue for the answer):

True or False? One of the disadvantages of metal halide lamps is a pronounced tendency to shift colors as the lamp ages.