Architectural Record 2015-04

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United States, they found that 77 percent believe
it is important that their apartment is green.
The factors driving this response included
cost efficiency (33 percent), protecting the
environment (26 percent), and doing their part
(25 percent). Further, 65 percent stated that
energy efficiency is important and 57 percent
value an apartment with environmentally
friendly features. In fact this is important
enough to renters that 72 percent said that they
are willing to trade off an important apartment
feature (such as extra storage space or high
ceilings) for green features.
Some of this consumer green awareness and
preference certainly comes from the general
media and interest in sustainable lifestyles.
It likely also comes from developers and
property owners who have been promoting
green buildings for the marketing appeal, the
added earnings potential, and, we would hope,
the commitment to also do the “right thing.”
But it also certainly comes from the growing
availability of programs that promote green
multifamily housing. The LEED program of
the U.S. Green Building Council 2 has certainly
been embraced by the multifamily housing
market with prominent displays of the LEED
logo and information on many new and
renovated buildings. Recently, ENERGY STAR
added multifamily housing 3 to their categories
of buildings that can be reviewed using their
popular Target Finder and Portfolio Manager
programs to benchmark a building’s energy
performance against similar buildings in the
same geographic area. Adding to the interest by
developers and owners is the recent availability
of lower interest rates from Fannie Mae 4 , the
national mortgage organization, for multifamily
properties with a green building certification,
such as LEED or ENERGY STAR.
All of these preferences and actions converge
on the design of a new or renovated multifamily
housing project since design professionals
need to be aware of these drivers to best serve
developer clients and end users. But how does
this all really play out in a project? It often
comes down to a series of design decisions
made all along the way related to the building
enclosure, the interior, and the integration of
innovative technical advances. These decisions
will affect the sustainable nature of the building
since they will affect different green categories
such as energy efficiency, acoustics, indoor air
quality, durability, and material choices. In this
light, we will review a variety of new or updated
building components and services that can help
with making some of the best design decisions
in multifamily housing projects.
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The envelope or exterior construction of
all buildings directly impacts the energy
performance and related energy costs.
Therefore, conducting an analysis of a new
or existing building envelope is one of the
first and best steps a design team can take to
understand how to achieve an energy-efficient
and environmentally friendly building. This
is especially important in the renovation of
existing buildings, particularly if the building
is being converted from some other use (i.e.
warehouse, school, etc.) into multifamily
housing that has become very popular in many
areas. This analysis can be done in-house by
architectural firms using available computer
modeling software or by working with
manufacturers who have customized software
to analyze the options of different systems in
a given building envelope system. Either way,
a baseline building can be modeled, while the
relative changes can be compared using specific
envelope designs, types, and options.
One common and critically important
component of building envelopes is fenestration.
Hence, it is not surprising that some window
manufacturers have embraced its importance
and seek to partner with design professionals
on conducting a building envelope analysis.
Doug Phelps, Director of Commercial Business
Development for Pella EFCO Commercial
Solutions, points out that they work with
designers on a “whole building analysis which
is truly unique from the component approach.
This way, we’re able to analyze and run ‘whatif’
scenarios to compare potential envelope
improvements in terms of energy savings,
Image courtesy of Pella EFCO Commercial Solutions
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