2.14.2008 - 12:30pm ET

Left:The Betty Irene Moore Natural Sciences Building in Oakland, California Right: The StopeWaste.org Building in Oakland, California

(CSRwire) February 14, 2008 - Rumsey Engineers today announced that two more of their projects have been awarded a LEED Platinum rating by the United States Green Building Council: the Betty Irene Moore Natural Sciences Building at Mills College in Oakland, California, and the StopWaste.org building, also in Oakland. This makes Rumsey Engineers the first firm in the U.S. to have four buildings with a Platinum rating, the highest possible level of USGBC certification. LEED is the most widely accepted measure of excellence in sustainable building performance.

Rumsey Engineers continues to be a national leader in the design of highly energy efficient buildings: projects designed by the firm show that buildings can deliver the highest levels of safety and user comfort, dramatically reduce energy and water consumption, and be built with no additional cost over traditional construction methods.

The Betty Irene Moore Natural Sciences Building is 90 percent more energy efficient than a typical lab in the Bay Area and 45 percent more energy efficient than required by California's Title 24, yet was constructed within a conventional budget: in fact the HVAC system cost less than a standard system. Designed by EHDD Architecture, architects and Rumsey Engineers, mechanical engineers, the building includes intensive laboratory facilities, offices and classrooms. Its innovative HVAC system provides 100% outside air (no recirculated air) for the whole building, eliminates wasteful reheat in the office spaces and features variable flow exhaust. The laboratories are cooled with indirect and direct evaporative cooling systems, which cost less than a conventional laboratory HVAC system. Offices and classrooms use a combination of natural ventilation and a radiant floor system for heating and cooling. The building's plumbing design uses low water strategies including ultra low flush toilets, waterless urinals, and sensor-controlled faucets. A unique rainwater collection system incorporates an exterior sculpture, which is exposed and visible to students for teaching purposes. Rainwater collected through the system is used to flush toilets.

Built with no additional cost for energy efficient features and 40% more energy efficient than a typical office building, the StopWaste.org building is the first project to be awarded a Platinum rating under LEED version 2.2. To meet the stringent LEED Platinum criteria, the design team of Komorous-Towey Architects, Rumsey Engineers, mechanical engineers, and Integrated Design Associates, electrical engineers, incorporated innovative new systems into the building envelope while preserving and re-using many old components of the building. The building's high efficiency HVAC system provides excellent indoor air quality, eliminates reheat, and cost less than a conventional VAV reheat system. The ventilation and lighting systems are highly responsive to building users and make excellent use of daylighting and natural ventilation. Innovative water efficient strategies in the building include a rainwater catchment system, low-flow faucets, waterless urinals, dual-flush toilets, and permeable paving.

According to Peter Rumsey, president of Rumsey Engineers, "Getting super efficient buildings in the ground, building them affordably, and having them serve as tangible, proven examples of better design and engineering is crucial to our efforts to radically change prevailing inefficient building practices. We're proud to help lead the adoption of standards such as LEED, and to reinforce the consciousness of sustainable building that is emerging all over the planet."

About Rumsey Engineers

Rumsey Engineers is a Bay Area-based design engineering firm that specializes in highly energy and water efficient mechanical, electrical, and plumbing design. The company's mission is to improve building practice by fostering innovation and creating exemplary buildings that are both sustainable and affordable. For more information, visit www.rumseyengineers.com.

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