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When Manitoba Hydro unveiled plans to build one of North America’s most energy-efficient office towers in downtown Winnipeg, it opted to deliver the project utilizing an integrated design process (IDP) approach.
Manitoba Hydro Place
When Manitoba Hydro unveiled plans to build one of North America’s most energy-efficient office towers in downtown Winnipeg, it opted to deliver the project utilizing an integrated design process (IDP) approach.
“They realized that they would have to do something completely out of the norm to achieve the energy efficiency goals they had in mind,” said Monique Buckberger, chief estimator at the Winnipeg branch of PCL Constructors Canada Inc. and the senior project manager on the Manitoba Hydro Place project.
“They realized they would have to go down a non-traditional path.”
Buckberger presented a case study of the project at a recent conference in Toronto sponsored by the Institute for BIM in Canada. The 22-storey office building which opened in 2009 has received LEED Platinum certification from the Canada Green Building Council.
Consuming only 88 kilowatt hours per square metre per year, the building is 66 per cent more efficient than the model national energy code for buildings. The target was to design a facility that was 60 per cent more efficient than the code.
Buckberger told professionals from the architecture, engineering and construction sectors attending the conference that once that decision had been made to use an IDP approach, the utility then retained advocate architects Prairie Architects Inc. “to help manoeuvre through the process.”
It took the utility a year to assemble the project team, which was in place by June 2004.
That team included design architects Kuwabara Payne McKenna Blumberg (KPMB) of Toronto, executive architects Smith Carter Architects and Engineers Inc. of Winnipeg and energy/climate engineers Transsolar of Stuggart as well as a number of consultants. PCL acted as construction manager.
“The very first meeting was a retreat,” Buckberger recalled. “That involved 25 new faces coming into a meeting room. That was when relationship-building began.”
She said Manitoba Hydro, which collaborated in the design process, “made it very clear that everybody’s agendas were to be left at the door. They were to come in with an open mind.”
The outcome of this inaugural meeting was a project charter, outlining key design goals to be accomplished. The list included achieving global standards in energy efficiency and sustainability, signature architecture, a healthy and productive workplace and a positive impact on downtown Winnipeg.
“Manitoba Hydro had a very, very clear idea of where they wanted to go with the project, but at this point they needed buy-in from everyone on the team.”
After the project charter was drafted, members of the team visited several sites, mostly in Europe, where designers were incorporating energy-efficient and sustainable principles in projects.
That done, a series of design charettes were held, in Toronto and Winnipeg. PCL staff took part in the charettes.
“When the target became to design a building that was 60 per cent more efficient than the model national energy code, Manitoba Hydro didn’t think it was achievable,” Buckberger said. “But they wanted to put it out there so the design team could reach for the stars.”
Buckberger, who has a degree in civil engineering from the University of Manitoba and has been employed at PCL for 17 years, said a number of building features were “embraced” as a result of the integrated design process.
These included incorporation of a solar chimney, double-wall curtainwall system, geothermal field, water features that control the building’s humidification, a passive ventilation system, maximized daylighting, operable windows, and a green roof.
Buckberger said a number of factors contributed to the success of the project, which has garnered a numerous awards in the past two years for innovation, architectural and urban design excellence and green design.
For starters, she said, Manitoba Hydro hand-picked “a blue ribbon team” that worked well together. The integrated design process was initiated at the very start of the project, a key element in its ultimate construction success.
In addition, Buckberger said, the utility made a practice out of trusting its experts.
“When it doubt, they always defaulted to the expert opinions, whether it was the mechanical subcontractor, the energy engineer or whoever.”
While the design process benefited from synergies generated by the team, “there was only one designer (design architects KPMB) on the project.
“The project was not designed by committee.”
In addition, Buckberger said, numerous testings and mockups were done during the design process.
Lessons learned included getting the team together at the very beginning — and choosing the right project delivery method.
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