Beth Pearcy, AIA, CPCH, LEED AP BD+C, leader of Amenta Emma’s Sustainability team and co-chair of the BSA Committee on the Environment, will be sharing her knowledge and some of AE’s Sustainability practices throughout the month of April.
A couple weeks ago we talked about our commitment to reduce operational carbon in our projects through the 2030 Challenge. Amenta Emma has a sustainability focused team that is working to look at our design process and provide the office with tools for evaluating the pieces of a building that impact the amount of energy a building uses. One of those areas is windows. While windows are an important part of creating a comfortable space, they are also the part of the envelope that transfers the most heat. So how do we balance the need for comfortable daylit spaces and the reduction of energy? Recently our sustainability group presented the office with tools and strategies to evaluate daylighting and window-to-wall ratio. Both metrics help us evaluate our designs and create comfortable, inviting spaces without utilizing too much energy.
