High Performance Architecture
Pablo La Roche Shares Pamo Valley Project with SBSE
June 20th, 2011
On June 16, Pablo La Roche presented HMC/Cal Poly Pomona’s Pamo Valley Project at the annual retreat of the Society of Building Science Educators (SBSE) in Albuquerque, N.M. Pablo’s presentation described the first two quarters of the Pamo Valley Project, during which students, with support from HMC staff, have developed designs for two low-cost sustainable houses for the city of San Diego. Students have also designed, built, and tested different sustainable systems for these houses, including double roofs with thermosyphon heating, green roofs, and sprinkler roofs. Two students are continuing to test these systems at the Lyle Center for Regenerative studies at Cal Poly Pomona, while they develop construction documents during their internships at HMC.
Posted in High Performance Architecture,Speaking Engagements
What is the Carbon Footprint of a Coffee Bean?
June 13th, 2011
By Eric Carbonnier, AIA, LEED AP / Environmental Analyst
The LA office is currently sampling a variety of burnt beans that have traveled thousands of miles and consumed countless infinite resources to satisfy a self-induced ritual—note my obvious cynicism for I am neither a coffee drinker nor connoisseur. However, I do see myself as a deep green junky that simply wants to know more about the history of this burnt bean and its impact on our global community. What is the carbon footprint of a latte and have we explored our options?
Posted in High Performance Architecture | 1 Comment »
World Sustainable Building Conference
May 27th, 2011
The aim of the World Sustainable Building Conference in Helsinki is to share leading knowledge, and also to find new solutions which can enhance sustainable ways of living and working within built environments. HMC’s Pasqual Gutierrez and Pablo La Roche will be presenting the Frontier Project.
World Sustainable Building Conference
October 18-21, 2011
Helsinki, Finland
Posted in High Performance Architecture,Speaking Engagements
UIA 2011 Tokyo: The 24th World Congress of Architecture
May 27th, 2011
Described as the “Olympics of Architecture,” the UIA World Congress is a major international architectural event that attracts around 10,000 architects, engineers, researchers and students. Since the inaugural World Congress in Lausanne, Switzerland in 1948, it has taken place triennial in 23 different cities around the world.
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Posted in High Performance Architecture,Speaking Engagements
The Paraujano House: An Example to Remember on Earth Day
April 21st, 2011
By Pablo La Roche, Director of Sustainable Design
We all know that we must reduce our environmental footprint and that low-carbon buildings help to do this. Over time, buildings have become more sophisticated and there has been progress in the development of the systems that help to achieve comfort. Systems that did not exist 100 years ago can now easily provide heat and light to a building with ever increasing efficiency.
However, even with renewed research in smart materials, we have not seen the same level of progress with the building skin, which is a powerful regulator of outdoor conditions. A beautiful example is the traditional Native American home built by the Paraujanos in northwestern Venezuela. Located in a hot and very humid climate, these dwellings were raised above the water, on pilings, and performed as inhabited filters in which the different components of the building envelope—floors, walls and ceilings—were permeable, regulating sunlight, wind, views, and water. The floor, built with cane poles, permitted cool air from the water below to filter inside the building. The walls, also made of cane poles or thatch, were permeable to the wind and filtered in the light. The ceiling, thick and built with enea—a type of thatch—permitted the house to breathe, evacuating the heat while blocking the rain. Because it is opaque, enea also blocked most of the solar radiation to the interior of the building, shading it effectively. Furthermore, Paraujanos only took the food and materials that they needed from the environment, leaving enough for all. This type of house is still built today, even in urban settings, but unfortunately many of the original materials have been substituted with contemporary materials such as industrialized tin and zinc, leading to much-reduced performance. Increased density has also impacted local ecosystems.
Posted in High Performance Architecture
High-Performance Architecture is for the Birds! Literally!
April 14th, 2011
If you watch some of the reality competition shows on TV, HMC Architects recently participated in a “Quick-Fire Challenge” team-building exercise of our own. At the Annual HMC Conference held this past week in Palm Springs, HMC’s leaders broke into ten separate teams and had only two hours to design and construct an award-winning birdhouse. Each team was provided the same random materials that were not revealed until the start of the competition. It was mandatory that all materials provided be used in the individual bird house designs, and the exercise required the use of essential high-performance qualities that we embrace at HMC Architects, such as design, leadership, teamwork, efficiency, creativity, innovation, and doing more with less. The level of enthusiasm and participation was eclipsed only by the creativity of the resulting designs.
Posted in High Performance Architecture
Designing for a Carbon-Neutral World
April 5th, 2011
By Pablo La Roche, Director of Sustainable Design
“Touch this earth lightly” is one of my favorite sayings, which was adopted by Pritzker prizewinner Glenn Murcutt from an Aboriginal proverb. To achieve this truth, we must design buildings that are sensitive to environmental conditions—controlling solar radiation and wind for natural heating, cooling, and ventilation. As just one of many species on this planet, we have to minimize our impact. As architects, we can contribute by designing climate responsive high-performance green architecture. We should design buildings that are flexible and are built with low-energy materials, use little energy and water, send no waste to the environment, and do not generate greenhouse gas emissions.
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Posted in High Performance Architecture
Public Safety Academy at College of the Desert Achieves LEED Silver Certification
March 18th, 2011
The Public Safety Academy at College of the Desert, designed by HMC Architects, has officially achieved LEED® Silver certification by the United States Green Building Council (USGBC). This achievement affirms College of the Desert’s commitment to environmental stewardship and becomes their second LEED-certified facility.
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Carbon Neutral Design Studio at Cal Poly Pomona Engages Students and Architects to Work Together to Rebuild Homes Destroyed by 2007 Wildfires
February 22nd, 2011
A student-led effort is underway at Cal Poly Pomona to design and build two sustainable prototype homes that will replace structures that were destroyed by wildfires in 2007. Referred to as the Pamo Valley Project, the effort provides students with an exceptional opportunity to engage in a co-lectured program shared between faculty and non-faculty practitioners.
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Posted in High Performance Architecture,News Releases | 1 Comment »
COD Nursing Facility Gains ‘Green’ Building Certification
February 16th, 2011
The Coeta and Donald Barker Foundation Nursing Complex at College of the Desert has been officially certified as a LEED silver building. Project architects HMC Architects presented the certification to the COD Board of Trustees at a recent meeting. Read the entire article on mydesert.com.
Posted in Articles & Publications,High Performance Architecture,Higher Education
