ACA would like to thank all participants and volunteers at the 2011 Infrastructure Partners Conference. Organized by the Consulting Architects of Alberta, the Consulting Engineers of Alberta, the Edmonton Construction Association, and ACA, the theme of the conference was Building Partnerships: A Future With A Competitive Advantage.
If you were unable to attend, presentations from the conference will soon be available on the Consulting Engineers of Alberta website.
Stefan Holst of the German firm Transsolar and Martin Nielson from the architectural firm Perkin+Will gave a joint presentation on the possibilities of sustainable design at the 2011 Infrastructure Partners Conference.
Holst spoke about the benefits of climate engineering; using sustainable design techniques such as passive solar, double facades, and natural ventilation, buildings used up to 60% less energy than comparable structures. This is achievable for very little additional cost. Holst gave examples from many international projects, as well as the Calgary Airport expansion and the Manitoba Hydro Building in Winnipeg.
For sustainable design at the community scale, Martin Nielson gave a presentation on Perkin+Will’s vision for the redevelopment of the Edmonton municipal airport lands. This high-density neighbourhood will be based around a large new urban park and lake, which doubles as the neigbourhood’s stormwater management system, and will be fully integrated into the LRT. The community will retain aspects of its aviation history; the main transportation corridors will follow the old runways of the airport, and the hangers are to house new civic buildings and an expanded aviation museum.
Perkin+Will also have ambitious goals for energy production. They are exploring using biomass which will use waste from the nearby Clover Bar landfill. As well, in partnership with government and academia, the firm is looking at the potential for deep geothermal (drilling 4-5 km) for district heat and electricity production. This is still an experimental process, but if achieved it would make the community carbon negative, i.e. it will actually reduce the city’s carbon footprint.
This and other presentations from the conference will soon be available on the Consulting Engineers of Alberta website.
Dr. Mohamed Al-Hussein, a professor of engineering at the University of Alberta, gave a presentation at the 2011 Infrastructure Partners Conference on the opportunities and challenges of industrializing and modularizing the construction process.
The main benefits of modularization are schedule, waste reduction, and safety.
Fabricating modules and then installing them on-site is much quicker than traditional construction. Dr. Al-Hussein was involved with a project at Muhlenberg College in the United States in which five 3-story dormitories were constructed in ten days, which is considerably quicker than would be the case if they were built traditionally.
Fabrication in a factory considerably reduces waste and greenhouse gas emissions. Dr. Al-Hussein and a colleague have created an algorithm for machine cutting wood for modules at a factory in Germany that reduces wood waste from 18% to less than 3%.
Factory construction is also safer; work comes to the workers and is designed to minimize bending, kneeling, and lifting. As well, it is easier to control for harmful dust and fumes in a factory environment.
The challenges of construction modularization are largely industry resistance and cost.
Both contractors and clients mistakenly believe that modular construction produces a shoddy building. Al-Hussein argues that while this may have been true years ago, advances in modular construction such as the increased usage of BIM have largely solved quality issues.
Modular construction may actually cost less than traditional construction, due to a shorter schedule and less rework, but cost can escalate due to shipping. If the site is located far from the module factory, the costs of shipping the modules can be a considerable expense. This may be solved as modularization becomes more popular and the manufacturing base becomes more decentralized.
This and other presentations from the conference will soon be available on the Consulting Engineers of Alberta website.