Allegheny College, Meadville, Pa.
Retrofit Team
Retrofit Team
ARCHITECT: Perfido Weiskopf Wagstaff + Goettel, Pittsburgh
GENERAL CONTRACTOR: Massaro Corp., Pittsburgh
DAYLIGHTING SYSTEM SUPPLIER: M&M Specialty Products Inc., Dubois, Pa.
Materials
Carr Hall, which was built in the 1960s, was renovated to become a showcase for the campus’s environmental stewardship. The project achieved LEED Gold for Commercial Interiors. Providing daylight throughout the labs, classrooms and lobby in this multistory building was one of the primary objectives.
The construction team installed 38 Solatube 750 DS-C Daylighting Systems in classrooms and labs and six Solatube 750 DS-O Daylighting Systems in the lobby. The systems allow the spaces to be independent of electric lighting most days. In the lobby area, special custom black sleeves were designed to fit over the tubing to create a striking visual against the custom wood ceiling. The units also provide daylight for a living wall of plants.
“We’ve been extremely pleased with the inclusion of a large number of Solatube Daylighting Systems throughout the renovation,” says Kelly Boulton, sustainability coordinator for Allegheny College. “It is one of the features that most excites visitors and those that study and work in the building— first because they’re so surprised to hear that daylight rather than artificial light is illuminating the space and second because it adds to the warm, natural quality of the space. They have allowed us to reduce our electricity consumption while maintaining plenty of light. Not only have the Solatube units contributed to the renovation’s LEED Gold certification, but they’ve helped us in our efforts to achieve 20 percent better building efficiency in our partnership with the DOE’s Better Buildings Challenge, as well as move closer to our goal of climate neutrality.”
DAYLIGHTING SYSTEMS MANUFACTURER: Solatube International Inc.
The Retrofit
Founded in 1815, Allegheny College is a private liberal arts college and an acknowledged leader in sustainability. The college was one of the first to join the Washington, D.C.-based U.S. Department of Energy’s Better Buildings Challenge with a goal of upgrading energy performance by a minimum of 20 percent by the year 2020.
The renovated Carr Hall is home to the new Richard J. Cook Center for Environmental Science, honoring the former Allegheny College president who was passionate about science education and the environment.
PHOTO: Solatube International Inc.