ICF Building in Oregon: Case Study
July 13th, 2010 | Project Showcase
This story is an oldie, but a goodie and those numbers are similar all over the country with commercial ICF construction.
When Dr. Waters, owner of Silverton Surgical in Silverton, Oregon planned their new 3-story, 13,020 square foot medical building, they wanted to lower operational costs to improve the profitability of their investment.
Over $10,000.00 per year in utility savings increased the profitability of the project starting the very first month.
The Waters’ specified Reward Wall Systems Insulating Concrete Forms (ICFs) for the exterior walls of the project. To complement the insulated concrete walls, the Waters’ upgraded the roof insulation, windows, and the HVAC equipment to create a high-performance building envelope. The conservation upgrades for the project increased the cost of construction of this $2,100,000.00 project by $112,000.00 compared to a 2 x 6 wood frame building that meets Oregon energy code. The Waters’ justified the investment by counting on lower utility expenses.
The Waters’ commissioned an independent energy audit to determine if the investment in the conservation upgrades would be cost effective, and the results were astonishing.
The utility expense of the building constructed of 2 x 6 wood frame to meet Oregon Code was calculated to be $1,151.00 per month. The building with the Insulated Concrete exterior walls, increased roof insulation, window and HVAC upgrades was calculated to be $312.00 per month for a savings of $10,068.00 in utilities per year.
Even with the cost of construction increased by $112,000.00, this building is less expensive, and more profitable for the Waters’ starting the very first month of operation. The combined monthly mortgage and utility expense for the project is actually $175 less than the same building built with the less expensive 2 x 6 wood frame construction to meet code.
The Waters’ contracted a consulting firm to submit an application for the State of Oregon’s Business Energy Tax Credit (BETC). BETC was created to offer an incentive for investing in conservation upgrades. The incentive totals 35% of the $112,000.00 upgrades for a tax credit of $39,200.00 to be taken over five years.
Even with a higher cost of construction, the utility savings for this project result in a lower cost of ownership and increase profits for Silverton Medical Properties starting from the very first month of operation.
- 13,020 square feet
- CMU and brick exterior finish
- PVC sheet roofing over 3.5″ Polyisocyanurate R-22
- 5 AC units, total 25-ton inheat pump
- Energy Wise utility cost average, $312 per month
- Estimated $10,000 per year energy savings over wood
- Stairwells and elevator shaft built with Reward
- 11″ iForm for top two levels
- •13″ iForm for basement and crawl space
Net Zero Homes and ICFs
July 8th, 2010 | Project Showcase, Unique Applications, Unique Trends
Net Zero Buildings
A net zero building is a building that offsets all energy use by creating energy as well so by the end of it all there is an energy use of net zero. Now frequently at trade shows or talking with people in general about the future of green building and the new way to build homes, I always cringe at the people who jump right into wanting to create energy without taking the necessarily steps to use less in the first place.
Net Zero homes usually have a setup, through solar or wind, to create energy to offset any they use. However, the concept makes use of the most important part of creating energy.
YOU HAVE TO USE LESS ENERGY.
icf
I can’t imagine the size of a wind turbine, and cost of a solar panel (about 285 sq feet at $16-$30 thousand dollars) to generate the amount of electricity that is needed to power an average (14,400 watt-hours per day) home. That’s why ICFs are an ideal building system for net zero, they will reduce energy needs.
ICFs and Net Zero
That’s why insulated concrete forms have always been a great option when our customers want to built a net zero home. They reduce your energy so the owner can create a surplus of it and actually sell it back to the energy company!
Here is our Hyde Park example below, one of the first net-zero homes in the country to use ICFs and a first in New York. General contractor Bill Reilly of Hyde Park, New York, became interested in ICFs in the early 1990’s, but he never went any further with it at that time. However, when he started planning to build an energy efficient home for himself, ICF construction came to mind again. As a contractor with 40 years of experience, Reilly wanted to build the house himself and make it extremely energy efficient.
New York Energy Efficiency
The result was the most energy efficient house in the state of New York. With a geothermal HVAC system and photovoltaic cells on the roof to generate electricity, Reilly pays nothing for electricity. Part of the reason is that he is able to re-sell the excess electricity he generates back to the utility company. But would never be able to do that had he not built with insulating concrete forms.
Quick Facts about the Hyde Park Net Zero home in New York
- One-story house with walkout basement
- 6,300 conditioned square feet
- 3,160 finished square feet
- HERS rating of 93.4 by Energy Star
- Highest Energy Star Rating to date in New York State
- Stone and vinyl exterior finish
- Asphalt shingle roof materials
- Climate Master Tranquility 27 geothermal heating and cooling system
- 70% smaller than it would have been with traditional construction
- Projected utility costs: Zero dollars
- 11″ iForm insulating concrete form
Cascade Meadows Science Center
June 17th, 2010 | Project Showcase
| PROJECT NAME: | Cascade Meadow Science Center |
| LOCATION: | Rochester, MN |
| ARCHITECT: | LHB Corporation |
| CONTRACTOR: | Alvin E. Benike, Inc. |
| OWNER: | Cascade Meadow Wetland Corporation |
Project Details:
Quantity of Insulating Concrete Forms – 2,200 13″ Forms
Ready Mix used: 11,000 cubic yards
The Cascade Meadow Science Center is a research and education facility dedicated to environmental education, with a focus on energy, water and wetlands. Upon completion, the Center will house a reception area, interactive exhibit spaces, a large conference and meeting space, a science lab for the study of native wetlands, a conference room, and offices for staff and on-site educators. The grounds will feature a restored wetland and lake with outdoor learning stations and trails.
In pursuit of LEED® Platinum Certification, one component of the 16,000 square foot center is Reward® Insulating Concrete Form (ICF) technology for the above grade exterior walls. ICFs offer many sustainability benefits for both commercial and residential structures, including energy savings of up to 50-80 percent over traditional wood framed buildings. ICF walls have also been tested to withstand tornado winds exceeding 200 mph. They are far quieter and provide for a clean indoor air environment that eliminates the possibility of mold growth within the exterior walls.
“The Cascade Meadows Science Center will serve as a catalyst for meaningful and enduring learning that promotes sustainable living through exhibits, events, seminars, conventions and more. Cemstone and Reward are proud to play a role in this important and significant endeavor by demonstrating how the use of ICF technology can help create a more sustainable structure. The ICF portion of the Cascade Meadow Science Center went really smoothly. We’ve done several ICF projects together with Reward and Cemstone. It’s easy construction in terms of design – and our contractor has lots of ICF experience. The most important advantage for the building owner is energy efficiency and a higher R-value. In addition, ICF buildings are quieter inside, which is very important in many residential applications. Using concrete in an ICF building also helps contribute to LEED points. It’s also a benefit to LHB to have representatives from Reward and Cemstone available to answer questions. We’d recommend ICF construction – the buildings speak for themselves!”
Anne Ryan, Project Architect, LHB, Inc.
ICF Concrete Home Texas III
June 10th, 2010 | Project Showcase
Sorry for the few week hiatus, I was off relaxing and exploring the island of Maui, so its taken a bit to get back up to speed on what’s all going on. I come back home to Nebraska and next thing you know we are going to the Big 10… I shouldn’t go on vacation anymore.
Well I’ll do a quick picture update on a project with Leading Edge Building Products. They finished the concrete home in Texas we previously posted about while it was being constructed. (ICF Concrete Home Texas & ICF Concrete Home Texas II). Wow.
Concrete Home in the Mountain
May 6th, 2010 | Project Showcase
ICF Mountain Getaway
Sitting on top of a breezy mountain edge, overlooking valleys of Colorado, and surrounded by wildlife sits a newly finished insulated concrete form home, constructed by Brady Contracting and Developing. Talk about a getaway…I’ll wait to be invited for the weekend. Some unique features, which are highlighted in photos below, are the photovoltaic panels, battery backups, a gorgeous radius wall and a winding staircase.
Currently we are gathering energy use data. We will report that once that is shared with us if the owner doesn’t mind.
Located near Boulder, CO
About 1,100 13″ Reward ICFs used
ICF construction photos
Finish Photos
So there you have it. If I make it on the roof of that ICF house for a dinner party, I’ll be sure to let you all know.
Special Olympics of Massachusetts 2
April 15th, 2010 | Project Showcase
This wonderful ICF project won a 2009 ICFA Excellence Award for Large Commercial, along with Carleton College (Gold/Sustainability) and Dunkin’ Donuts (Gold/Small Commercial)
Life-cycle costs and more efficient heating/cooling costs to maintain the Special Olympics Yawkey Sports Training Facility were a result of Columbia Construction providing value engineering- essentially by making the decision to deviate from original CMU plans and use insulating concrete forms they were able to improve the function of the building with an opportunity to lower costs.
Energy conservation and being able to build during the winter months were initially the main reasons for using Insulating Concrete Forms. Significant savings were realized due to the fact the project did not suffer any winter conditions penalties. The added benefits of strength and safety were greatly appreciated as well, due to the nature of the users of the building.
The principal architect, since discovering the ICFs, is now specifying it for several new national drug facilities he has underway. His reasons for using this product are:
- Energy conservation and the LEED benefits associated with this product, which increases the R-value to R-32.
- Constructability: utilizing ICFs allows construction during winter months and decreases the cost of winter conditions.
- Labor: utilizing ICFs allows for one trade to construct from the frame footing to the top of the parapet wall. That fact also saves up to two (2) months of overall construction, which for a retail client, is a major benefit.
This isn’t just a facility, it’s a facility for a cause, that everyone was happy to be apart of. It was able to be built with safety in mind, and will reap the benefits of energy efficiency, for all users of the site. The SOMA Yawkey Sports Training Facility will serve as a baseline and as inspirations for ICF growth in the Northeast. This project brought a new architect on board, in a region that will benefit immensely from ICFs and a community program that will enjoy the building for generations to come.
Frank Theatres York, PA Update
April 8th, 2010 | Project Showcase
Here’s an updated on Frank Theatre in York, PA. This is a very popular project that is being followed on our blog so we wanted to post an update before the grand opening on the horizon. If you didn’t catch the first post, check out the beginning ICF construction of Frank Theatres.
We visited the theater last week with Chris P of Construction Supply Centers. They are progressing quite nicely now. The various aspects of finish work are well underway and it’s really starting to look like a theater now. Tim Boos, Project Manager with Warfel Construction said they had had some delays with the weather and were expecting to be ready to open the before the first week in June.
When walking through the individual theaters there is a unique “quietness” to them which is easily attributed to the mass of the insulating concrete forms walls. There was no need for any sort of spray foam on the walls dividing the individual theaters because of the use of Reward’s iForm. We would presume that was a significant savings in terms of labor and materials for the owners. The painters were in, touching up the main corridors and lobby area and there were contractors setting the big decorative columns in the main lobby. There’s a nice restaurant area in the front which will be an excellent convenience for the patrons of the theater.
We are looking forward to visiting the theater when it’s completed and excited for the Frank Theatre’s upcoming Grand Opening. Here are some follow up pictures with the exterior getting closer to completion, taken back in January.
Special Olympics of Massachusetts
April 6th, 2010 | Project Showcase
It’s a great time to highlight a beautiful project that is also a winner of a 2009 ICFA Excellence Award. This is the year the Special Olympics games are being hosted in Nebraska as well. (We are out of Omaha)
Yawkey Sports Training Facility
Columbia Construction Company served as Construction Manager for a new state-of-the-art headquarters, the Yawkey Sports Training Center, for the Special Olympics of Massachusetts (SOMA). Centrally located in Marlborough, MA, the new 20,000 s.f. training facility and athletic fields is located on a five-acre site. This new building houses their executive offices, along with all of their support facilities. In addition, there is 4,000 s.f. of flexible classroom space that will provide a suitable venue for fundraising and banquet functions. The new SOMA headquarters facility will enable the organization to better serve the more than 10,000 athletes, in more than 118 athletic competitions in 26 sports. It will also enable SOMA to consolidate disparate and expensive field operations, and provide top-notch and more frequent training for its growing base of volunteers, coaches and athletes.
ICF design
The design includes a processional walkway leading to a plaza containing a “Hall of Fame”, which will introduce visitors to the unique nature of this facility. As they enter the lobby, further images and interactive displays will reinforce the educational aspects of the organization. ICFs were utilized for the training facility and gymnasium to allow the construction to continue during the harsh winter months of New England. Utilizing ICF allowed Columbia to place concrete all winter and also provide the exterior insulation to install EIFS in the spring.
The Gymnasium is located on the North side of the building and was originally designed with CMU. The Reward ICF system offered a structural wall system with high energy efficiency and low heat loss. In fact the ICF was added to the design plans after CMU was already spec’d. It was apparent as soon as the benefits were understood, this was the way to build. Adjustments were made in the plans and by using the expertise of an experienced installer, a successful project was built.
ICFs Save Time and Reduce Labor Costs
The ICF system offered a structural system that allowed Columbia to remove the columns and perimeter beams. By utilizing ICFs they were able to simplify the construction to one trade, reducing materials and scaling back on extra labor to get the building in use faster. The insulating properties of ICFs also help to keep construction schedules on time, as they were able to continue to work and pour concrete when the weather was not ideal – temperatures typically average under 35 degrees in December and January.
More on the Special Olympics Yawkey Sports Training Facility next post.
ICF Student Residence Hall Part III
March 11th, 2010 | From the Field, Marketing, Project Showcase
Wrapping up this project highlight I wanted to give some special credit to the guys who actually put this thing together. As Reward is just the insulating concrete forms, some one has to know how to stack ICFs, align ICFs, and pour concrete as well…oh yeah and DESIGN using ICFs.
ICF Construction and Design Team
Owner: Pegasus Group/Carleton College
Architect: LHB
General Contractor: J.E. Dunn Construction
ICF Installer: Northland Concrete and Masonry
ICF Distributor: Cemstone
Some Cool ICF Pictures
The picture above shows a sunny, however frigid day in Minnesota. If you have been up there in the winter months you know it can get pretty serious. But with the dorms needing to be ready for fall semester they worked through the winter in sub freezing temperatures. Many days hit below zero, but luckily ICFs allow for concrete placement and curing with sub freezing temperatures.
This picture below is a meat thermometer(highly sophisticated measurement) stuck in an ICF and the concrete after placement. It shows what the curing temperature is of the concrete…100 degrees. The outside air temperature was under 20 degrees.
Finished Insulating Concrete Form School
Please enjoy the pictures of this awarding winning school.
As the year goes on and hopefully this projects racks up a couple more awards and we’ll post some updates on the continual energy use and any more ambitions from that campus.
ICF Student Residence Hall 2
February 23rd, 2010 | Marketing, Project Showcase
Last week we started highlighting the award-winning Carleton College, one of the top ICF construction projects of 2009. We were happy to be the ICF of choice for this project, as the school is nationally know for their sustainable practices. Here are a few quick facts of the Carleton College.
ICF Project Statistics
- Location: Northfield, Minn.
- Type: MultiFamily—Two Student Residence Halls
- Size: 91,536 sq. ft. (floor) 52,150 + 39,376
- ICF Use: 63,840 sq. ft. (walls)
- Height: 4 stories plus gables
- Cost: $26 million (budgeted)
Live Energy Use Data
One of the unique features of the project is that there are energy use monitors installed in the Residence Halls. This allows the school to track energy use per building, per floor, and for each individual dorm rooms as well. They can identify energy hogs, and maybe advise heavy energy offenders how to cut energy use as well. This is a huge advantage when educating responsible behaviors to students and getting them thinking about the cost of energy.
Along with energy use monitors, they also have the ability to track the energy creation through photo-voltaics and steam generation as well. Those systems were put in place to help heat the water and to offset energy use. Carleton understood the importance of securing the building envelope so it made sense to add P/V systems.
Energy creation is good…and seems to be the only thing to get the government’s attention…but won’t be a feasible source (cost wise) if buildings don’t start limiting their energy consumption. ICFs can limit a building’s energy use! See their live energy use data.
Beyond the Insulating Concrete Form
Carleton College has identified over 36 distinct green attributes to these buildings, other than the use of ICFs and fly ash in the concrete. From reflective roof tiles, to using local vegetation for landscaping, this college is on the leading edge of sustainability.
As you can see there are wonderful things going on in the ICF world up in Minnesota. Next week we’ll go over the star contributors to this project and show some great cold weather concreting pictures.