Dedicated to advancing sustainable laboratories globally.
4:00 pm - 5:30 pm CDT
G1: Commissioning
System Optimization
Top Ten List: Commissioning Findings
This presentation will review the "top ten" findings from commissioning of new construction and renovation laboratory projects, and retrocommissioning of existing laboratories. Many of these are recurrent and cause increased energy use, IAQ or thermal comfort issues, reliability and maintenance issues, or sometimes all of these combined.
This top ten list will illustrate common problems found during the commissioning process, and to be avoided during design, construction and operation of laboratory facilities. Common issues relate to fume hoods and controls, laboratory airflow controls, air handling units, laboratory exhaust fans, chilled beams, energy recovery and others. The aim of presenting these is to show lessons learned to apply to other facilities, as well as tools to facilitate identifying and analyzing issues related to laboratory projects.
Tales From Retro-Commissioning a Critical Laboratory Building
A unique approach was undertaken to baseline performance and retro-commissioning Building 440, the Center for Nanoscale Materials (CNM), which is a 99,000 square-foot facility originally constructed in 2006 at Argonne National Laboratory. The building consists primarily of research laboratories, clean rooms, and offices. The study, performed by NV5 and 3Flow in Spring 2022, revealed new energy savings and ventilation optimization opportunities for a fairly new (18 years old), LEED Silver certified building.
The scope of the study encompassed a Laboratory Ventilation Risk Assessment (LVRA), HVAC system assessment, laboratory environment tests, and system operating mode tests. Key findings include:
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The LVRA categorized fume hoods, exposure control devices, and labs into risk control bands to determine ventilation requirements.
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HVAC system tests identified opportunities for optimization of air and water flows, controls tuning, and sequences of operation.
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Laboratory environment tests of a sample of fume hoods and labs revealed issues with face velocities, minimum flows, pressurization, and airflow tracking.
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System operating mode tests showed supply airflow is not modulating properly in response to changes in demand.
This presentation will review the challenges, lessons learned, findings, and guidance for future operations decisions.
Target Optimization: Rice Hall Building Automation Upgrade at UVA
Rice Hall was identified by the University of Virginia Office for Sustainability to have high utility usage compared to similar buildings on UVA Grounds. A re-commissioning project was developed and executed. The re-commissioning project identified whole building optimization opportunities along with opportunity to improve the existing controls system. A full building automation system replacement was funded. Optimized control sequences were developed for existing chilled beam systems and all other building systems. Outside air optimization was also a major part in the sequence development. The project will be done by Q3 2024 but is already realizing results from systems completed.
G2: Seasoned Green Lab Programs
Green Labs
Green Lab ROI: Making a Case
As a leading research institution, Penn State faculty and student researchers are highly trained and sought by employers for the excellent skills and knowledge that they bring from the research laboratory to the workplace. However, the skills, knowledge, daily practices, and decisions in most research labs do not yet include sustainability as a conscious filter. There is growing awareness that this element is essential for many important reasons.
The Penn State Sustainable Lab program is in its third year and is actively working to make a case for institutionalizing the program. To do so, systems have been set up to track economic, environmental, and social impacts of the program. Using criteria, categories, tools created by the My Green Lab certification program, best practices gained from Big Ten and Friends green lab network, resources and insights from I2SL, the Penn State program is starting to show an impact.
This session will share what worked, what didn’t work, and what could be better about data tracking and reporting. Challenges to collect and share effective data and establish replicable systems that researchers and students can use, as well as expectations for qualitative and quantitative data for and from university administrators and funders, will be shared. The session will end with questions for participants to address and explore green lab data systems.
NIH Green Labs Program Participation Strategy
Involving the users since the inception of the program in 2018 has been extremely beneficial for developing, implementing, promoting and increasing participation in the annual voluntary NIH Green Labs Program. Last year in particular, the participation in the NIH Green Labs Program increased by 1272 percent since 2018. It was a collaborative effort that required a new communication and outreach strategy. Learn and listen to the stakeholders about their strategies in promoting the program that eventually became successful.
The Journey to Creating a Green Labs Program at an R1 Research Institution.
This presentation shares the decade-long journey Paul and his colleagues endured to establish a Green Labs Program in an R1 Institution, the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (UIUC) Green Research Program.
We will highlight sustainable initiatives that supported the need for a green labs program and captured the attention of the executive decision makers. We will also share the obstacles, hurdles and setbacks that delayed the creation, along with the success’ that created awareness, education, and action that generated momentum toward developing a green labs program.
We will share insights into the Green Labs committee recommendation, what is included in a green labs program, how the program was presented, what the new Green Research Program at UIUC looks like and where it is housed, funded and its oversight.
This presentation offers valuable insights and practical guidance for research universities and similar institutions seeking to embark on their own journey toward creating or expanding their green labs program.
G3: Optimizing Space
Sustainable Design
Advancing State Services: Designing Michigan’s Sustainable, Consolidated Laboratory Facility
The state of Michigan is building a cutting-edge facility that consolidates state laboratory services while prioritizing sustainability, aiming for LEED Gold certification. The facility will house Michigan's Health and Human Services, Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy, and Labor and Economic Opportunity departments. Distinct lab spaces include virology, analytical chemistry, soil extraction, and spectroscopy.
This presentation, given by mechanical engineers involved in the design of the project, discusses an approach that is helping to address the decarbonization interests of the state by fully electrifying the central utility plant with a hybrid energy storage system utilizing both ice storage and vertical bore geothermal wells. Combining these systems with a centralized heat pump system, this project is projected to perform 25 percent better than ASHRAE 90.1 requirements for an electrified building.
Race to the Top: Efficient, Sustainable Lab Planning in Vertical Buildings
With the continued urbanization of laboratory buildings and the drive to build tall, the need for efficient use of space has never been greater. This session looks at how to get the most out of vertically stacked lab buildings, ensuring that the flow of people and materials is optimized, looking at how the lab space interacts with the impacts of the core design, and discussing how to create great working environments. We will run through how to arrange support facilities throughout vertical buildings to ensure the best user experience including shared laboratory facilities, storage spaces and materials in/out.
With collaboration being an underpinning feature of scientific research outputs, we will also look at how considering social spaces alongside the labs and write up areas, and how to engineer chance encounters, can deliver even greater levels of scientific efficiency and the enjoyment of the building.
We will use some example projects from the UK, including considering how effective lab planning has contributed to delivering low and net zero carbon tall buildings by making best use of space and facilitating efficient MEP systems. In core and shell buildings, we understand how an optimal floorplate can facilitate a high level of flexibility in terms of tenant splits and lab functions. We also look at how efficient space planning can now facilitate the ability for long-term change of use and adaptable reuse including creating the ability to fit out specialist lab spaces.
Adaptive Reuse in City Centers: A UK Perspective
Our presentation is informed by the increasing drive to adapt and modify existing office, shopping malls and industrial buildings for scientific use. The examples will focus on buildings within Central London, Oxford and Cambridge. The presentation will explore the sustainability and economic factors that influence the decision to pursue adaptive reuse in place of new building, e.g., sustainability consideration (reduced embodied carbon) or commercial imperatives, e.g., speed to market by adapting existing rather than building new. The presentation will capture key trends in the UK science typologies to be catered for, their relative needs and the extent to which they can/cannot be catered for within the adaptive reuse setting.
The presentation will explore the theme of adaptability in user briefing requirements especially where an element of compromise may be required in order to balance occupier needs with the existing building. Information sources will include observations and empirical evidence gathered from our involvement as businesses operating at the forefront of the UK science and research market--acting for private sector developments, occupiers, universities and private tech firms. The presentation will be focused predominantly on the UK market, though it will seek to identify synergies between the UK and U.S. markets and will aim to prompt an engaging discussion of reuse as a vital component of our pathway to environmental recovery.
G4: Labs2Zero Update
System Optimization
The Latest Advances From Labs2Zero
I2SL’s Labs2Zero program is an ambitious initiative designed to support and accelerate the decarbonization of the world’s laboratory buildings. The program was launched in late 2022, and I2SL is rapidly releasing tools from a suite that will include a rating system to assess building performance; a certification to recognize success; an accreditation program to ensure that professionals are available to support program users; and the tools to enable lab owners to identify next steps and take action to decarbonize their buildings. The first tool released, the pilot Energy Score, was launched in October 2023.
Thanks to the work of our dedicated teams and more than 100 subject matter expert volunteers from I2SL’s community, 2024 has been a year of great progress and exciting new releases from Labs2Zero. This 90-minute session will introduce the latest Labs2Zero releases and provide an update on program development. Topic areas will include the Operational Emissions Score, Embodied Carbon Benchmarking, and the Actionable Insights and Measures (AIM) Report software tool.
The session will feature speakers who are leading the development of the Labs2Zero program, including Alison Farmer and Gordon Sharp from I2SL, Josh Kace from Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, and Dirk von Below from Flad.
Optimizing for Embodied Carbon
When designing a laboratory, there are multiple challenges when accounting for the embodied carbon emissions in the built environment, including the relatively new science of determining environmental impact, as well as making design decisions based on inaccurate or incomplete data. To assist in addressing these challenges, I2SL is developing a benchmark and scoring method for laboratories.
This presentation will examine this new tool, reviewing how it can be applied to a variety of project types such as renovations, building reuse, and new construction. Attendees will learn more about embodied carbon benchmarking strategies and how we can begin to understand a project’s performance against a baseline. We will review how to use a life-cycle analysis to understand how a project’s program requirements, materials, and construction will affect its overall environmental impact.
Laboratory requirements have a significant impact on the structure of buildings, which is known to be a key contributor to carbon emission, making it a strong candidate for design optimization. Emerging information also suggests MEP refrigerants and materials may also be significant factors in reducing a laboratory’s carbon footprint.
We will provide early design guidance and offer practical and cost-effective tools to help owners understand the carbon impact of the building and identify opportunities that optimize the design, without sacrificing key vibration, seismic, loading, and flexibility.
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