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Welcome to Fabulous Las Vegas, Nevada. That iconic sign, along
with the Eiffel Tower at the Paris Hotel and the Sphinx at the Luxor,
are some well-known landmarks in this gambling and entertainment resort. Hotels and
casinos may rise high above the desert, but they're not the only structures convention-goers
are talking about this week. Out in Vegas, recipients of the ASHRAE Technology
Awards are enjoying the Society's 2011 Winter Conference and learning that
their buildings are "best in class" in terms of energy management and
indoor air quality.
This year's recipients include designers of university,
medical, commercial, and religious structures. Stanford University's Akiko
Yamazaki Environment and Energy Building (Y2E2) achieved an energy performance
premium with a payback period of four to six years. Pierre-Boucher Hospital in
Montreal reduced its annual natural gas consumption by nearly 65% in one wing. The
David Brower Center in Berkley, California was built with 53% recycled building
materials. A synagogue in Evanston, Illinois is now equipped with a
94% efficient gas-fired condensing boiler.
The American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air Conditioning
Engineers (ASHRAE) may have been founded in 1894, but the international organization of
51,000 has kept up with the times. Today, promoting "sustainability"
is a stated part of ASHRAE's mission. Should more engineering organizations, especially those involved in building design, make such a commitment?
Source: ASHRAE
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Re: ASHRAE’s Honeymoon in Vegas
