740 Bel-Air
PWGSC’s Normand-Maurice Building

/2002-2005/15,700 m2/169,000 ft2

New construction in integrated design

Project description

Construction of a 15,700 m² multiclient building housing warehouses, offices and a shooting range that needed to meet the standards of National Defence, Royal Canadian Mounted Police, Human Resources Development Canada and Canada Customs and Revenue Agency. Carried out in integrated design with the other stakeholders, this new building includes best practices in sustainable development and several high energy efficiency concepts such as geothermal energy. Certified LEED-NC Gold, the 740 Bel-Air was one of the first buildings to obtain this certification in Quebec and is a "green building" prototype for PWGSC.

Challenges and Solutions

  • Geothermal energy exchanger linked to chillers as a main energy source.
  • Solid energy bank installed under the building to accumulate energy during unoccupied periods.
  • Ventilation, heating and cooling hybrid systems composed of radiant panels for energy storage in the concrete mass.
  • Raised floors for better air quality and climate control.
  • Very high efficiency heat recovery on expelled air, and selecting a refrigerant that does not affect the ozone layer.
  • Green roof (for an large part of building).
  • Independent fresh air supply system modulated depending on the occupancy, and superior insulation of the envelope.
  • Natural lighting: optimizing solar gain in the winter, exterior shading in the summer with a sunshade slat system, high performance glass, and an automated energy management system.
  • Implementing a high performance thermal power plant to increase the annual seasonal efficiency of the boiler room (approximately 85 % - typical efficiency of a natural gas boiler with high efficiency) to over 250 %, in order to substantially reduce energy consumption of the site (more than 60% below the CBIP reference building ) and savings in energy costs (over 50 %).

Awards

  • ASHRAE Technology Award 2009 (International)
  • Canadian GeoExchange Coalition 2008 | Award of Excellence
  • AQME’s Énergia Awards 2007 | Sustainable Building - Green building
  • Contech Trophy 2003 | Sustainable Development

Other Projects

Life Sciences Complex

McGill University - Life…

Montréal (Québec)

Hilton Lac-Leamy

Gatineau (Québec)

Charles River Laboratories

Sherbrooke (Québec)
Mountain Equipment Co-op

Mountain Equipment Co-op…

Vancouver (British Columbia)