Another Award for KSC Science Center
KEENE, N.H. 2-13-06 - Banwell Architects, Inc., of Lebanon, N.H., and Mitchell Giurgola Architects, New York, N.Y., received an Honor Award for KSC’s Science Center at the N.H. chapter of the American Institute of Architects’ (AIA) 22nd Annual Awards Banquet on January 20. Gordon Leversee, KSC’s interim vice president for academic affairs, and Jay Kahn, vice president for finance and planning, attended the awards ceremony, held at the New Hampshire Institute of Art in Manchester to accept the award.
Jurors noted that “The whole design - from resolving the program, the site plan, the building technology, the landscape, and the interiors - is consistently highly resolved.”
The Science Center project has been cited for showing how creative renovation and new construction can help colleges meet modern teaching needs and provide energy-saving facilities. The school saved time and $5.5 million in construction costs by working with the existing structure, and the limitations of the old building - inadequate space for modern ductwork and large, old fashioned lecture halls unsuited to hands-on learning and student research - inspired the architects to creatively adapt to the challenges.
The 93,640 sq. ft. center was designed to include a complete renovation of the existing building and a 37,940 sq. ft. addition. The addition, with an increased floor-to-floor height, accommodates state-of-the-art labs for biology and chemistry, which require major fume hood exhaust systems.
The use of low flow fume hoods tied to an enthalpy heat recovery system, passive solar sun shades with glass on the south facade of the addition, and a new insulated roof, new windows, and new exterior wall insulation on the existing building maximize energy efficiency without excess expense.
The new glass-walled addition provides comfortable “conversation alcoves” in the hallways. Large, out-of-date lecture halls were converted into smaller classrooms, and an open-air courtyard created by the new addition serves as an outdoor classroom with plants and boulders that reflect the biological and geological landscape of the region.
Gilbane Building Co., construction manager for the project, received two awards last fall in the Annual Excellence in Construction competition.
