Challenge
To create an exemplary new high-performance 73,000-square-foot learning environment using the USGBC LEED-NC rating system to guide and evaluate the project.
Solution
Architect Stephen Blatt and daylighting consultant Gunnar Hubbard decided to use a system of skylights to integrate daylight into the learning environment. In the main lobby, they chose Wasco by VELUX’s Double Dome Barrel Vault Skylight (20’ × 8’ 3”)to create a park-like room. In one of the school’s two cafeterias, Wasco by VELUX’s Double Dome Barrel Vault Skylights (8’ × 4’ 3”) provide most of the natural light. Another Wasco by VELUX Double Dome Barrel Vault Skylight (16’ × 4’ 3”) provides supplemental lighting to the corridor outside the gymnasium. Four Super Thermalized Solar Energy Sky Domes (4’ 7” × 4’ 7”) provide natural lighting to the music room and the stairwells. The result is an energy-efficient design with flexible light-filled spaces.
According to Hubbard, “Studies consistently demonstrate that good daylight in schools has a positive effect on student academic performance. That’s the reason we made excellent daylighting a core component of the project program.”
