Role: Full structural engineering services
When completed, this building will be the new $188 million CDN, energy-efficient, 22-storey headquarters for Manitoba Hydro. This 55,741m² building is targeting LEED® Gold sustainability certification and a 60% reduction in energy use.
Halcrow Yolles is structural engineer for the design, which incorporates a splayed office tower resting on a podium varying from two to three-storeys.
Sustainability provisions include three- and six-storey atria which allow for the natural ventilation and solar heating of the building. The neighbourhood atria, or ‘lungs’, collect sunlight and exchange air, reducing the need for mechanical HVAC systems. Air is drawn into the atrium, flows through raised floors, and is passively sucked up a ‘solar chimney’. During the winter, the parkade is heated by the exhausted air.
The building’s additional sustainable features include exposed radiant concrete ceilings that will help maintain consistent building temperatures; a living green roof to absorb sunlight; and the use of grey water storage tanks and a roof top drainage system for water conservation and irrigation. Fly ash will be used within the concrete as a cement replacement material, reducing the amount of CO² emissions from the manufacturing process.