Yale University

Yale University has in recent years expanded its mission to include programs for international executive education. These programs are geared, in large part, toward senior government officials, university presidents and their teams, and the leaders of state-owned businesses from China and elsewhere. Thanks to support from the Maurice R. Greenberg Yale-China Initiative, a new conference center was conceived to host these dignitaries.

Kohler Ronan was enlisted to provide professional services for this facility. The project’s scope included several sustainable design features: energy modeling for building position and envelope options, geothermal heating and cooling via a ground coupled standing column well, displacement HVAC, and demand controlled ventilation with CO2 monitoring.

The displacement ventilation was designed below the floor in the amphitheater and in the walls for the dining areas to   optimize occupancy comfort. Energy savings were achieved across the board and may be monitored via the measurement and verification system designed to track   consumption and systems performance.