In Summer 2014, BCG completed installation of Central Oregon’s first electrochromic glass installation at the COCC Redmond Technology Center building. BCG worked with SageGlass, Kirby Nagelhout Construction and BBT Architects to provide 2,000 square feet of electronically tintable glass on the east, west and south facades of the building.
SageGlass is tintable dynamic glass that darkens or clears automatically as the sun passes across the building throughout the day . This technology gives architects greater flexibility in managing a building’s overall energy efficiency footprint and increases design options by replacing operable louvers, sunshades and canopies with variable tint windows.
This technology continues to improve. SageGlass previously used a center bus bar for glass dimensions in excess of four feet to maintain switching speed and tinting uniformity. With their newest technology, bus bars are no longer required, even for glass sizes of five feet by ten feet.
In addition to Sage’s variable tintable glass, there are multiple new technologies on the market for both interior and exterior glazing, including passive solar glass and on-demand privacy glass according to owner of BCG, Rich Lyons.
Oregon’s First Earth Advantage Platinum-Certified Building Conserves Energy While Maximizing Daylight & Outdoor Views
A new technology center at Central Oregon Community College is using SageGlass dynamic glass, a product of Saint-Gobain, to conserve energy, improve student performance and provide an eye-catching architectural showpiece for visitors to the area.
The $12.5 million Redmond Technology Education Center, designed by BBT Architects, is located on a high, flat desert plain with challenging solar exposure. The school installed SageGlass on the eastern, southern and western facades to provide the new classrooms with abundant daylighting and glare control. The school also wanted to employ the latest, cutting-edge building technology in this facility to solve design challenges and save money.
“We evaluated a number of other solar controls like sun shades and mechanized blinds and found that SageGlass was not only the most technologically advanced solution, its premium cost was offset by not having to incur the added cost, complexity and maintenance of using mechanical sun controls,” said Kevin Shaver, project manager at BBT Architects.
In addition to economics, SageGlass’ ability to reduce heat gain from the sun was an important environmental benefit, helping the Center achieve the first Earth Advantage “Commercial Platinum” certified building rating in Central Oregon. Earth Advantage is a LEED-alternative building rating system that recognizes sustainable building practices based on energy, health, land, minerals and water standards.
“SageGlass tinting controls are integrated into the building control system and include manual override. The ability to mitigate solar heat gain will help the school save energy by reducing the HVAC requirements for cooling loads,” Shaver said.
Maximizing daylight and preserving the connection to the outdoors was another reason for using SageGlass. Numerous peer-reviewed studies show that students perform better, feel better and have better attitudes in classrooms with ample sunlight and outdoor views. SageGlass is electronically tintable dynamic glass that darkens or clears automatically in response to the sun’s movements throughout the day while preserving the outdoor views of the Cascade Mountain Range.
The 34,000-square-foot building is a state-of-the-art facility designed to meet modern workforce needs. The Center trains residents for technology-centered careers in fields such as advanced automotive technologies, digital media and nondestructive testing. It is also home to the Center for Entrepreneurial Excellence and Development (CEED), which aims to create and sustain new startup companies.
The Center, which sits across the road from the Redmond Airport, also serves as a “signature building” for the Central Oregon Community College Redmond campus to attract the attention of both prospective students and business leaders entering and leaving the airport.
“Advanced building technologies like SageGlass add to the building’s eye-catching design. We wanted to convey with the design that the Center will be a key asset for regional companies and for individuals strengthening their employment opportunities,” Shaver said.
“The Redmond Technology Education Center is the latest in a long line of secondary- and higher-education institutions that have turned to SageGlass to optimize daylighting and energy savings in the classroom,” said Derek Malmquist, vice president of marketing at SAGE. “Science has provided us with a better understanding of the positive impacts daylighting has on students’ performance in the classroom. We are seeing more and more architects creatively incorporating natural light into educational facility designs.”
