Houston Advanced Research Center Built Environment Program Designed as an interdisciplinary program, the Built Environment Program at the Houston Advanced Research Center conducts and applies research in three major areas that support the construction of high performance green buildings — building materials, building methods, and building systems. The mission of this award-winning Program is to educate and transform the built environment in the hot and humid region by advancing the creation of buildings that advocate the integration of building systems and innovative environmentally friendly materials. We promote methods that not only conserve natural resources but are cost effective and healthy for the occupants and environment. Our work is executed in the context of sustainability. The team focuses on strategic issues that minimize life-cycle costs, energy consumption and facilities' impact on the environment. The team also works to maximize the use of client resources, flexibility of facilities and, most importantly, the delivery of the client's vision within the context of their desires. The Built Environment Program team provides the following: •
Greening Strategies
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Assessing LEED® Possibilities
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LEED® Documentation and Submission
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Energy Modeling Simulations
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Conducting Eco-Design Charrettes Addressing Pre-Design Issues
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Project Visioning and Definition
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Green Specification Review
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Building Design Decision-Making Support
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Construction Management Assistance
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Project Marketing Material Creation
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Operations and Maintenance Planning Activities
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Building Renovations
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Combined Heat and Power (CHP) Assessment
The Built Environment Program is a national member of the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) and bronze level sponsor of the Houston chapter.
Current Built Environment Projects Project: Toyota-Rockwall, Energy Modeling Client: Gensler-Dallas, Rick Henson, AIA 5430 LBJ Freeway, Three Lincoln Centre Suite 400 Dallas, Texas 75240 214-273-1535 Toyota-Rockwall is a new 70,364 square foot LEED®-Silver registered automotive dealership located in Rockwall, Texas. The project’s building use includes a showroom, offices, and vehicle service center. HARC is responsible for the project’s LEED® EA Credit 1 energy modeling and submittal documentation. The emphasis of the work focused on a synergistic energy payback analysis that indicated effective strategies to minimize energy consumption and its impact on the environment.
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Project: City of Houston-Vinson Library South Post Oak Multi-Service Center, LEED® Advising Client: AutoArch Architects, LLC; Lina Sabouni, AIA 6200 Savoy, #130 Houston, TX 77036 (713) 952 3366 The City of Houston project is a 49,000 square foot library and multiservice center for the citizens living south of the City of Houston. The project consists of a multi-service center and a branch library each containing approximately 22,000 square feet and a Head Start School of 5,000 square feet. The Built Environment Team is playing the critical role of Sustainability Advisor in partnership with AutoArch Architects. HARC has not only generated preliminary energy modeling data but has been an integral part of the facility design process to ensure that current initiatives attain the Silver LEED® rating for the newly constructed building. HARC has also ensured that the project receives value-added green goods, services, materials and design strategies through dialogue with the design team and other project team members. Project: Mitchell Physics Building & Institute at Texas A&M University; LEED® Advising Client: Michael Graves & Associates; Mark Sullivan 341 Nassau Street Princeton, New Jersey 08540 609-924-6409 The Mitchell Physics Building & Institute located on the Texas A&M University campus consists of two new buildings totaling 179,061 square feet. The new six-level Department Building, with mechanical penthouse and roof terraces, includes research labs, a lecture hall, classrooms, teaching labs, and staff offices. The Institute is a new five-level structure, with roof terrace, including a reception/exhibition hall, auditorium, seminar rooms, faculty offices and lounges, and a telescope area. HARC’s involvement in the project has provided a broad range of work such as assembling information as a precursor to design finalization, conducting eco-charrettes, performing parametric energy modeling simulations, participating in design reviews and greening the specifications for the bidding process. Project: The Plaza at Indian Springs; LEED® Advising Client: PEI Partnership Architects, Rosanna Gutierrez 257 Park Avenue South New York, New York 10010 212-674-9000 HARC is serving as Sustainability Advisor in partnership with PEI Partnership Architects. HARC is an integral part of the facility design process to ensure that current initiatives attain the highest possible rating under the LEED® Core & Shell program for a 52,626 square foot commercially viable development and that the project receives value-added green goods, services, materials and design strategies. HARC is accomplishing these objectives by engaging in the education, research, sample analysis, dialogue, and reference with the PEI Partnership Architects design team and other Indian Springs project team members. Project: Local Green Materials Database www.localgreenmaterials.org The goal of this program is to provide the citizens of the Houston metropolitan area green materials information. We provide the information in the most user friendly way for residential materials needs and in CSI industry standard for commercial / institutional materials needs.
Project: Gulf Coast CHP Application Center www.gulfcoastchp.org In 2005, the U.S Department of Energy (DOE) established the Gulf Coast Combined Heat and Power (CHP) Application Center (GCAC) at HARC to assist Page 2 of 8
the DOE in doubling the nation’s CHP capacity from an estimated 46 GW to 92 GW by 2010. The specific mission of the GCAC is to identify, facilitate, and/or positively influence the deployment of CHP technologies in Louisiana, Oklahoma and Texas. GCAC has the technical expertise and experience to incorporate CHP technologies into a high performance green building if a client so desires. GCAC is currently directing its efforts on the industrial, commercial and institutional buildings, agriculture, and wastewater treatment facilities. In addition, the Center can help with project support, education, policy reform, grant information, and other CHP project goals.
LEED® Project History Project: Toyota-McKinney; Energy Modeling Client: Gensler-Dallas; Rick Ferrara, AIA 5430 LBJ Freeway Three Lincoln Centre Suite 400 Dallas, Texas 75240 214-273-1535 Toyota-McKinney is a new LEED® registered automotive dealership for Pat Lobb Toyota located in McKinney, Texas. The project’s building use includes a showroom, offices, and vehicle service center. HARC is responsible for the project’s LEED® EA Credit 1 energy modeling and submittal documentation. The emphasis of the work focused on a synergistic energy payback analysis that indicated effective strategies to minimize energy consumption and its impact on the environment. Project: WG Yates & Sons Construction; LEED® Training Client: WG Yates & Sons Construction; Patrik Lazzari, CIE 9777 West Gulf Bank Road, Suite 15 Houston, TX 77040 601-376-3061 HARC provided WG Yates & Sons Construction a two-day educational series on how to effectively incorporate LEED® into the construction process. The sessions emphasized contracting specific to federal government projects, the rudiments of LEED® and necessary green building processes, technologies and materials. Project: MECA/Dow School Building, LEED® Advising Client: Michael Gaertner, Architects; Bob Brown, AIA 2328 Strand, Suite 300 Galveston, Texas 77550 (281) 762-0500 The Dow School Building project was a LEED® certification feasibility analysis for a historical property undergoing major programmatic and structural change located in Houston’s Sixth Ward. The team provided an analysis of the project’s potential to achieve a LEED® rating and the resulting cost/benefit. Project: Houston Community College System (HCCS); LEED® Advising Client: BRAVE Architects; Fernando Brave, AIA 4617 Montrose Blvd, Suite C230 Houston, TX 77006 (713) 524-5858 HARC assisted Brave Architects in the review of Design Guidelines and specifically MEP technical specifications being produced for the benefit of HCCS and their public commitment to USGBC and LEED®.
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Project: Houston Arboretum and Nature Center Master Plan Client: Houston Arboretum and Nature Center; Debbie Markey 4501 Woodway Drive Houston, Texas 77024 713-681-8433 HARC worked in conjunction with the Houston Arboretum and Nature Center to develop a Building Master Plan using the USGBC’s LEED® guidelines. The scope of work involved interviewing staff, reviewing the existing building documentation, performing an analysis of the existing structure, interviewing exterior stakeholders and members of the Board.
Built Environment Project History Project: HARCwood® www.HARCwood.com HARC has patented and licensed the HARCwood® process, which uses low-value cellulosic feedstock to create high-value building materials. The HARCwood treatment process chemically treats existing organic materials before installation to mitigate water or moisture penetration and fungi formation. Samples treated with the HARCwood process were tested in a university laboratory and proved to be water, insect, and mold resistant. Today the HARCwood process is available for worldwide commercialization in a variety of applications through HARC's worldwide licensee, Panchem Industries, LLP, through their Panel Projects affiliate. Ward-Leach, L.P., through their Endurance Building Systems affiliate, has licensed the process to produce HARCwood products in the greater Houston area.
Project: Pleasantville Weatherization Client: City of Houston, Issa Z. Dadoush 901 Bagby Houston, TX 77002 713-837-0311 The City of Houston Pleasantville weatherization project addressed many residential home components which provided reduced energy expenditures for the resident and improved energy efficiency. The project provided the following measures to such homes: installing weather stripping on windows and doors, caulking windows, replacing incandescent lamps with compact fluorescent lamps, installing insulation in the attic, and installing insulation on exposed hot water piping and insulating water heaters with blankets. These energy efficiency tactics are not only beneficial to the city's neighborhoods and surrounding communities but can be a major factor in reducing global warming. Project: Market Transformation First Steps, A study of energy efficiency in building types in the hot, humid & hygrothermal region Client: State of Texas Energy Commission Office (SECO) through Dept. of Energy (DOE) HARC monitored two distinct housing types for their abilities to maximize energy efficiency in the hot and humid climactic conditions of Houston-Galveston non-attainment area and then analyze collected data and establish a platform for evaluating the success of each home relative to its energy efficiency, ease of maintenance and operation, cost effectiveness and their impact on health and well-being of the occupants.
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Project: Hotel Galvez, LEED® Advising Client: GPM Inc. and Affiliates; William A. Ross 2228 Mechanic, Suite 204 Galveston, Texas 77550 (409) 763-5806 HARC conducted a building analysis of the Hotel Galvez, a 231 room historic hotel located in Galveston, Texas. The work focused on analyzing the building energy performance in order to enhance the operations of the hotel.
Project: HGAC Construction & Demolition Waste (C&D) Client: Houston-Galveston Area Council (HGAC); Cheryl Mergo 3555 Timmons Lane, Suite 120 Houston, Texas 77027 (713) 627-3200 The HGAC C&D Waste project was a year long effort to characterize the residential C&D waste stream of two homes and to introduce the notion of on-site grinding of C&D waste to Houston. In addition, a C&D handbook and website were created. Project: City of Windsor, VT / Rails to Rivers Client: Jill Michaels P.O. Box 47 Windsor, VT 05089 (802) 765-4102 Rails to Rivers consisted of a feasibility analysis of an environmentally responsible manufacturing process located in an environmentally sensitive and economically challenged area of the country. Project: NASA / The Natural Step Training Client: Johnson Space Center, J. Greg Grant Houston, TX 77058 281-483-2601 HARC presented a seminar series of The Natural Step, a macro level first order scientific based educational armature for understanding environmental issues, to NASA/ Johnson Space Center in order to assist them in their quest to understand the built environment in a manner that allows them to move forward without a proscriptive methodology.
Key Personnel Richard C. Haut, Ph.D., Sr. Research Scientist Dr. Richard Haut is currently a Senior Research Scientist at the Houston Advanced Research Center (HARC). He serves as the Principal Investigator for various projects associated with securing energy for the future. A major effort is participation in the Environmentally Friendly Drilling program headed up by Texas A&M and Noble Corporation with the objective of integrating advanced technologies into a drilling rig system that significantly reduces the environmental impact of petroleum drilling and production. Dr. Haut is also involved in implementing the New Technology Research and Development Program under the aegis of the Texas Environmental Research Consortium, a program dedicated to reducing diesel engine emission. Dr. Haut served as the Director of the Sustainable Technologies Group at the Houston Advanced Research Center (HARC) from 2002 to 2006. In the position, he was responsible for directing various HARC teams associated with high performance green building systems and materials, trace chemical Page 5 of 8
detection, offshore technologies, cryogenics/superconductivity and air emissions reduction technologies moving knowledge to action in supporting policies and technologies that improve human well-being and the environment. Dr. Haut also served as Principal Investigator for various projects associated with ecologized building systems, and represented HARC on various committee and organizations, including the EPA’s Regional and Local Land Revitalization Team. During his tenure, the Group won a variety of awards, including the Innovative Technology Award for Wood Treatment Processing, the Citizen’s Environmental Coalition President’s synergy award and an honorable mention for the Keep Houston Beautiful award. Dr. Haut has been invited to speak at various conferences, has authored numerous papers, has been awarded various patents and has several patents pending. He has frequently been asked to speak about sustainable development, the built environment and the offshore/energy industry. In addition, he has given testimony to the Department of Energy concerning the future of energy security in the US. He also serves on the US Green Building Council – National Research Committee where he represents all nonprofits across the U.S., and on the board as Chair and media contact for the US Green Building Council – Greater Houston Area Chapter. He is also a board member of the Economic Development Partnership, South Montgomery County and represents HARC on the Research Partnership to Secure Energy for America (RPSEA). Dr. Haut holds a PhD in Engineering from Old Dominion University. He also holds a Masters of Science in Aerospace Engineering from University of Tennessee and a Bachelors of Science in Mechanical Engineering from Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology Daniel Bullock, Program Manager Daniel Bullock is a program manager in the clean and renewable energy group. He joined HARC in July 2002 and is responsible for directing the new U.S. Department of Energy-funded Gulf Coast Combined Heat and Power Regional Application Center and is also Program Manager for the Center for Fuel Cell Research and Applications. Dan has over fifteen years experience in research, engineering, operations, and sales through experience with the IBM Thomas J. Watson Research Center, IBM East Fishkill facility, Advanced Micro Devices, and a number of technology start-up companies in the energy, display, and microelectronics industries. He focuses on development and commercialization of emerging technologies, especially in the electronic materials, micro-fabrication, and clean energy space. He has extensive background in materials science and process engineering, with a specialization in ultra high vacuum processing and thin film deposition techniques. He has process expertise in integrated circuit fabrication, especially with regard to microfabrication of micro-electro-mechanical (MEMS) devices and processing techniques. He led or has been involved in a number of MEMS product development efforts in multichip modules, wafer bumping, and fuel cells. He is founder and president of Austin Microsystems, a developer of micro fuel cells based in Austin, Texas. After working in semiconductors for a number of years, Dan migrated his efforts to focus in the clean energy space. In graduate school, he worked on load and demand side management techniques and utility programs, and worked with the Lower Colorado River Authority to analyze the benefits of actively managing peak electricity demand through remote control of customer air conditioners. After graduate school, he joined the team that developed the Delaware Mountain Windplant, the first utility scale wind farm in Texas. He has experience in energy policy analysis and development from the LBJ School of Public Affairs at UT Austin and through brief appointments as an assistant to the Commissioner of the Railroad Commission of Texas and in the Energy and Transportation Directorates of the European Commission in Brussels, Belgium. His most recent work is focused on development and commercialization of fuel cells and other advanced clean energy technologies. Dan graduated with distinction in solid state physics from Pennsylvania State University, and holds advanced degrees from the University of Texas at Austin in both engineering and public administration.
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John Colvin, Research Scientist Mr. Colvin is a research scientist in the areas of Energy and Buildings Solutions. Current work includes the design / development of high temperature superconducting magnets with Metal Oxide Technologies Incorporated, collaborating with the Carbon Nano Laboratory at Rice University on quantum wire development and functioning as a grant manager of $1.7M to University of Texas and Johnson Matthey for air pollution control under the State of Texas’ New Technology Research and Development program. He is the principal investigator and co inventor of a post treatment chemical process known as HARCwood. The HARCwood process enhances the physical characteristics of medium and high density fiberboard products. The HARCwood process is patented in both the US and a number of foreign countries. Two additional patents relating to the HARCwood process and products are pending. HARCwood was displayed in the New Products Show Case at the 2003 Association of Woodworking and Furnishings Suppliers Fair in Anaheim California. HARCwood received an Innovative Technology Award for Wood Treatment Processing. Mr. Colvin is currently involved in the commercialization of the HARCwood process in New Zealand. The first HARCwood manufacturing facility, established in 2003, is located in Houston, Texas. He has over 30 years experience in equipment design, fabrication and operation of cryogenic and superconducting devices. His experience includes 13 years at Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory during the transition of the particle accelerator main ring to superconducting magnets. In 1984, he designed and assembled a cryogenic test facility at HARC to support the testing of superconducting superferric accelerator magnets for the DOE funded Supercollider (SSC) project. Other projects he has served as the designer and principal investigator include Pratt Whitney RL-10 rocket engine flow bench and the writing of the technical specifications for Johnson Space Center’s 20 Kelvin cryogenics refrigeration systems. Juan Jose Vargas, LEED® AP; Engineering Associate Juan Jose Vargas, a LEED® Accredited Professional, is an Engineering Associate within the Built Environment Group at Houston Advanced Research Center. He has been a research, engineering, facilities and manufacturing professional with two years experience as an Associate at an MEP engineering firm and over six years experience as Project Specialist at a large public institution. At HARC, Juan Jose has been involved in a broad range of projects that involve project management, Green Building LEED® project advising, energy modeling and various emissions projects associated to HARC’s Southwest Biofuel Initiative. Current projects include Texas A&M Mitchell Physics Buildings with Michael Graves, Indian Springs Complex with PEI Partnerships, Toyota-Rockwall with Gensler and the City of Houston Post Oak Center and Vinson Library with AutoArch Architects. His work involves incorporating architectural and engineering design with sustainable concepts, principles and technology. His green building expertise includes architecture, engineering, green building practices, LEED® documentation, energy efficiency, commercial facilities operations and industrial air emissions. His energy modeling expertise is in the area of evaluating and implementing high performance building systems utilizing monitoring and /or energy simulation tools. Juan Jose holds a Bachelors of Science in Technology from the University of Houston. Julie O’Toole, Programs Coordinator Julie O’Toole joined HARC as Programs Coordinator for the Energy and Building Solutions Group in January 2006. In this role, she coordinates and manages program operations and reporting for active internal and external project accounts. Julie organizes the group’s business development initiatives and assists in proposal and document editing and development. Additionally, she serves in an advisory capacity to the principal investigators on budget and policy matters. In the past year, Julie has increasingly focused her time on green building initiatives, assisting the team in the review of specifications, researching “green” solutions for clients, and planning of meetings, workshops, and speaking engagements. Julie’s past experience includes work in both the public and private sector. At the Chicago Park District’s Office of Budget and Management, she advised senior staff on human resource and internal budgeting issues, and served as a department liaison to park patrons and neighborhood leaders. After relocating to Page 7 of 8
New Orleans, Julie worked in business development for a local technology consulting firm. In this capacity, Julie coordinated proposal submittals exceeding $20M annually and maintained the firm’s business development database. Julie was an Insignis Scholar at the University of Detroit Mercy, graduating summa cum laude with a Bachelor of Arts in History. She continued her studies at Loyola University Chicago, spending two years as a graduate assistant for the Department of History. Influenced by her work at HARC, Julie has begun pursuing LEED® AP studies. About Houston Advanced Research Center (HARC): Founded in 1982, HARC is a nonprofit organization based in The Woodlands, Texas, dedicated to improving human and ecosystem well-being through the application of sustainability science and principles of sustainable development. HARC is a leader in moving knowledge to action to improve human well-being and protect the environment. Major program themes include natural ecosystems, water resources, air and climate, environmental health, clean energy and the built environment. For more information, visit www.harc.edu.
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