In deciding to build a new headquarters facility, Great River Energy (GRE) challenged their design partners, architects Perkins + Will, and mechanical and electrical engineers, Dunham Associates, to achieve LEED Platinum Certification, and to "do something with energy efficiency that had never been done before."

This required the team to develop an integrated set of sustainable design strategies. The project includes geothermal energy, on-site renewable energy sources, and extensive daylight harvesting. However, the key to achieving the client’s goals was in the design of the HVAC system, which integrated many individual HVAC strategies into an extremely energy efficient system.

As a result, GRE saves more than 45% on energy compared to a typical code-compliant building. The project achieved LEED Platinum Certification, earning all possible energy performance points.
 

Working on the Casselman Wind Power Project for Iberdrola Renewables, Barr Engineering Company designed a deep micropile wind-turbine foundation that can be used in marginal soil. Barr’s design is the first to use micropiles—an innovation that, in effect, transforms unstable land into viable wind-power turbine sites. When Barr’s geotechnical analysis revealed mine spoils (loose rocks and soil excavated during coal mining) beneath eight turbine sites, engineers designed a wind-turbine foundation that uses 24 micropiles extending through the spoils and anchoring in bedrock 100 feet under ground. This renewable-energy project is now on line, generating power for 10,000 homes.

There is no other wastewater treatment facility in the United States like the one Bolton & Menk designed for the City of Buffalo, Minnesota. The city faced increasing resistance from nearby residents to the hauling and land application of biosolids. In addition, Buffalo recently implemented an Energy Conservation Program to reduce overall consumption within the community. Bolton & Menk recommended a state-of-the-art system that virtually eliminates biosolids by converting them into a renewable energy source. An airtight, closed-loop biosolids drying process allows for the capture of heat to be reused in a continuous cycle. This heat energy replaces 80 percent of the natural gas that would otherwise be necessary for drying. In this respect, it is an extremely sustainable, eco-friendly system.

See the project description under the 2009 Project of the Year Award Winner above.

Hydralift AmClyde has long been involved in the design and manufacture of highly complex machinery. The company’s latest accomplishment is a new-concept chain mooring system for use on a floating oil-producing facility. The system comprises 18 chain tensioning and anchoring mechanisms that permanently moor the vessel in 4,900 foot water depths using 120 mm chain (each link is 4¾ inches thick, 16 inches wide and 25 inches long). There are five anchor lines per side on the aft end, and four lines per side at the stern of the vessel. The system generates a line pull of 350 metric tons on each mooring line during tensioning. The system was designed in St. Paul, and globally sourced from 41 major subcontractors in 11 states and 9 other countries.

Due to increased parking demand, the Metropolitan Airports Commission authorized Kimley-Horn & Associates and SRF Consulting Group to develop plans for a two-level expansion of the Orange Ramp Parking Facility located at the Humphrey Terminal. Originally designed for eight levels, modifications to the structure were required, and with construction underway, time was of the essence. With Kimley-Horn leading the overall project, the Structural-Engineer-of-Record, SRF, developed structural modifications to increase the capacities of the ramp foundations and columns. Innovative techniques for strengthening, including shear collars and columns wraps poured with self-consolidating concrete, were used to provide an aesthetic and cost effective solution. Upon completion, the facility will provide more than 13,000 spaces, making it one of the largest, single-building parking facilities in the region.

When Andersen Corporation was notified that their existing steam energy source would no longer be available for use at their 63-acre Bayport, MN campus, the company had a rare opportunity to build a new dedicated Steam Generating Facility (SGF) on site.

The new SGF produces up to 100% of Andersen’s own steam and thermal demand from renewable sources by combining wood-fired boilers with the heat recovery resulting from a Warm Water Recovery System (WWRS), eliminating Andersen’s reliance on coal-based steam. The boilers were designed to burn sawdust by-product from Andersen’s manufacturing operations. The WWRS utilizes discharge water from the nearby King Plant to heat make-up air for the facility, reducing the number of boilers required as well as reducing the temperature of the water discharged into the St. Croix River.

The City of Edina chose WSB to help reach their project goal for West 70th Street. WSB worked to plan, design and implement a corridor plan to reduce crashes, provide for pedestrian flow, maintain access to businesses and maintain vehicle operation. The result was the construction of three single-lane roundabouts between France Ave. and York Ave. The roundabouts replaced the uncontrolled major entrances to the retail facilities and gave West 70th Street a boulevard-type feel providing slower traffic speeds and a shorter crossing for pedestrians, while not degrading the level of service. This project took a fresh look at traffic and transportation issues within a suburban retail area and provided an innovative solution to enhance safety, reduce congestion and improve the overall aesthetics of the corridor.