Boston – In Massachusetts, the gold standard for green schools is certification from the state’s Collaborative for High Performance Schools (MA-CHPS). To date, just 56 schools in the Commonwealth (including 36 still under construction) have earned certification; of those, six have been built (or are being built) by CTA Construction.
MA-CHPS standards are set by the national Collaborative for High Performance Schools, a California-based non-profit founded in 1999 to help with the design and construction of high performance, energy-efficient schools. Massachusetts was one of the first states to adopt CHPS recommendations for green building design of its schools. All schools using the MA-CHPS criteria must be 20 percent more efficient than national standards.
“Sustainable design adds value to a project and it makes smart business sense over the long-term when you calculate energy cost savings,” said Patrick Tompkins, a principal of CTA Construction. “This squares with our philosophy of bringing cost savings and innovative solutions to the difficult requirements of every project we take on.”
Two of CTA Construction’s schools opening this fall will earn MA-CHPS certification: the Abraham Lincoln Elementary School in New Bedford and Beverly High School. The 91,000sf Abraham Lincoln Elementary School will be classroom ready this September and will accommodate 600 students. The new building includes masonry and steel construction; a 3,300sf state-of-the-art library and media center; a 5,700sf gymnasium; an auditorium; and a 383-seat cafeteria. A second phase of the project, which includes demolition of the old, 60,000sf school located next door, will be completed by the end of this year. A synthetic turf playing field, resilient track, and parking lot will be built in its place.
Sustainable elements of the Abraham Lincoln school include a reflective roof with photovoltaic cells that will generate electricity; a subsurface infiltration system that will reduce the amount of rainwater flowing off of and away from the school into the sewage drainage system; recycling of 90 percent of the waste generated by the school; and the use of renewable and recycled materials in the school’s construction, including Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) lumber.
CTA Construction partnered with KBE Building Corporation for a 260,000sf addition to and renovation of Beverly High School. A 113,000sf renovation of the existing gymnasium, auditorium, kitchen, cafeteria, and locker rooms was carefully sequenced around the school’s operations. The project also included the construction of a new 147,000sf four-story wing housing classrooms, science labs, and administrative offices. The new wing is scheduled to be open for students this November. Once it opens, the old classrooms will be demolished to make way for new parking lots and athletic fields.
Some of the sustainable building practices incorporated into this project include the use of exterior sunshades and light shelves; the use of paint, adhesives, carpets and other materials that emit low levels of volatile organic compounds (VOC); installation of automated heating, ventilation and air conditioning systems (HVAC EMS); and a roofing system that includes a reduced heat island that will lower the overall temperature of the building.
A third school currently under construction by CTA and set to earn MA-CHPS certification is the New Memorial Building School in Burlington. This project exemplifies another philosophy of CTA Construction’s, which is to bring projects in on time. “Under the best of circumstances, it’s important that municipal projects come in on time, but it’s particularly important when you’re building a school,” said Tompkins. “A delay in project completion disrupts families, teachers, and town employees, which is why we pride ourselves on our 100 percent on-time success rate.”
Craig Robinson, the Burlington School District’s director of finance and operations, recently told the Boston Globe that the 78,500sf project, which broke ground in May, is proceeding ahead of schedule despite the discovery of ledge on the building site, which was removed through hydraulic drilling. The steel frame has been completed for the pre-K through grade 5 school, and the exterior masonry, interior partitions, and the roof construction are underway. The school is scheduled to be classroom ready by next August, and it will feature a gymnasium, cafeteria, library and media center, art and music rooms, and administrative offices. Sustainable elements include the collection and storage of rainwater for indoor plumbing, use of low-emitting VOC, and learning stations to show how much energy is being saved through the use of high-efficiency systems such as an HVAC EMS and condensing boilers.
CTA Construction has just completed the steel phase of the new Howe-Manning Elementary School in Middleton. Sustainable elements of the 84,500sf school include a cavity wall system that will allow for high performance sound and heat insulation, and more effective resistance to rain and moisture. The MA-CHPS-registered project will also feature state-of-the-art, high performance mechanical and lighting systems and on-site sewage disposal as well as parking areas, athletic fields, and landscaping. It is scheduled to be classroom ready by next September.
Two schools built last year by CTA Construction that received MA-CHPS certification were the Willard Elementary School in Concord and the East Elementary School in Hingham. Sustainable elements of the 82,000sf Concord school included the use of low-emitting VOC materials and FSC-certified lumber; recycling of 90 percent of the waste generated by the school; exterior sunshades and a light harvesting system; construction of a bioretention basin to slow the rate at which stormwater flows away from the building and reduce the amount of rainwater that runs into the sewage system; and sophisticated acoustic ductwork to reduce the sound travelling between classrooms and improve the efficiency of the HVAC system.
Sustainable elements of the 93,000sf Hingham school included installation of a 20,000 gallon gray water recycling system; exterior sunshades; a solar wall that uses solar energy to warm air before it enters the HVAC EMS system, and thus requires less energy to heat; and recycling of 90 percent of the waste generated by the school.