California Academy of Science, San Francisco

A key aspect of this commitment to green values is an Uponor radiant floor heating and cooling system that provides energy-efficient comfort to much of the main exhibition level. “What makes this building so special is its long life cycle — at least 50 years,” says project engineer Paul Switenki of Arup Partners of California. “Given that longevity, we were motivated to choose systems that may be more costly initially, but that will pay for themselves with energy savings over time. We know from experience at Arup that radiant is a very energy-efficient way of heating and cooling the space.” Sustainable, Comfortable, Aesthetic The Academy’s main level is a “bare-box, high-ceiling space with exterior walls made of glass,” says Switenki. That makes it an ideal application for radiant, which keeps the heating (or cooling) near the floor where the people are, not blowing around the ceiling, as with a conventional forced-air system. Radiant offered another advantage over forced-air: invisibility, says Switenki. “We had a mandate – no ductwork hanging from the ceilings! With all of the radiant tubing buried in the slab, no one ever sees it.”