One of Burns & McDonnell’s recent projects was the Hawaii Air National Guard Squad operations and training campus at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam. The LEED Platinum project was designed for zero-net energy use. Burns & McDonnell developed an energy-conservation investment program for the integration of photovoltaic arrays. The building also is resilient enough to withstand hurricane forces.
“Just being green is not enough,” says Stephanie Graham, Burns & McDonnell’s Sustainability Manager. Her firm has seen increasing demand for supplier transparency, where clients qualify and rate service providers based on their third-party certifications.
At a minimum, she says, providers are expected to benchmark their carbon emissions, track goals, and publish results. She adds that a growing number of her firm’s projects now aim for zero-net water use and zero-net waste in construction.
The majority of Page’s design teams now use parametric energy modeling tools to take advantage of opportunities to design passive energy solutions prior to engineers taking over to create active solutions, says Robert Phinney, Page’s Associate Principal and Sustainable Design Director.
ALSO SEE: BD+C Giants 300 green rankings
Top 130 green architecture firms
Top 45 green engineering firms
Top 85 green construction firms
Phinney says achieving zero-net energy in buildings is now a “mainstream” pursuit for many developers and their AEC partners. “New technologies, renewed knowledge of passive systems, and affordable renewables are evaporating the boundaries that have traditionally kept a large part of the industry from pursuing green building,” he says.
Burns & McDonnell is designing buildings to recapture and filter stormwater to replenish aquifers and alleviate burdens on sewer systems. Its construction group offers material reuse services to place excess or “like new” construction products into buildings.
Burns & McDonnell is also incorporating wellness components, such as biophilia and optimized views of the outdoors, into projects. One such case: its renovation of the three-story, 47,500-sf Independence Utilities Center near Kansas City, which opened last November and earned a LEED Platinum rating.
SEE ALL 2017 GIANTS 300 RANKINGS
Related Stories
| Aug 30, 2016
CONVENTION CENTER GIANTS: A ranking of the nation's top convention center sector design and construction firms
Gensler, LMN Architects, AECOM, Turner Construction Co., and WSP | Parsons Brinckerhoff top Building Design+Construction’s annual ranking of the nation’s largest convention center sector AEC firms, as reported in the 2016 Giants 300 Report.
BIM and Information Technology | Aug 30, 2016
BIM GIANTS: A ranking of the nation's top BIM design and construction firms
HOK, Perkins+Will, Turner Construction Co., The Whiting-Turner Contracting Co., Jacobs, and Thornton Tomasetti top Building Design+Construction’s annual ranking of the nation’s largest BIM AEC firms, as reported in the 2016 Giants 300 Report.
| Aug 19, 2016
RECONSTRUCTION GIANTS: Facelifts give buildings new identities, even as they keep a few wrinkles
Reconstruction is always a balancing act between the client’s pro forma and what the building needs to be vibrant again.
| Aug 19, 2016
Top 70 Reconstruction Engineering Firms
Jacobs, Robins & Morton, and The Boldt Company top Building Design+Construction’s annual ranking of the nation’s largest reconstruction sector engineering and E/A firms, as reported in the 2016 Giants 300 Report.
| Aug 19, 2016
Top 110 Reconstruction Construction Firms
Gilbane Building Co., Turner Construction Co., and The Whiting-Turner Contracting Co. top Building Design+Construction’s annual ranking of the nation’s largest reconstruction sector construction and construction management firms, as reported in the 2016 Giants 300 Report.
| Aug 19, 2016
Top 130 Reconstruction Architecture Firms
The Beck Group, Stantec, and IMC Consruction top Building Design+Construction’s annual ranking of the nation’s largest reconstruction sector architecture and A/E firms, as reported in the 2016 Giants 300 Report.
| Aug 18, 2016
LOCAL GOVERNMENT GIANTS: A ranking of the nation’s top design and construction firms in local sector work
HOK, Stantec, Turner Construction Co.,Clark Group, AECOM and STV top Building Design+Construction’s annual rankings of the nation’s largest local government sector AEC firms, as reported in the 2016 Giants 300 Report.
| Aug 18, 2016
STATE GOVERNMENT GIANTS: A ranking of the nation’s top design and construction firms in state sector work
CannonDesign, Stantec, Turner Construction Co.,Mortensen Construction, WSP | Parsons Brinckerhoff and AECOM top Building Design+Construction’s annual rankings of the nation’s largest state government sector AEC firms, as reported in the 2016 Giants 300 Report.
| Aug 18, 2016
FEDERAL GOVERNMENT GIANTS: A ranking of the nation’s top design and construction firms in federal sector work
Page, EYP, Fluor Corp.,BL Harbert International, and AECOM top Building Design+Construction’s annual rankings of the nation’s largest federal government sector AEC firms, as reported in the 2016 Giants 300 Report.
| Aug 15, 2016
SPORTS FACILITY GIANTS: New and renovated college sports venues - designed to serve students and the community
Schools are renovating existing structures or building new sports facilities that can serve the student body and surrounding community.
