{"id":2072386,"date":"2023-05-31T09:30:00","date_gmt":"2023-05-31T14:30:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/csengineermag.com\/?p=2072386"},"modified":"2023-05-30T22:24:13","modified_gmt":"2023-05-31T03:24:13","slug":"western-washington-university-mortenson-and-perkinswill-celebrate-groundbreaking-of-the-first-zero-energy-academic-building-in-washington-state","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/csengineermag.com\/western-washington-university-mortenson-and-perkinswill-celebrate-groundbreaking-of-the-first-zero-energy-academic-building-in-washington-state\/","title":{"rendered":"Western Washington University, Mortenson and Perkins&Will Celebrate Groundbreaking of the First Zero-Energy Academic Building in Washington State<\/strong>"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Western Washington University (WWU) officially broke ground on the first publicly funded zero-energy academic building on a university campus in Washington State on Saturday, May 20, 2023. Named Kaiser Borsari Hall, WWU\u2019s new electrical and computer engineering, energy science, and computer science building will significantly expand capacity within the university\u2019s electrical engineering and computer science programs and some of WWU\u2019s fastest growing degree programs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Elected officials, leaders from the building\u2019s design firm, Perkins&Will, and general contractor and construction manager, Mortenson, joined WWU leadership, alumni and members of the community to celebrate the official start of the new learning facility\u2019s construction.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe are thrilled to see this important project officially break ground. The science and engineering facility that will rise on this site will be a place for collaboration, connection, and innovation, nurturing areas of study which will be critical to the future needs of Washington state industries, employers, and communities,\u201d said WWU President Sabah Randhawa. \u201cOur deepest thanks and appreciation go to Fred Kaiser and Grace Borsari and to our wider community of generous supporters, as well as to the state, who have made this all possible.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe design of Kaiser Borsari Hall is a watershed moment for Washington State public facilities as the first all mass timber, zero-energy, and carbon neutral building on a university campus,\u201d said Anthony Gianopoulos, principal-in-charge at Perkins&Will. \u201cThe inspirational new building will foster an immersive learning environment for the next generation of electrical engineering experts and teachers and carbon leaders.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt has been incredibly rewarding to be a part of our team’s collective efforts to reduce embodied and operational carbon for this facility throughout design and construction,\u201d said Jennifer Kim, Project Executive at Mortenson. \u201cWe love taking collaborative approaches with clients like WWU to provide value-add solutions for identifying the best sustainably-focused opportunities early on\u2014and we\u00a0can\u2019t wait to\u00a0start\u00a0building this first-of-its-kind facility\u00a0while also\u00a0tackling\u00a0our\u00a0own\u00a0personal sustainability efforts on site,\u00a0as this work aligns perfectly with our focus on making positive social and environmental impacts in the communities we serve and redefining how to build a more sustainable future for the greater good. We\u00a0look forward to\u00a0more sustainable, forward-thinking projects like\u00a0Kaiser Borsari Hall\u00a0becoming the norm across the board.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n

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Sustainability Firsts<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n