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Second floor meeting spaces.

“Innovation” may be exciting, but often the work Co|Lab project. “There was a lot of internal angst at
to make it happen is far from glamorous. Sometimes HITT, with people saying, ‘We don’t typically do things
the paperwork alone can be daunting. For example, this way, why are we doing this?’ There were a lot of
WM+P’s Projects Materials Table, which tracks how the coming-together moments when people needed to
building’s materials perform relative to the criteria of be re-inspired.”
the Living Building Challenge, has some 2,000 rows In fact, on day one of construction at the Co|Lab
listing the materials, and 35 columns of criteria for site, the first major item to be installed—underslab
each. Not every cell requires an input, but compiling piping—required a corrective. Polypropylene piping
that much data is a substantial task. This table covers was specified, but initially the much more common
only the materials actually selected, not the innumerable (but unfortunately, toxic-byproduct-producing) PVC
ones that were considered but ultimately rejected. was provided. Architect Reilly noted, wryly, “We have
Moreover, finding optimized materials is only part to say ‘No’ an awful lot.”
of the puzzle. Once selected, they must also perform There was little precedent for this facility. Over time,
properly—and provably—as components of assemblies. the architects and client settled on a double-height
Even in a high-budget project like Co|Lab, costs are flexible-use space to house prototypes and experiments,
almost always a big stumbling block, particularly with associated meeting and brainstorming areas.
since in this case “proprietary specifications” were HITT had previously received approval from Fairfax
necessary for many elements (that is, only one product, County for an employee fitness center on the site; the
by one manufacturer, was acceptable, dampening the company didn’t want to rehash the approval process,
competitive bidding process that is generally held to so the footprint and height couldn’t shift much.
keep prices in check). Once construction commences, Fortuitously, as a result of site constraints, the basic site
the architect must become an enforcer and an inspirer. plan—an east-west orientation with most of the glazing
HITT has constructed over 170 LEED-certified on the south side—was ideal for the passive solar
projects. Nevertheless, pushing into a deeper level of aspect of sustainable design.
sustainability was not easy. “It’s a learning process for Cross-laminated timber (CLT) was quickly settled
everyone involved, including us,” commented Alastair upon as the primary building material because of its
Reilly, AIA, LEED AP, design partner at WM+P for the substantial carbon-positive characteristics combined
38 IT’S NOT EASY BEING GREEN