While it is in the architect’s nature to be optimistic, is thinking differently about emissions across a building’s life cycle a matter of ‘too little, too late’? Should we take seriously Charlotte Malterre-Barthes’ call for a global moratorium on new construction; that renovation is the least carbon emissive approach to building. The United States demolishes between two- and three hundred thousand structures each year, contributing five hundred million tons of waste to landfills. It is naïve to believe that technology will solve the polycrisis. Although technology has improved the standard of living of many, those improvements have not been distributed equitably. It is also a fact that our increasingly man-made world threatens the existence of species, including our own. Reducing, if not ceasing, construction activity, of course, poses a threat to the consumer economy and livelihoods of many of us in the building professions. But we may be approaching a time when physics will make the decision for us. * Wilson Architects Built with upfront carbon in mind, the exterior of the Environmental Science Building might not look appreciably different, beyond the brick showing some wear and patina. The interior, much of it exposed timber, would feel warmer and more resonant with our own place in the natural world.
Holzbau Unterrainer
Curvature in cross-laminated panels
The alternative assembly today: standing seam zinc, ventilation mat, rigid mineral wool insulation, high temperature membrane weather resistant barrier, gypsum cover board, CLT panel. A CLT panel can be curved to a minimum radius of about six and a half feet, so the 75’ radius at the ESB would not present a problem (above) . This assembly could also be used for the low-slope roofs, as standing seam zinc can be applied on as shallow a slope as ¼” per foot. Instead of using tapered insulation, the slope would be achieved by sloping the structure. Zinc’s upfront carbon is lower than that of synthetic membranes, and a zinc roof’s lifespan is at least 100 years and is recyclable, while membrane roofing lasts approximately 30. Using the prescriptive method to calculate the roof insulation value, we would need a total of 6” of mineral wool to achieve the required R-25.
JAMES MOSES is an architect practicing in western Massachusetts, USA. He is a graduate of the University of Texas at Austin and has taught design studios at The Catholic University of America, Boston Architectural College and Roger Williams University. He was a member of the Tulane ESB design team and an employee of Wilson Architects between 1995 and 2006.
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on site review 48 :: building materials
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