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CALGARY SKYLINE TO REACH NEW HEIGHTS IN ARCHITECTURE AND SUSTAINABILITY
design. Permit Holder Glotman Simpson Consulting Engineers , led by one of its principals, Anthony El-araj, P.Eng. , is the structural designer for the project. Design challenges were plentiful, because of the building’s unique geometry, including a 3.6 length-to-width ratio, plus its slab terracing and the structural twist of its pixelated facade. The company decided on columns being placed around the building’s perimeter, avoiding the need for interior columns. The columns match the pixelation bays and employ a lateral-load resisting system. A shear wall layout provides strength and stiffness for the structure, making it wind resistant while accommodating the demands of the horizontal thrust loads of so-called “walking” columns. Also putting on their innovator hats were the engineers working for Permit Holder Reinbold Engineering Group . With others, they designed the office portion of the tower for LEED Platinum certification, creating an energy system that will allow the TELUS Sky Tower to consume 30 per cent less energy than similar buildings. Office and residential building areas are connected to the ENMAX District Energy System, which distributes hot water through underground pipes in a closed-loop system, connecting heat exchangers in individual buildings. Displacement ventilation systems supply air from central, heat- recovery air handlers, which use heat from exhaust air to produce tempered fresh air. A solar photovoltaic system, supported by half the area of the rooftop, will add 32,000 kilowatts per year to the building’s power system. Rain will be captured for roof top gardens. Grey water will be treated for reuse in toilets. Permit Holder Integral Group is integrating all the building’s systems so they’re controlled and synchronized through a single and central building automation system, maximizing energy efficiency.
The Bow will be taller, at 237 metres. So will Brookfield Place, currently under construction and on its way to tickling the clouds at 247 metres. But Calgary’s third tallest building will top its peers in another claim-to-fame category. The TELUS Sky Tower, a 58-storey, 221-metre, $400-million structure, will be the first of its Calgary peers to reach current LEED Platinum standards. LEED stands for Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design. Developed by the non-profit U.S. Green Building Council, it’s popular worldwide as a green building certification program. Platinum certification is the highest level a building can earn. Set to be completed later this year, the TELUS Sky Tower is generating buzz for its distinctive
BOW HEIGHT CHALLENGER? The angle of this rendering suggests that the new TELUS Sky Tower might actually be taller than The Bow in Calgary’s downtown. Actually, it comes in at number three — but the tower will be number one in LEED status.
40 | PEG SPRING 2017
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