Green Conversion
A.L. Huber achieves sustainability through renovation and adds a windmill at its HQ for good green measure
A Kansas contractor has greened its offices the hard way, by renovating an existing building rather than starting from scratch.
A.L. Huber General Contractor, Overland Park, Kansas, AGC of Kansas City, recently completed a dramatic makeover of its headquarters, adding sustainable elements along the way, says Phil Thomas, company president.
A.L. Huber began its transformation in October; by April, it had installed a 5-kw wind turbine; 24 photovoltaic panels with room to add 24 more; a 24-ft-tall sunscreen made of 110-year-old reclaimed lumber to shade the southern side of the precast-concrete building; and a green wall—structural steel covered in vines to block the morning sun on the building’s east side.
The firm also replaced fluorescent lighting with the latest energy-saving tubes and dimmers, used recycled materials such as cardboard, aluminum and plastic, and constructed an energy demonstration/education room.
The building’s site is open enough that getting in equipment to erect the turbine wasn’t difficult; however, the conduit from the existing building to the turbine had to be run by boring under driveways and sidewalks, rather than trenching, which would have been easier, Thomas says.
Recycling landscaping materials and adapting light fixtures was harder to do than starting from scratch. “When we fastened the reclaimed lumber to the existing building, because the structure is still angled, we had to hammer-drill into the existing concrete structure,” Thomas says. “Even though we’re a construction business, the constant background noise was certainly a challenge.”
In the Wind
“From the first day we put up the wind turbine, we’ve drawn a lot of attention to how alternative energy can be incorporated into an office building,” Thomas says. “There’s been a lot of excitement about it. No matter where I am in the community, people want to talk about it.”
A.L. Huber has hosted tours of the office for the local chapter of the American Institute of Architects...
