Abbotsford Regional Hospital and Cancer Centre

LEED GOLD CERTIFIED

PCL held a "design-build" contract for the Abbotsford Regional Hospital and Cancer Center.  Within the contract, achieving LEED Silver was one of PCL's obligations, and the Owner was commited to contribute 4 LEED points.

PCL lead the design team in setting strategy based on:

• Costs,
• Relative ease in achieving the points,
• Time,
• Practicality

Upon agreement on the points to pursue, we then assigned the task to the team.  We also consulted with Paladino from Seattle to review our strategy, and to review our progress documentation from time to time.

Our strategy and assignments are listed below :

• To achieve LEED Silver, 33-38 points were required.  We set our strategy to submit for 40 points, allowing for unforeseen and/or some rejected points.  (Note: During the progress, we added 2 innovation points, Credit 1.1 & 1.2 to our submission and removed 1 Green Power Point.)
• Our contract required that LEED Silver certification be obtained within 18 months from substantial completion.  We set our strategy to review performance and documentation monthly to ensure that the progress was always current, and to make our submission within 60 days from substantial completion before retention release.
• We agreed to pursue the following points:
• Sustainable Sites:
1. Credit 1 Site Selection - this was one of the Owner's committed point - assigned to Owner.
2. Credit 3 Redevelopment of Contaminated Site - this was one of the Owner's commited point to decontaminate this previous chicken farm - assigned to Owner.
3. Credit 4.1 Alternative Transportation, public transportation access - The architect was assigned to include provision for future bus stops into the design and to contact the Metro Bus authority to pursue new bus route.  Cost efficiency consideration.(Unfortunately, Metro Bus did not establish the new route in time for LEED submission.  This point was rejected.)
4. Credit 4.2 Alternative Transportation, bicycle storage & changing rooms - The architect was assigned to include these provisions into the design.  Cost efficiency and employee convenience consideration.
5. Credit 4.3 Alternative Transportation, alternative fuel vehicles - The electrical engineer was tasked to include vehicle charging stations in the parking lot electrical design.  Cost efficiency consideration.
6. Credit 5.1 Reduced Site Disturbance, protect or restore open space - The architect and landscape architect were tasked to protect open space and to restore the previous chicken farm disturbance with native adaptive planting and landscape.  Other than LEED point, this provision also provided an enhanced healing environment for the hospital.  Kills two birds with one stone, cost efficiency and practicality consideration.
7. Credit 5.2 Reduced Site Disturbance, development footprint - The architect was assigned this task in conjunction to Credit 5.1 above.
8. Credit 6.1 Stormwater Management, rate and quality - It was agreed to minimise site imperviousness and to develop a retention pond to collect rain water from various surfaces - roof, parking lots, etc, for this point.  The pond provided irrigation water for further points on Water Efficiency, and greatly reduced outflow to storm sewer.  To achieve this point, colaboration was required between the architect, landscape architect and mechanical engineer.  Cost efficiency and ease of implementation.
9. Credit 6.2 Stormwater Management, treatment - PCL was tasked to provide EPA Best Management Practices to achieve this point.  Simply good corporate citizenship consideration.
10. Credit 8 Light Pollution Reduction - The electrical engineer was assigned to include this provision into the lighting design.  Cost efficiency.
• Water Efficiency :
1. Credit 1.1 Water Efficiency Landscaping, reduced by 50% - The landscape architect was tasked to use native adaptive plants in the landscaping design.  The retention pond under Credit 6.1 Stormwater Management helped on this point.  Cost efficiency on initial installation cost as well as long term maintenance saving.
2. Credit 1.2 Water Efficiency Landscaping, no portable use - Irrigation water provided by the retention pond and use of native adaptive plants were our strategy to achieve this point.  Long term saving on portable water simply made sense.
3. Credit 3.1 Water Use Reduction, 10% reduction - The mechanical engineer was tasked to specific dual flush toilets and water efficient plumbing fixtures for this point.  Long term saving on water use simply made sense; dual flush toilets were proven technology widely used in Europe.
• Energy & Atmosphere :
1. Credit 1 Optimizing Energy Performance - The mechanical engineer was tasked to pursue 3 points under this category within his design.  However, collaboration was required from the architect to consider building orientation, to specify low-E glass, increase exteriror wall insulation and increase roof insulation to reduce heat loss in winter and to reduce heat gain in summer.  Extensive energy modelling was used to ensure that we would achieve 3 energy points.  (Note: There was an aquafer under the site. The aquafer flows from British Columbia into Washington.  We studied the possibility of taping into the aquafer for heating and cooling for more Energy Points.  Complexity of cross border and downstream liability, uncertainty of long term performance of the aquafer, timing and permitting from authorities, cost and liability issues - we decided not to pursue geothermal energy.)
2. Credit 2 Best Practice Commissioning - We expanded the Prerequisite 1 Fundamental Building Systems Commissioning for the pursuit of this point.  PCL was tasked to seek Owner collaboration to jointly hire an Independent Commisssioning Agent for this point.  Simply expanded the Prereq effort.
3. Credit 4 Ozone Protection - The mechanical engineer was tasked to specify equipment free of HCFC.  Long term maintenance savings made sense.
4. Credit 5 Measurement & Verification - The mechanical engineer was tasked to include metering equipment into the design to achieve this point.  Cost efficiency and long term maintenance ease.
5. Credit 6 Green Power - The Owner agreed to purchase Green Power as one of his committed point if we became one point short from achieving LEED Silver.  (Note: we did not need to use this contingent point.)  Green Power was fairly expensive, hence, this was a backup point if required. 
• Materials & Resources :
1. Credit 2.1 Construction Waste Management, divert 50% from landfill - PCL was tasked to set up and implement a recycling plan to achieve this point.  Cost efficiency and ease of achievement.
2. Credit 2.2 Construction Waste Management, divert 75% from landfill - PCL was tasked to set up and implement a recycling plan to achieve this point.  Cost efficiency and ease of achievement.<