11430 N. Community
House Road,
Gibson Building, Suite 225
Charlotte, North Carolina
28277

Phone: 704.540.3755
FAX: 704.540.3754

12-18-2007

Moseley Architects Certifies Its Eighth LEED Project

Late last week, the U.S. Green Building Council awarded LEED Certified status to the College of Graduate and Professional Studies (CGPS) North Building at the University of Mary Washington, making the project number eight on Moseley's roster of LEED certified projects.

Following two reviews and an appeal application, the CGPS North Building earned 26 points, just enough to certify.  The project opened in time for the 2006 academic year, but, due to documentation issues, the LEED application was not submitted until June of this year.

In spite of these issues, the project team was able to persevere, creating a building that is both better for the environment and for the University's students.  "Green" features at the North Building include:

• Water-efficient plumbing fixtures, contributing to a 25% reduction in water use
• Energy-efficient HVAC equipment, resulting in a 21% modeled energy savings
• A measurement & verification plan to monitor mechanical, electrical, and potable water systems
• A hybrid Ford Fusion for University use
• Ligh-colored pavings materials with shading and highly-reflective roofing to reduce the Heat Island Effect
• Recycled, regionally manufactured, and low-emitting materials

To view images of the facility:
College of Graduate and Professional Studies Building, UMW

To learn more about the facility:
College of Graduate and Professional Studies Building Project Sheet

2-15-2008

Longwood Health & Fitness Center Earns LEED Gold

On February 6th, the project team for the new Health & Fitness Center at Longwood University received some very good news: the facility that was once expected to earn basic LEED certification had been awarded LEED Gold.  This award makes the project Moseley's ninth LEED certified project and first among its certified higher education projects to earn gold.

The project earned 39 points according to the LEED rating system.  Seven of those points were  Optimize Energy Performance points; this equates to a modeled energy savings of 43 percent.  The project also earned two points for renewable energy, making it the first Moseley Architects project to do so.  The campus central plant burns sawdust, which is considered biofuel under LEED guidelines and contributes to 11 percent of the energy used to power the Health & Fitness Center.

The facility's 'green' features also include:

• waterless urinals, low-flow showers and lavatories to reduce water use by 40 percent;
• HVAC equipment free of ozone-depleting HCFCs and Halons;
• a carbon dioxide monitoring system to help provide adequate ventilation;
• walk-off mats at main entrances, reducing the amount of pollutants entering the building;
• adhesives, sealants, paints, carpet, and composite wood products with low or no VOCs;
• FSC certified athletic wood floors, casework, and wood doors;
• 54 percent regionally manufactured materials;
• 28 percent recycled content materials; and
• construction waste management, resulting in the diversion of over 98 percent of waste from landfills.

To view images and learn more about Longwood Health & Fitness Cntr:
Longwood Health & Fitness Center, Farmville, VA

2-26-2008

Bryna Dunn Pens a Column for Correctional News

Bryna Dunn, a vice president of Moseley Architects and the director of environmental planning and research, was invited to pen a column for Correctional News to illuminate how the green movement is shaping correctional facility design and operations.

Bryna is a Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED®) accredited professional and is a member of the United States Green Building Council. Since joining the firm in 2000, she has helped Moseley Architects grow to become a leader in sustainably-designed public facilities. Having worked with the firm’s designers and engineers on dozens of facilities, she has gained valuable insight into how sustainable design strategies can affect correctional facility design and operations. Through her column in Correctional News, she will attempt to share this insight with others who may benefit.

Bryna has been asked by Correctional News to share her insight four times a year. When they become available, you can find pdf versions of her columns in the Sustainable Design section of this web site.

Click the link below to view her most recent column.
Correctional News March/April 2008

2-21-2008

A First: Moseley Certifies Local Government Project in Chesterfield County, VA.

The Chesterfield County Community Development Customer Service Center is officially LEED Certified, making it Moseley's first local government project to receive recognition from the U.S. Green Building Council.  The project earned a total of 32 points according to the LEED rating system.

With three stories and approximately 90,000 square feet of space, the Center houses the following departments for the County: Building Inspection, Fire and LIfe Safety, Transportation, Environmental Engineering, Planning, and Community Development.  A customer service center is located at the first floor entrance.

Features of the building's design and construction that contributed to its certification include:

• metal roofing with an "ULTRA-Cool" coating and white TPO membrane.
• native and drought-tolerant plants, which do not require irrigation;
• waterless urinals and infrared sensor lavatories that reduce water use by approximately 36 percent;
• an HVAC system free of ozone-depleting CFCs, HCFCs, and halons;
• a carbon dioxide monitoring system;
• low-emitting adhesives, sealants, paints, carpet, and composite wood products;
• over 59 percent regionally manufactured materials;
• over 23 percent recycled content materials;
• FSC certified wood doors and casework;
• three part walk-off mat systems; and
  views for over 91 percent of regularly occupied spaces.

Congratulations to the Studio 2 project team!

To view images and learn more about the project:
Community Development Customer Service Center

4-6-2008

T.C. Williams Wins CEFPI Award

MYRTLE BEACH, SC – April 2008, T.C. Williams High School, designed by Moseley Architects, won the 2008 Southeast Regional Conference Design Award for Best High School – New Construction Design by the Council of Educational Facility Planners International (CEFPI). Managing principal of the project, Jim Copeland, AIA, LEED AP, REFP, accepted the award on behalf of Moseley Architects at the awards banquet, held during the conference.

The annual competition, known as the Exhibit of School Architecture, invites CEFPI school architects to submit a recent project and/or project in the planning phase, to one of six award categories: New construction for elementary, middle, or high school; renovation/addition for any grade level; other – higher education/special educational facility; and proposed projects for any grade level, higher education/specialty education facility.

Three solutions describe the frontrunner in this year’s Best High School New Construction Design: community-minded, safety-conscious, and eco-friendly. A super-sized facility, constructed on a constrained 22-acre city-space, the design for T.C. Williams High School is recognized for meeting key educational and community objectives of Alexandria City Public Schools, Va., and for championing student diversity within an urban environment. Moreover, high marks are earned for the school’s state-of-the-art occupant security systems; these deliver particularly realistic solutions appropriate for public education.

The T.C. Williams High School project however has been most successful in its ability to unite the environmental commitment of its community at-large. Through a collaborative effort between architect and school district, T.C. Williams is an outstanding demonstration of best practices in sustainable school design and construction. The facility features environmentally savvy finishes conservation systems and landscaping, and offers numerous innovative, green teaching-tools to supplement the high school curricula. Architect and school district anticipate receiving the Silver LEED certification.

Not the first time to go to the head of the class, this is the second SE CEFPI award earned by Moseley Architects’ Vice President, James N. Copeland. In 2006, the firm’s design for Manteo Middle School, Dare County Schools, NC, won the SE CEFPI’s award for Best Middle School - New Construction Design.

To view images and learn more about T.C. Williams:
T.C. Williams High School, Alexandria, VA

7-7-2008

Carrboro First LEED Certified High School in North Carolina

Carrboro High School marks a few more LEED firsts for Moseley; not only is it the first LEED Certified high school in North Carolina, but it is the state's first K-12 school to earn LEED Silver.  The school was awarded LEED Certified in May, but the project team, feeling that it deserved a higher rating, submitted an appeal application in an attempt to achieve silver.  Two extra points were submitted during the appeal process, bringing the project's total points up to 33.

What does it take to make a high school worthy of LEED Silver, you ask?  Here are a few of Carrboro High School's 'green' features:

• solar hot water
• three 30,000 gallon cisterns that collect rainwater and store it for use in toilet flushing
• a 41% reduction in water use
• a modeled 35% reduction in energy cost as a result of installling high efficiency lighting and glazing, additional wall insulation, and more efficient chillers and boilers
• daylight sensors in classrooms to turn electric lights off when sufficient natural light enters the spaces
• rain gardens to collect stormwater runoff and remove pollutants
• preservation of 200,000 square feet of open space on the westernmost edge of the project site
• recycling of over 99% of construction waste, which was collected on site and hauled off site to be sorted
  
  To view images of Carrboro High School:
  Carrboro High School, Chapel Hill, North Carolina
  
  For more information on Carrboro High School:
  Carrboro High School Data Sheet

9-8-2008

Pearson Elementary School Certifies

In the Fall of 2006, W.G. Pearson Elementary School in Durham, NC, opened its doors with the hope of offering its students a fresh, green elementary school experience.  Two years and several reviews later, the school has earned a LEED Certified designation from the U.S. Green Building Council.  The school is only the third in the state of North Carolina to certify under the LEED rating system.  The other two - Third Creek Elementary School in Iredell and Carrboro High School - were also designed by Moseley.

The motivation behind designing Pearson ES as a green school was the safety, health, and comfort of the school's students, faculty, and staff.  Through daylighting, the school offers a light, bright setting in which to learn.  In order to minimize the amount of chemical contaminants circulating throughout the building, all of the adhesives, sealants, paints, and carpet in the school are low-emitting (low-VOC).  Walk-off mats at the main entrances to the building offer addition indoor air quality protection by helping to prevent pollutants from being tracked into and circulated throughout the building.

In terms of renewable energy, the school marks an important first for Moseley.  Renewable energy credits have been purchased to offset 100% of the school's electricity use over the 2007-2008 and 2008-2009 school years.

Other features that make the school green include:

• permanent temperature and humidity monitoring;
• mechanical equipment free of HCFC's and halons;
• highly reflective metal and membrane roofing to help reduce building cooling loads;
• waterless urinals, low-flow lavatories and classsroom sinks to reduce water use by 27%;
• native and adaptive landscaping, which further reduces water use by eliminating the need for permanent irrigation;
• recycled and regionally manufactured materials; and
• educational signage to highlight the school's green features.

11-2-2009

Moseley Architects Receives First-Ever
Environmental/Historic Recognition in Virginia

Structure Is First in Richmond to Earn Highest LEED Rating

RICHMOND, Oct. 12, 2009--The headquarters building for Richmond-based Moseley Architects has received LEED Platinum certification—the highest possible rating—from the United States Green Building Council. It is the first building in the city of Richmond to receive the coveted honor, and it is the only building in Virginia to qualify for both the Platinum designation and for historic tax credits.

The 79-year-old structure in Richmond’s historic Scott’s Addition neighborhood is, according to the firm, proof that it is possible to accomplish the difficult task of meeting demanding environmental standards and protecting a building’s historic integrity.

“We are thrilled to be the first in the state for this twin win,” said Moseley Architects President Bob Mills. “It enables us to demonstrate to clients what is really possible with their own architectural needs.”

The firm has been in the building for one year, having relocated from Chesterfield County.

“Earning the LEED Platinum certification while still qualifying for historic tax credits is a wonderful—even dramatic—way to mark our first anniversary in our building,” said Moseley Architects Vice President Jim McCalla, AIA. “But, as an architect, what I’m most excited about is the fact that we’ve created a home for our firm that is a great place to come to work every day.”

It is also a “living laboratory,” said Bryna Dunn, Vice President and Director of Environmental Planning and Research. “Our clients can walk through the building and see how to solve  the problems of meeting sometimes conflicting standards of environmental and historic excellence.”

The Moseley Architects headquarters in the historically significant industrial neighborhood of Scott’s Addition had been the home for Baker Equipment, a truck equipment specialist.  Seeing the building reborn as the home for an architectural firm required creative solutions for a range of knotty problems. Among the challenges:  maintaining the building’s industrial appearance from the street, protecting and enhancing windows and skylights, creating proper lighting, establishing a system of efficient energy usage, growing a roof garden, managing rainwater runoff in an environmentally sound manner, and other issues.

Moseley Architects focuses on the public sector, creating buildings for governments, schools, and detention facilities. It designs half of the new K-12 schools being built in Virginia, and it has designed the first and only LEED-certified federal prison in the United States: the medium-security Federal Correctional Institute in Butner, NC.

In addition to its headquarters in Richmond, Moseley Architects has offices in Charlotte, Harrisonburg, Raleigh-Durham, Virginia Beach, and Warrenton.

LEED stands for “Leadership in Environmental and Energy Design”, according to the U.S. Green Building Council.

For more information, contact :
Joe.slay@slaycommunications.com
804.389.0456

7-30-2009

Moseley Architects Named in Top 100 US Firms

Architect magazine ranked Moseley Architects in the “Top 100 Firms in the US” based on profitability, size, and sustainability. Architectural Record, Building Design & Construction, and Engineering News Record also ranked Moseley Architects in various categories. The list of rankings is as follows:

Architect, May 2009: Top 100 US Firms - ranked 100th

Architectural Record, June 2009: Top 100 Green Design Firms - ranked 48th; Top 250 Firms - ranked 18th

Building Design & Construction, July 2009, Giants Issue: Top 50 A/E Firms - ranked 37th, Top 200 Building Team LEED APs - ranked 59th; Top 150 Green Design Firms - ranked 51st; Top 100 K-12 schools design firms - ranked 19th; Top 75 State/Local Govt Design Firms - ranked 20th; Top 100 University Design Firms - ranked 32nd

Engineering News Record, July 6, 2009: Top 25 In Education - ranked 16th; Top 10 in Correctional Facilities - ranked 9th; Top 100 Green Design Firms - ranked 71st

Engineering News Record, Sourcebook 2009: Top 500 Design Firms 2009 - ranked 203rd