High Performing Buildings - Summer 2011 - (Page 32)

C a s e s t u d y Keeper B y t a t y a n a s h i n e , P. e . ; a n d e l i z a B e t h P a u l History’s A lone cannon stands in a field at the Gettysburg Battlefield. The new Gettysburg National Military Park Museum and Visitor Center opened in 2008 to provide visitors with an understanding of the scope and magnitude of the sacrifices made at Gettysburg. The Battle of Gettysburg was a turning point in the Civil War, the Union victory that ended Gen. Robert E. Lee’s second invasion of the North in 1863. It was the war’s bloodiest battle with 51,000 casualties and the setting for President Abraham Lincoln’s “Gettysburg Address.” © getty images Museums consume massive amounts of energy. From exhibit lighting to temperature control and relative humidity, their costs are much higher when compared to a similar size traditional office building. 32 T he Gettysburg National Military Park Museum and Visitor Center houses what most Civil War enthusiasts consider to be the largest collection of civil war artifacts, including a massive historic oil painting that depicts the battle. Storing these pieces of American history requires a specific dry-bulb temperature and relative humidity level be maintained on a daily basis. The museum and visitor center design team selected a geothermal system to maintain the precise conditions required for preservation and reducing long-term energy costs. Since its opening in 2008, the facilities team has maintained and improved the original energyefficient design by performing a daily walk-through to check building systems and look for ways to improve performance. The careful attention to operations demonstrates that it doesn’t matter how efficiently a building is designed, it will never perform to its full potential without a knowledgeable staff to operate the systems. HigH Performing Buildings summer 2011

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of High Performing Buildings - Summer 2011

Commentary
Contents
Stanford University's Y2E2
The Christman Building
The Gettysburg National Military Park Museum and Visitor Center
Cannon Design Regional Offices, Power House
Great River Energy Headquarters
Letters
Products
Advertisers Index

High Performing Buildings - Summer 2011