Energy Efficient at MoCo

Insulation on the back side of the building.

• Site Selection: The downtown location will keep MoCo accessible by public transportation (Keene public bus and school bus systems) and public sidewalks. A bike rack is being provided as well to encourage walking and bicycling.
• Building Orientation: The building has been designed to maximize exposure to sunlight, maximizing solar gain, passive heating, daylighting, and facilitating future rooftop photovoltaic system.
• Low Impact Development: Water drainage on the site uses Low Impact Development (LID) techniques to reduce storm water runoff from existing downtown site. Storm water will be collected in on-site catch basins and then infiltrated in areas below the parking spaces. Landscaping will considerably reduce the storm water runoff leaving the site.
• Lighting: The site is entirely LED lighting; exterior and interior. Many lights will be on timers, daylight sensors, and motion detectors to ensure lights are used responsibly.
• Water Conservation: All plumbing systems are designed to conserve water, reducing the amount of energy needed to treat and transport water.
• Mechanical System: The building will be efficiently heated, cooled and ventilated by an air distribution system that is gas fired and electrically cooled and controlled with a web-based energy management system. There are 7 zones throughout the building, giving MoCo more control over energy usage, responding to each zone independently based on usage and solar exposure.
• Building Envelope: This is one of the most important aspects of the building’s energy efficiency as this is where the insulation and air barrier occur, giving the building a high thermal resistance, so that the heating and cooling system has to do less work and therefore use less gas and electricity. The building envelope exceeds energy code by 50%, components include:
  • A continuous air barrier system around the structure to ensure air tightness.
  • Over the air barrier, 4″ continuous insulation at exterior wall.
  • Over the air barrier, 8″+ continuous insulation at roof.
  • 2″ continuous insulation below the slab.
  • Wall air and drainage plane.
  • Wall cladding and roofing.
  • The building envelope is designed to use enough rigid insulation such that the dew point occurs outside of the building, ensuring better air quality and durability by eliminating any possibility of condensation within the structure.
• Building Materials: We are using materials with recycled content and also regionally produced materials, lowering the energy required in putting the building together.
• Kalwall Translucent Lobby Wall System: The lobby and one of the studios will feature a Kalwall translucent wall system. These highly insulating, diffuse light-transmitting walls will be used for passive heating and daylighting. They allow light to come in while blocking the solar heat of a sunny day. The result is a natural daylight without the need for a great deal of air conditioning.
• Windows & Doors: MoCo will use double glazed windows. Low E glass and argon filled cavities in the double-glazing provide higher thermal resistance while also better maintaining the indoor heated climate, reflecting the energy back into the building. The main entrance will have an entry vestibule air lock so that the outdoor conditions are not brought inside. There is also a walk-off grate at the entry to improve cleanliness of the floors and indoor air quality throughout the year.
• Concrete: Using the structural concrete floors as a thermal mass provides more thermal stability, saves energy and produces a better indoor environment with the following benefits:
  • Optimizes the benefits of solar gain, reducing the need for heating fuel.
  • Reduces heating energy consumption by 2-15%.
  • Smooths out fluctuations in thermal temperature.
  • Delays peak temperatures and can make air-conditioning unnecessary.
  • Can be used with night-time ventilation to eliminate the need for daytime cooling.
  • With combined and natural ventilation, it can reduce the energy used for cooling by up to 50%.
  • The reductions in energy use for both heating and cooling cuts emissions of CO2, the main greenhouse gas.