Ashley McGraw Hill: Syracuse Center of Excellence

IESVE Software chosen for integration with SketchUp and Revit, and ability to perform integrated daylighting, energy and CFD simulation

Ashley McGraw Architects
Architectural firm Ashley McGraw selected Integrated Environmental Solutions (IES) <Virtual Environment> performance analysis software to assess and design a 4,000 square foot media center and library addition to the Syracuse Center of Excellence in Environmental and Energy Systems – SyracuseCoE.

Based in the Liverpool Central school district, a suburb of Syracuse, New York, Ashley McGraw used the VE-Pro modules MicroFlo (airflow CFD) and ApacheSim (thermal simulation) to successfully measure the building’s energy use and receive immediate feedback during the design process, easing their overall workload. Ashley McGraw has been using IES software for more than two years. It was initially interested in IES for the versatility of its product offerings. With the ability to analyze a model from SketchUp, Revit or any other software that can read gbXML, the simulation can be done at any point in the design process. Instead of hours spent remodeling, IES’ software provides instant performance feedback from any of the models built during the design phase.

During the product evaluation phase, Ashley McGraw assessed many packages that perform daylighting simulation, energy simulation or CFD – but very few offered all three. With digital media center models already created, Ashley McGraw chose IES because of its ease of integration with other software, and even between types of simulation within the IES <Virtual Environment>.

“The SketchUp interface made IES the easy choice among contenders. Now we can see performance feedback from an initial design idea in a matter of minutes instead of hours or even days,” said Brandon Burd, LEED AP and advanced building designer for Ashley McGraw Architects.

“We are dedicated to the creation of zero carbon footprint and zero fossil fuel buildings, combined with the use of environmentally responsible materials and construction methods, and this would not be possible without powerful software. I would definitely recommend IES to any firm that is interested in designing high performance buildings. IES is a comprehensive, fast, user-friendly package compared to the vast amount of convoluted software available.”

Syracuse Center of Excellence in Environmental and Energy Systems
The SyracuseCoE is a pioneering high-performance “green” building. It was opened in March 2010 and achieved a Platinum rating under the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) program administered by the U.S. Green Building Council.

This iconic, high-performance “living laboratory” is the realization of a dream shared by leaders in government, industry, and academia to create a world-renowned location for collaborations that address global challenges in clean and renewable energy, indoor environmental quality, and water resources. The SyracuseCoE Headquarters Building is a test bed for environmental and energy technologies and building innovations. The facility includes a geothermal heating and cooling system, a rainwater collection system and windows that can be opened if the air quality is deemed sufficiently good.

The U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) recently named the SyracuseCoE the winner of the 2010 Leadership Award in the Non-Governmental Organization Sector. The Leadership Awards recognize outstanding individuals and organizations that signify vision, leadership and commitment to the evolution of green building design and construction.

According to Rick Fedrizzi of the Green Building Council, “the Syracuse Center of Excellence is working to leverage the best energy and ideas to advance the scientific understanding of the building science of green buildings, and applications to put that science to use.”