HILLSBORO, OR-Engineering design and consulting firm Mazzetti celebrated the unveiling of Kaiser Permanente's new LEED Gold hospital Westside Medical Center, which opened its doors in Hillsboro earlier this month. Mazzetti provided mechanical, electrical and plumbing design, energy modeling and LEED consulting to Kaiser Permanente during the design and construction of the medical center, which broke ground in 2009. The facility is the first in Oregon to achieve Gold under LEED for New Construction v2009, and one of only two LEED Gold medical centers in the state. It is also the first LEED gold certified hospital for Kaiser Permanente.

“We are very proud of this exceptional project. The entire design team played a key role in its success,” said Mazzetti Westside project manager, William Caron. “Each team member brought their unique expertise and knowledge to the project to deliver Kaiser Permanente a world-class facility.”

In the schematic design phase, Mazzetti led two eco-charrettes and provided modeling and analysis of potential energy conservation measures, including heat recovery, co-generation and geothermal heat pumps. Other Mazzetti work resulted in energy efficient lighting, a 70% reduction in lighting power density in the hospital's parking garage and a 100kw solar photovoltaic array on top of the parking garage that provides partial power for the structure's lighting.

Early in the design process, Kaiser Permanente emphasized the importance of performance. The team developed a series of energy and water metering schemes that allow for transparent operability of the facility as well as ease of use for those operating the building. Ultimately, Mazzetti will monitor the data with Kaiser Permanente for at least two years post occupancy to ensure the building performs as designed.

Mazzetti's energy reduction and renewable energy work on the Kaiser Permanente Westside Medical Center will result in a savings of 2,200 tons of carbon emissions. Mazzetti worked with Kaiser Permanente to secure $640,000 worth of incentives to pay for many of the energy efficiency and renewable energy strategies used in the building.

Kaiser Permanente Westside Medical Center is also water efficient; thanks to Mazzetti's implementation of a rainwater capture system to provide irrigation for an extensive sidewall planter system. Other water efficiency strategies include low-flow fixtures and a dry-pump medical vacuum system. Water efficiency measures designed by Mazzetti are expected to save Kaiser Permanente Westside Medical Center an estimated 2.5 million gallons every year.

Mazzetti is leading the engineering industry into a new era that serves the needs of current and future generations. The firm has nine offices across the country, in San Francisco, Irvine, and Sacramento, Calif.; Portland, Ore.; Nashville, Tenn.; Denver; Baton Rouge and New Orleans, La. and Houston, Tex.

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Developers Achieve Sustainability Goals for New Westside Medical Center

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