Green Buildings
Red River College Polytechnic’s two main campuses and five regional campuses span more than 1.6 million square feet of building space. Ensuring that our buildings are designed, built, renovated and operate in ways to reduce impact and conserve resources is one of our biggest sustainability challenges (and opportunities).
Exchange District Campus
Paterson GlobalFoods Institute
Manitoba’s first historically-designated LEED building
The Paterson GlobalFoods Institute (PGI) houses the Hospitality & Culinary Arts programs and the College’s first (and only) student residence. In 2009 the college acquired the former Union Bank Tower building and began its restoration by adding 40,000 ft2 of new space to the existing 50,000 ft2. Named after Andrew Paterson, the project’s biggest donor, the building opened its doors in 2013.
PGI is a shining example of blending historic preservation with innovative sustainable building technologies. Reducing energy consumption was achieved by efficiently distributing heating & cooling and thermally isolating the building from external environmental fluctuations. Through a combination of strategies, PGI is 41% more efficient than a standard building. (click gallery for more info).
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- Built in 1904 for a large Canadian Bank, the Union Bank Tower is Canada’s oldest surviving steel and concrete-reinforced skyscraper.
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- Historic character was maintained by keeping 75% of the original walls, floors and roof. More than $33,000 worth of marble from the original building was reused.
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- Nearly 25% of the building’s materials were extracted and manufactured within 800km of the project. The steel is from Cambridge, Ontario, the fiberglass is from Innisfail, Alberta and the concrete aggregates are from Bird’s Hill, Manitoba.
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- Spray foam was used to insulate the building’s exterior walls, taking them from an R4 level to R14.
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- A compost program takes food waste from Culinary labs and dining areas and transports it to an off-site compost facility.
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- The carpet in the two student lounges is both recycled and recyclable. Carpet tiles make replacement less wasteful if damage occurs.
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- Waterless urinals, low-flow and dual-flush toilets and aerators in showers and sinks account for a 44% reduction in potable water use.
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- Halton hoods over the grills in the cooking labs are connected to Kitchen Energy Recovery Units on the roof of the building. Heat that would have been exhausted outdoors is captured and used to temper make up air for building occupants.
Roblin Centre
Award-Winning Design
The award-winning Roblin Centre is a great example of adaptive reuse, historic preservation and sustainable design. The building combines restored facades and interior spaces of five heritage buildings in Winnipeg’s historic Exchange District. Completed in 2003, the building won many awards and met the C-2000 Federal Sustainable Development Standards.
Throughout the construction process, products and materials with recycled content, or manufactured locally or from renewable resources were used when possible. Other features include reduced energy consumption by 45-50% and a green roof. (click gallery for more info)
Awards
2006 RAIC Urban Design Award
2004 Society for College & University Planning Honor Award, Excellence in Planning
2004 Heritage Winnipeg Preservation Award of Excellence
2003 Heritage Winnipeg Preservation Award of Excellence
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- The Roblin Centre is 220,000 sq. feet and combines three historical buildings joined by a common atrium that used to be a back alley.
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- The photovoltaic solar array converts sunlight into an energy source to provide lighting and computer power to several classrooms.
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- A small demonstration green roof reduces the heating and cooling loads of the building and absorbs stormwater and snow.
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- The building was designed to provide as much natural lighting indoors as possible creating sunny spaces to study and socialize.
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- The Buhler library in particular gets a large amount of natural light, due to its floor to ceiling windows.
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- Classrooms adjacent to the atrium have windows allowing more natural light inside.
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- Much of the original buildings were kept (like these old vault doors), preserving the unique character of the neighbourhood and reducing environmental impacts.
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- Most of the brickwork from the original buildings was methodically deconstructed, cleaned and reused.
Notre Dame Campus
Skilled Trades and Technology Centre
Naturally Inspired
The Skilled Trades and Technology Centre (STTC) was designed to be cutting edge in terms of architectural design and sustainable building features. Spanning the length of two football fields, this 100,000 ft2 building adds about 10% more building space to our main campus. The building houses our Carpentry, Refrigeration, Sheet Metal, Electrics and Mechanical and Manufacturing programs.
The building’s design was inspired by the Birch tree. It’s a reflection of a natural landscape of the prairies and a testament to the longevity of the birch forest. (Open the gallery to learn more).
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- Inspired by a birch tree forest, the building’s exterior reflects the movement of the forest canopy and the pattern of the bark itself.
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- The building is climate controlled with a geothermal system. The system heats and cools using active & passive “chilled beam” energy distribution. It has no mechanical moving parts so the only sound is from air movement.
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- A “LiveRoof” modular green roof system acts like a sponge and absorbs excess rainwater, reducing our impacts on storm sewers. In addition to other environmental benefits (including reduced heat island), the green roof provides students and staff with a beautiful space to be outdoors.
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- The floor is covered in 60,000 lbs of recycled brass shavings. Cut-off and tools collected during construction are embedded into the floor as “artifacts” to discover .
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- More than 82% of the building is fully daylit thanks to shallow floor plates, tall windows and tubular skylights. All non-daylight lighting is LED, controlled by a combination of daylight/occupancy sensors and room controllers, ensuring required light levels.
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- Students don’t just learn in the building, they were part of making it. Spanning a few years, students in the Carpentry program made the work benches that are used every day. The workshops and labs contain passive lighting technology made from sheet metal solar-tubes that act like a continuous mirror, channeling light along its entire length while preserving its intensity.
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- At the main entry a “Green Dashboard” greets visitors and provides real-time information on the building’s performance.
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- STTC has three new electric vehicle charging stations.
Vehicle Technology & Energy Centre
RRC Polytech’s first LEED certified building
Our College’s first LEED (Silver) certified building was completed in 2009. Located on a former parking lot, the 60,000 ft2 building serves academic and industrial purposes.
VTEC’s many innovative features made it among the first buildings in Manitoba to be LEED certified. The grounds are vegetated with hardy and drought-resistant plants that require minimum maintenance and help slow the flow of runoff water. The building itself has sustainable technologies that use 50% less energy and reduce space heating by 72% compared to a standard building. Noteworthy is the open-loop geothermal heat pump system that uses the earth’s groundwater as a source of heat in the winter and a heat “sink” in the summer months. (click gallery for more on this building)
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- This south-facing perforated metal SolarWall uses passive heating technology by preheating outdoor air before its used to ventilate the classrooms.
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- Hardy plants, like dogwoods, caragana, ivy, lilac, junipers, hostas, and day lilies border the building nicely and don’t need much water.
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- Clerestories (window bays on the roof) provide daylight into the shop area, and exhaust air through a natural stack effect. Natural ventilation strategies like this one reduce the energy and costs of mechanical heating and cooling systems.
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- Many building materials were left exposed or unfinished as a green building strategy to reduce the number of potentially harmful compounds in the air.
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- The building maximizes south-facing exposure, saving energy with natural light use and creating more enjoyable working environments.
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- Carpet tiles have high recycled content. Other materials used in the building also have high recycled content including the steel frame, concrete and millwork. Altogether, more than 22% of the building materials have recycled content.
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- Outdoor lights are managed by photocell controls that adjust to seasonal daylight conditions. A light-sensing device controls the light levels in response to outdoor levels.
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- Waterless urinals and low-flow showers help to reduce potable water consumption by more than 50% compared to an average building.
