The Nashville Tech Story (8/27/2009)
Last month, the Willis Tower in Chicago, known as the center of renovation, caused shockwaves throughout the world with the announcement to “go green.”
Being the tallest building in the United States, the skyscraper formerly known as the Sears Tower, is a national icon. With these renovations they are working to show how a few changes can save natural resources. Estimates put the project at approximately $350 million dollars and will include the following changes:
• Installation of solar panels to heat water used in the building.
• Efficiency improvements to the building exterior and windows, reducing energy use by 50%.
• Implementation of fuel cell technologies that will generate electricity, heating, and cooling.
• Elevators will be modernized to reduce energy consumption.
• Plumbing upgrades to restrooms and recovery systems for condensations, which could save almost 24 million gallons of water per year.
• A lighting control system will be added that recognizes the amount of sunlight in a room and dims the lighting accordingly.
• Wind turbines will be placed on the 90th floor to create an efficient energy source.
• A “green” area will be developed to include plants that can survive high-altitudes and they will be used as a test to see if they can reduce storm water runoff and help with the urban heat island effect.
The upgrades will reduce energy use by 80%, which averages out to 68,000,000 kWh per year or the comparable of 50,000 barrels of crude oil. The updates are in progress and due for completion in four short years.
Other icons that have become more economically friendly include the Empire State Building, and coming soon, Nashville’s newest skyline addition, the Pinnacle at Symphony Place. Due to be completed by November of this year, the Pinnacle will be the first downtown building to gain the LEED Silver Certification, which is a national standard measuring a building’s environmental friendliness.
With the Pinnacle building making a strong statement locally with its environmentally conscious design and the statistical advantages shown by the current improvements being done on the Willis Tower, the hope is that others will follow in their footsteps. The costs of creating of more environmentally friendly buildings can be relatively high in the short term, but the long term financial savings and the reduced strain on the environment are well worth the investment.
Nashville Technology Council member companies Pinnacle Financial and Bass, Berry and Sims PLC will be two of the most highly recognized companies to take up residence in one of Nashville’s first environmentally friendly masterpieces.
For more information on the Pinnacle at Symphony Place, click here.
