Designing one of North America’s most energy-efficient academic building retrofits

At a Glance

  • 90%

    GHG Reduction

  • 97%

    Heating Reduction

  • 70%

    EUI Reduction

Location
Toronto, Ontario
Offices
Client
  • Humber College
Architect
B+H Architects
Awards
Canada Green Building Council, Award of Excellence - Existing Building, 2020
Consulting Engineers of Ontario, Tree of Life Award, 2020
Consulting Engineers of Ontario, Award of Merit - Building, Engineering and Science, 2020

Humber College Building NX Net Zero Carbon and Passive House Retrofit

Humber College set out to improve the energy efficiency of their aging Building NX. Our team provided envelope consulting, Passive House Planning Package (PHPP) analysis, mechanical and electrical design, structural engineering, building envelope commissioning, and whole building air leakage testing.

We proposed replacing the existing envelope with a highly insulated, airtight system that integrated triple-pane glazing and optimized transitions to reduce thermal bridging. We designed a low-energy HVAC system that uses heat recovery through a dedicated outdoor air system (DOAS). Heating and cooling are delivered by air-source heat pumps and distributed through a variable refrigerant flow (VRF) network, enabling simultaneous heating, cooling, and load transfer within floor areas. High-efficiency lighting and controls increase daylighting while decreasing energy use. A 25-kilowatt solar photovoltaic system further reduces the building’s operational carbon footprint.

These efforts led to a 70 percent reduction in energy use intensity (EUI), 90 percent reduction in greenhouse gas emissions (GHG), and a 97 percent cut in heating energy—bringing the five-story, 4,500 square-meter (48,437 square-feet) building’s peak heating demand down to that of a single-family home.

Building NX achieved Canada Green Building Council’s (CAGBC’s) Zero Carbon retrofit certification and was the first institutional building in Canada to achieve Passive House EnerPHit (retrofit) certification. Building NX stands as a sleek, high-performance landmark on Humber College’s campus and serves as a national example of the possibilities of deep energy retrofits.

At a Glance

  • 90%

    GHG Reduction

  • 97%

    Heating Reduction

  • 70%

    EUI Reduction

Location
Toronto, Ontario
Offices
Client
  • Humber College
Architect
B+H Architects
Awards
Canada Green Building Council, Award of Excellence - Existing Building, 2020
Consulting Engineers of Ontario, Tree of Life Award, 2020
Consulting Engineers of Ontario, Award of Merit - Building, Engineering and Science, 2020

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