Masdar Headquarters to Be Located in World's First 'Positive Energy' Mixed-Use
Building
Chicago architecture firm Adrian Smith + Gordon Gill Architecture win global
competition to design Masdar's headquarters in first zero-carbon, zero-waste
city
ABU DHABI, United Arab Emirates, Feb. 22 /PRNewswire/ -- Masdar announced
today that it has chosen Chicago architecture firm Adrian Smith + Gordon Gill
Architecture (AS+GG) to design its headquarters in Abu Dhabi's Masdar City,
the world's first zero-carbon, zero-waste city fully powered by renewable
energy. The headquarters will be the world's first large-scale, mixed-use
"positive energy" building, producing more energy than it consumes. In
addition to being the location of Masdar Headquarters, the building will
accommodate private residences and 'early bird' businesses starting up in the
city.
Dr. Sultan Al Jaber, CEO of Masdar, said AS+GG is internationally
recognized for high-performance, energy-efficient and sustainable
architecture. "We know Adrian Smith + Gordon Gill Architecture share our
vision for Masdar's headquarters. This building is at the heart of Masdar
City, and its net positive energy design and new innovations will reflect our
mission of developing sustainable future energy solutions."
AS+GG teamed with Chicago-based MEP engineers Environmental Systems Design
and structural engineers Thornton Tomasetti on the design, which includes
numerous systems that will generate a surplus of the building's energy,
eliminate carbon emissions and reduce liquid and solid waste. The complex will
utilize sustainable materials and feature integrated wind turbines, outdoor
air quality monitors and one of the world's largest building-integrated solar
energy arrays. Compared with typical mixed-use buildings of the same size, the
Headquarters will consume 70 percent less water.
"In line with the Abu Dhabi 2030 Development Plan, Masdar is choosing to
emphasize sustainability over height. We hope and expect this will set a new
direction for worldwide competition in sustainable design," Dr. Al Jaber
continued.
In addition to being the first mixed-use net positive energy building in
the world, AS+GG's Masdar Headquarters will:
-- Be the lowest energy consumer per square meter for a modern class A
office building in an extremely hot and humid climate
-- Feature one of the world's largest building-integrated photovoltaic
arrays
-- Employ the largest solar thermal driven cooling and dehumidification
system
-- Be the first building in history to generate power for its own
assembly, through development of its solar roof pier before the
underlying complex
"We're thrilled to be working on a project of this importance and
magnitude. Masdar Headquarters is one of the most significant developments of
our time," said Adrian Smith, partner, AS+GG. "As a positive energy complex,
the project will have a far-reaching influence on the buildings of tomorrow."
"Masdar Headquarters will set a new paradigm for the way buildings are
designed, constructed and inhabited," said Gordon Gill, partner, AS+GG. "The
project represents the perfect integration of architecture and engineering,
resulting in a dynamic, inviting building that outperforms any other structure
of its type in the world."
Construction of Masdar City commenced with a formal ground-breaking
ceremony on February 9, 2008. The City will be constructed over seven phases
and is due to be completed by 2016. Masdar's headquarters is part of phase one
and will be completed by the end of 2010.
The design competition for Masdar's headquarters was managed by the Louis
Berger Group and began with a field of 159 participants, which was narrowed
down to 15 architecture and design firms. The criteria for selection of the 15
included building functionality, water and wastewater efficiency, indoor
environmental quality, zero carbon emission, carbon footprint reduction and
firm experience. Four global leaders in sustainable architecture and design
were then chosen to submit final proposals.
A global jury of seven world renowned design and urban planning experts
chose AS+GG's design from the finalists. The jury consisted of:
-- A. Hashim Sarkis -- Aga Khan Professor of Landscape, Architecture
and Urbanism in Muslim Societies in the Department of Urban Planning
& Design at Harvard's Graduate School of Design (Cambridge, MA)
-- Dennis A. Andrejko -- Associate Professor at the University of
Buffalo School of Architecture and Planning (Buffalo, NY)
-- Greg Mella, AIA, LEED AP -- Principal at SmithGroup (Washington,
D.C.)
-- Jean-Marie Charpentier -- Architect for Maison Mozart (Paris)
-- Dr. Hans-Rudolf Schalcher -- Professor at the Holcim Foundation for
Sustainable Construction (Zurich), where he is also the Head of
Technical Competence Center and Member of the Management Board;
Chair of the Planning and Management in Construction for the
Institute for Construction Engineering and Management at the Swiss
Federal Institute of Technology (Zurich)
-- John Quale -- Assistant Professor at the University of Virginia's
School of Architecture (Charlottesville, VA)
-- Volker Hartkopf -- Professor of Architecture at Carnegie Mellon
University's Center for Building Performance and Diagnostics, The
Robert L. Preger Intelligent Workplace; Director at CBPD
(Pittsburgh, PA)
About Masdar
Masdar is Abu Dhabi's multi-faceted, multi-billion dollar investment in
the development and commercialization of advanced and innovative technologies
in renewable, alternative and sustainable energies as well as green design. By
applying scale and leveraging Abu Dhabi's low-cost, tax-free manufacturing
base, businesses will enjoy significant competitive advantages, allowing them
to compete internationally and provide significant diversification to the Abu
Dhabi economy.
To learn more about Masdar, please visit www.masdaruae.com.
About Adrian Smith + Gordon Gill Architecture
AS+GG is focused on the design of high-performance architecture on an
international scale and is dedicated to the creation of new paradigms for
sustainable development. The office utilizes a holistic, integrated design
approach emphasizing a symbiotic relationship with the natural environment --
or 'global environmental contextualism.' The approach reduces negative
environmental impact and, in some cases, virtually eliminates it. Sites of
current projects include Chicago, Abu Dhabi, Dubai, Mumbai, Vancouver,
Belgrade, London and China. To learn more about AS+GG, please visit
www.smithgill.com
CONTACT:
Masdar: Michael Iacovella, +1 212 704 8254, michael.iacovella@edelman.com
AS+GG: Carrie Neill, +1 312 676 3004, carrieneill@smithgill.com
For b-roll, renderings, fly-through animation or stills:
http://www.thenewsmarket.com/masdar
SOURCE Masdar
Michael Iacovella of Masdar, +1-212-704-8254, michael.iacovella@edelman.com;
or Carrie Neill of AS+GG, +1-312-676-3004, carrieneill@smithgill.com
