The Frank and Maureen Wilkens Science and Engineering Center at Cape Cod Community College (CCCC) was officially dedicated late last year, on September 29th. This ten-year project in the making—with only the last two spent in construction—brings the sciences to the heart of campus.
Featuring a bright and open floor plan, glass-walled classrooms, the “Toilet of the Future” and expansive views across campus, the Center has already become a popular location for students to work and study. Solar panels, all electric HVAC systems, triple-pane glazing and the increased usage of wood over concrete and steel among other sustainable design choices lend for an environmentally friendly facility that achieves net positive energy use.
Alongside college business, the facility will also support students throughout the region, including those in grades K-12.
Related Links
Cape Cod Community College hopes new STEM building will bring community together (Cape Cod Times)
A New Campus Heart: Leveraging a New STEM Learning Facility to Transform a Community College
Cape Cod Community College’s Frank and Maureen Wilkens Science and Engineering Center is a net-positive energy building designed to transform the heart of campus.
The project approaches sustainability through a holistic and global approach, implementing a range of moves including passive solar shading overhangs, air-source heat pumps, high performance materials with low embodied carbon and the expansion of the range of thermal comfort and lighting power density. Combined with on-site photovoltaics, the project achieves net-positive energy use.
The project’s thermally modified wood rainscreen façade is a study of the modern expression of vernacular Cape Cod architecture while reducing embodied carbon. Early lifecycle assessments identified the immense carbon savings of wood over fiber cement. The design team did not stop there, furthering reductions by peeling back unnecessary finishes like carpet and ceilings. Together, these decisions enabled a 19% reduction in embodied carbon.
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