An ambitious project at 32 Quincy St. in Cambridge, the address historically known as Harvard’s Fogg Art Museum, is a tour de force even before completion.
The renovation and expansion of the Fogg complex – which will bring together three of the university’s museums under one roof – has achieved an astounding 98 percent construction material recycling rate.
Skanska, the project’s construction manager, has achieved this milestone by reusing on-site much of what would have been considered “waste.”
The project involves demolition of 50,000 square feet of space, renovation of 104,000 square feet, and new construction totaling 100,000 square feet.
When construction is completed in 2013, visitors of the Harvard Art Museums will have centralized access to exquisite collections, galleries, and the curatorial staff of the Fogg Museum, the Busch-Reisinger Museum, and the Arthur M. Sackler Museum – all in one state-of-the-art facility.
Of the nearly 560 tons of material removed from 32 Quincy St. since demolition began in September 2010, all but .33 tons have been recycled. Skanska, known globally as a leader in green building, has salvaged nine tons of paneling, 83 tons of stone and 151 tons of granite curbing for future reuse at Harvard.
Throughout the intensive renovation and demolition, Skanska has salvaged old millwork, fume hoods and other equipment, as well as terracotta, blocks and bricks. Some of these items will be reused elsewhere, while a substantial amount of the reclaimed brick will be reused to construct the new portion of the building facade. The project team is even composting its food waste.
To achieve a recycling milestone of this magnitude, Skanska is working in close partnership with Harvard’s sustainability teams.
Pollution Controls
Harvard is a green-building leader, with 87 LEED-registered or certified building projects. The University’s 45 LEED-certified projects have an average construction material recycling rate of 88.1 percent. The university’s comprehensive Green Building Standards require a smart-design process, including life-cycle costing, integrated design, energy modeling and, at a minimum, LEED Gold certification for all construction and renovation capital projects more than $100,000.
Harvard’s commitment to sustainability is further enhanced by Skanska’s cutting-edge Building Information Modeling (BIM) execution plan. Subcontractors are co-located with Skanska on site, providing real-time response to potential conflicts with design or constructability. Having all parties present during critical decision-making periods has helped create a more collaborative, highly efficient project team, which has been utilizing the BIM model to eliminate potential excess materials and waste.
Skanska also installed several controls to reduce air pollution and ensure that potential disruption to the local environment is minimized. The firm uses diesel-powered, non-road construction equipment with engine ratings of 60 horsepower, retrofitted with emission control devices that meet standards set by the Environmental Protection Agency. Since Skanska uses a “just-in-time” delivery process on all its projects, trucks are scheduled for use at certain times of the day to mitigate traffic back-ups and unnecessary idling of vehicles onsite.
Harvard and Skanska’s recycling efforts on the 32 Quincy St. project have made a tangible environmental impact. The project’s diversion of construction waste from landfills has resulted in an estimated reduction in greenhouse gas emissions by 7,300 metric tons and oil usage by more than 8,000 barrels. Energy savings from the project are enough to power 686 cars, or 477 homes, for a year.
In addition to its deep history and leadership in academic scholarship, Harvard once again serves as a national model – this time, for demonstrating how other institutions and organizations can encourage their communities to implement innovative, economically-viable solutions that create healthier, greener and more sustainable campuses around the country.
Paul Hewins is general manager and executive vice president for Skanska USA’S New England region, www.skanska.com
