LEED Certification for HCM-Designed Friends Community Schools

Wednesday, 10 March 2010 09:14

Hord Coplan Macht, Inc. (HCM) announced yesterday that one of its projects entitled Friends Community School, located in Greenbelt, Maryland, has achieved LEED-New Construction Silver Certification from the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC).
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As described by the architects, the 26,900-square-foot, high-performance building accommodates 200 students in kindergarten through eighth grade with a staff of 30. Planned to help teach the school’s core science and environmental curriculum – and built of a rapidly renewable material – its straw bale construction is ideal for its acoustical and thermal insulation qualities.

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The resulting wall thickness provides unique opportunities at windows for built-in benches both in classrooms, as well as breakout spaces in the corridor.

A radiant-heated concrete floor slab throughout the school and conventional rooftop units with energy recovery provide comfort as well as draft-free energy efficient heating. The classrooms, all located on the south side, benefit from maximum day light, and a green roof covers a substantial portion of building.

Hord Coplan Macht, Inc. is a full-service architecture and landscape architecture firm located in Baltimore. HCM specializes in a variety of project types including healthcare, multi-family housing, mixed-use, education, cultural and religious, parks and recreation, office and institutional facilities. HCM’s architecture, landscape architecture and planning clients include University of Maryland Medical System, Baltimore County Public Schools, Johns Hopkins Hospital, and The National Park Service.