The document discusses reducing energy consumption in buildings through improving indoor climate comfort. It notes that HVAC systems account for most building energy usage and aims to maintain indoor air quality. The author plans a project at Howard Community College to improve student comfort in the Hickory Ridge building while taking sustainability initiatives. Through surveys, the HVAC system in Hickory Ridge performs poorer than other buildings. The author considers initiatives like insulation, electrical systems, solar panels, and green roofs, ultimately proposing a green roof design for the Student Life Patio.

1. Indoor Climate Comfort
Adam Haj-hamad

2. Background – Building Energy Consumption
▪ Residential and commercial buildings account for nearly 40 percent of total U.S.
energy consumption and 40 percent of U.S. carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions.
▪ Reducing energy use in buildings is one of the most important ways to reduce humans’
overall environmental impact.
▪ Therefore, buildings offer the greatest potential for achieving significant green house
gas emission reductions.

3. Energy Consumption

4. How Buildings Consume Energy
▪ Majority of energy used in buildings is
from HVAC.
▪ HVAC is an acronym for heating,
ventilation, and air conditioning.
▪ Its goal is to maintain an acceptable
indoor air quality.
▪ This includes Fans, ventilation,
heating, cooling, and water pumps.

5. Mission Statement
▪ With assistance of local non-profit agencies and the Facilities Office at Howard Community
College, I plan to design a project that satisfies student comfort in the Hickory Ridge
Building while also taking sustainability initiatives in the process.
▪ To achieve this the following process is executed:
▪ Research campus buildings and LEED requirements
▪ Survey Students in a new building versus the Hickory Ridge building
▪ Collect and Evaluate official HCC building records
▪ Community Engagement
▪ Brainstorm
▪ Implement

6. LEED requirements
▪ As stated in my introduction, buildings utilize a tremendous amount of energy,
therefore have the greatest potential in lowering pollution
▪ All large buildings in Howard County are required to be built to a standard called LEED
(Leadership in Energy and Environmental Education)
▪ The Current LEED rating for Howard Community College is silver, however buildings
like Health Sciences (HSB) have been renovated to reach a Gold rating and the new
SET building is predicted to follow in its footsteps
▪ The Hickory Ridge Building was constructed in the 1960s with a low budget and lacks
the appliances these advanced building possess

7. Student Surveys
▪ My intention was to give a voice to the
students on campus who experience the
conditions of the HR building
▪ 50 Students were surveyed on the overall
air quality and temperature of the
Hickory Ridge building and the Health
Sciences building.
▪ My plan was to compare the data
between the two buildings

8. Student Surveys
▪ The result of the surveys show an overwhelming conclusion that the temperature and
air quality are better regulated in the Health Sciences Building than the Hickory Ridge
Building
50 Students Surveyed Health Sciences Building Hickory Ridge Building
Students who experienced
perfect temperature
60% 32%
Students who experienced
perfect air quality
90% 40%

9. Student Surveys
*only 17% of students experienced Ideal Conditions in HR
(Perfect temperature AND perfect air quality consecutively)

10. HCC Building Documents
▪ The following building records were evaluated:
▪ Facilities Master Plan 2015-2025 - a framework for the development of the campus
▪ Commission OnThe Future 2014-2015 report - identifies innovative ideas for the future of
HCC
▪ FiscalYear 2010-2017 Capital Budget – grants access to the projects HCC is initiating and
what is being renovated
▪ Renovation Reports of all buildings – went into specific detail on all aspects of the building

11. Evaluating Building Records
▪ The MP emphasizes an expansion of south campus with a new 70,000 square foot
Math building , expansion of the Athletic building, and additional parking.This is the
initial idea, likely changes might occur
▪ From my survey data analysis, outdated systems as stated in the Master Plan , and
public notoriety around campus, it is obvious that the HVAC systems in HR are not up
to par with the quality buildings on campus.
▪ However, the last renovations completed on HR were in FY2011.
▪ In FY2016, it states renovations to HR will continue once the new Math building is built in
2020.

13. Community Engagement
▪ I have contacted several local non-profit organizations in hopes of gaining additional
information to apply in this project.The non-profits include:
▪ Howard County Conservancy
▪ Maryland Department of Natural Resources
▪ Howard County Climate Change
▪ Transition Howard County
▪ Howard County Office of Community Sustainability
▪ Sustainability at Howard Community College
▪ Patapsco Heritage Greenway
▪ From these conversations, I gained critical insight on the outlook on this project. I
realized that there is an entire community around me that is responding to the same
issue I am responding to, conserving the use of energy and fossil fuels. In addition to
that, student comfort is a variable I am responding to.

14. Brainstorm
▪ I plan to introduce sustainability initiatives of future trends that satisfies the college
Master Plan and HCC’s mission and apply the to the HR building. Ideas that came up:
▪ Exterior Insulation
▪ Advanced Electrical Systems
▪ Solar Panels, Photovoltaic Panels
▪ Green Roofs
▪ These ideas will then be presented to Robert Marietta, Head of Sustainability at HCC,
who operates out of the Facilities Office

15. Insulation
▪ A build’s insulation is a very effective way
to reduce heat loss or gain and can
decrease the massive energy demands
from the HVAC system.
▪ Indow presented their idea at the Galleria
during Sustainability week.
▪ Easy to implement, and convenient for the
college
▪ After consoling with HCC Facilities,
window glass is purchased once every 10-
15 years and Indow, being a new company,
isn’t trusted to last that long yet.

16. Electrical Systems
▪ The initial cost of LED’s are more,
however the long term savings are much
greater.
▪ LED are very easy to work with. Change
colors, light brightness, direction of light,
light frequency, etc.
▪ The Facilities Office has already
implemented LED’s all over campus.
▪ All outside lighting and exit signs are LED
now.
▪ Plans to increase number of LED in the
future of the campus
Electrical Systems

17. Solar Panels, Photovoltaic Panels
▪ In the Master Plan 2015-2025, solar power is mentioned as a possible opportunity in
the future,
▪ “As new buildings are designed, rooftop solar installations should be considered”
▪ Prices for solar photovoltaic panels have plummeted as a result of greater production
and in advancements in technology, therefore being more accessible.
▪ The Athletic building, that has a large flat roof, already has solar panels installed.
▪ Solar panel Contractors investigate the campus annually to spot potential areas for the
panels, however HR does not qualify since the roof doesn’t get enough sunlight.

18. Solar Panels

19. Green Roofs
▪ Will help the expansion of south campus
with a natural environment
▪ Plants in the green roof will reduce CO2 in
the atmosphere
▪ The College Master Plan states that green
roofs “reduces needs for mechanical heating
and cooling inputs”
▪ Decreases Storm water accumulation during
rainy weather
▪ Green Roofs are very low maintenance when
applying the right plants

20. Implement – Green Roofs
▪ I believe green roofs is the best solution for my mission and the College’s mission and
role in the community
▪ Green Roofs prove to help insulate the building below them from dramatic
temperature swings, thus reduce the use of the outdated HVAC system found in
Hickory Ridge.
▪ Implementing sustainable future trends now on the HR building would better prepare
the development of a full scale green roof on the new building

21. Implementation
▪ Met with Facilities for submittal on May 2nd, 2016. Marietta explained that HCC does
not offer a program where students are allowed to work on projects that affect the
campus infrastructure as much as Green Roofs do.
▪ Green Roofs are to be designed by certified architects who are liable for the construction.
▪ If a student were to build a Green Roof, the school would be liable if something were to go
wrong.
▪ Although HR is a flat roof for a Green Roof, the building was not constructed to hold
the weight of a Green Roof in addition to all the water it will accumulate.

22. Next Steps
▪ This project effecting HR will NOT continue.
▪ In regards to the future of the HR comfort, Marietta explained that a new HVAC
system will be installed with new insulated windows and storefronts this June. In
addition to that, the HR building is rumored to be demolished with the expansion of
the south campus.
▪ HOWEVER, new plans of a Green Roof being implemented on the Student Life Patio
gives potential for students to maintain the garden and research its impact on the
building it blankets.
▪ The project I choose to continue is to effectively design a layout where the campus will
achieve the most output from the garden while also preserving the tables and seats for
the students to relieve stress or study.

23. Future Project
▪ Plans of a Green Roof is being implemented this summer by the campus on the
Student Life Patio.
▪ Because it is impossible to apply myself to the design of this project, Marietta and I
discussed how the seating and tables would layout with the Green Roof.
▪ The patio has a very nice seating environment that overlooks the athletic field,
fountain, and tree environment where students can study or hangout to relieve stress.
▪ I have now decided to design how the seating and tables would be implemented on
the Student Life Patio while also conserving the Green Roof.
▪ Blue prints of the Green Roof will be handed down to me from Marietta where I can
research a layout that the campus will achieve the most output from the garden while
also preserving the tables and seats for the students.

24. Questions and Feedback
If done properly, this setting could turn out to be one of the most beautiful area on campus…

25. References
▪ http://www.c2es.org/technology/overview/buildings
▪ http://www.foodmanufacturing.com/articles/2012/07/intelligent-pumping
▪ http://www.supply.com/blog/buyer-guides/cfl-vs-led-lighting-what-is-the-difference/
▪ http://www.howardcc.edu/about-us/hcc-at-a-glance/plans-
reports/documents/HCC%20Facilities%20Master%20Plan%202015-
2025_compiled.pdf
▪ http://www.howardcc.edu/about-us/hcc-at-a-
glance/documents/FMP%20Village%20Center%20Presentation_FINAL%20011316.pdf
▪ http://www.howardcc.edu/about-us/mission-and-strategic-plan/commission-on-
future/documents/2015%20Update%202012-2013.pdf