January 2009 issue
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The Keyser File
Quality of Life, Quality of Buildings
In a workplace that values its people, a Sherwood Park engineering firm champions
creative and affordable environmental designs
by Tom Keyser
Freelance Columnist
Vital Engineering has spent five years holding its own — and thriving — against the big guns in the corporate trenches. In fact business is good and getting better for the Sherwood Park consultancy, as it carries on a commitment to design solutions that are both cost efficient and environmentally conscious.
Dean Turgeon, R.E.T., founded Vital as a design service company in 2002, and it broadened its horizons a few years later when Scott Koehn, P.Eng., came aboard as full partner. The company then began to offer a full suite of sustainable engineering services, including geothermal, solar thermal and solar power systems.
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THE TEAM AND ITS WORK |
Vital dramatically reduces the ecological footprint of its commercial projects while taking a significant bite out of operating costs. It’s also possible for Vital to moderate capital costs by going green, particularly when the blueprints on the drafting board are for larger buildings being drawn on the drafting board.
Mr. Koehn says: “We try to be realistic in terms of cost estimates. But it’s a fact that, once we get into buildings in the 35,000-to-40,000-square-foot range, capital costs tend to even out.”
Indeed, education and marketing are an important part of Vital’s job. Builders and developers need to hear that there are plenty of realistic, environmentally friendly alternatives to traditional heating, ventilation and electrical systems.
“When you utilize a hybrid system that combines geothermal technology with solar thermal and heat-recovery ventilation, you’re able to do away with such expensive components as central cooling towers and boilers,” Mr. Koehn explains. “We generally find that the costs of both methods work out to about the same.”
A Knowledge Gap
Still, at a time when sustainable technologies receive constant attention in the news media, not everyone in the industry is up to speed. This was hit home for Mr. Turgeon at a recent mayor’s luncheon, when he sat across from a major Edmonton developer.
“He told me to be sure and let him know the minute that (sustainable options) become economically viable,” recalls Mr. Turgeon. “He said his engineers can’t make it happen.”
Well, some engineers are making it happen. Interest in the trademarked Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design rating system for sustainable buildings continues to grow across Alberta.
The provincial government has affirmed its own commitment to LEED silver certification standards for new facilities, and private corporations like the giant PCL are raising the bar, too. In fact in 2006 PCL’s Centennial Learning Centre in Edmonton became the first private-sector structure in the province to receive LEED gold certification.
Still, it’s been some time in coming. Mr. Koehn and Mr. Turgeon became discouraged in the larger firms they worked for, after first entering the business with an interest in energy-efficient construction strategies. Mr. Koehn found himself shouldering a heavy workload on jobs that rarely let him stretch his creative wings.
“I found myself overloaded with work and I was spending far too much time in the office,” he says. “My wife and I have a young family, with four small kids, and it wasn’t fair to them. Besides, I wanted to get more out of my career. Working for a big company, I had little opportunity to keep up with technological trends.”
The Vital Connection
So Mr. Koehn said goodbye to the grind and joined forces with a partner who shares his values and outlook. Quality of life remains a high priority at Vital Engineering, which prides itself on the advancement of commercially proven designs that incorporate an element of social responsibility.
It wasn’t long after Mr. Koehn arrived that Vital added Richard Caldwell, P.Eng., to the mix, another like-minded professional. The senior design team was now in place.
Since then, Vital Engineering has worked in conjunction with another contractor to set up the geothermal HVAC system in the massive Guild 51st Avenue Business Centre in Edmonton. That’s massive as in 210,000 square feet.
Vital has also brought its expertise to a new Edmonton office building for Qualico Communities, as well as an Infiniti car dealership being built in Edmonton’s West End. The dealership will rely on geothermal and solar thermal technology.
Mr. Turgeon sums it up this way: “We’re trying to show people that there are plenty of ways to incorporate alternative energy sources and a sense of social responsibility into our mechanical designs — without breaking the bank.”
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| An artist’s rendering depicts an Edmonton car dealership that will employ both geothermal and solar thermal technology. |
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