Chilled Beam System Highlights Sustainable Technology in New Academic Building

Bowie State University’s new Center for Natural Sciences, Mathematics, and Nursing fittingly provides a state-of-the-art sustainable structure in which diverse academic programs flourish with interdisciplinary, hands-on instruction. The 149,000-square-foot building houses instructional labs, nursing simulation suites, classrooms, offices, a lecture hall, informal learning and study spaces, and a greenhouse. The multipurpose “Beacon,” a three-story, elliptical space, anchors the building’s south elevation and signals the university’s commitment to scientific studies and research.

The LEED^® Gold facility features a number of cutting-edge systems designed to optimize building performance and energy efficiency. Chilled beam technology—still unusual in the U.S. but ideal for many laboratory environments—uses water to conduct thermal energy, supplementing conditioned air with ceiling-mounted chilled water heat exchangers rather than controlling space temperature by using only conditioned air. Other innovations include the use of 25,000 square feet of dynamic glazing along the facade, a system that minimizes solar heat gain by automatically changing the glass from clear to tinted to nearly opaque depending upon daylight conditions. Mueller provided complete HVAC and electrical engineering design services for the award-winning building.