World's greenest office unveiled

International architect Skidmore Owings & Merrill (SOM) has unveiled designs for what it claims will be the world’s greenest office building, Energy +.

Located in Paris’s Hauts-de-Seine neighbourhood, the 65000-m2 building is, according to the architect, the world’s “first large-scale, sustainable office building that produces more energy than it consumes”.

Over looking the River Seine the 4000 occupants will have offices and amenities designed to supersede current guidelines of sustainability. SOM has expanded upon the guidelines set by France’s HQE (High Environmental Quality) and the US equivalent, LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) accreditation to design a building that “has a positive ecological effect”, said an SOM spokesman.

“The design [is] based on energy economy, respect for the environment, and the health and well-being of its users,” he added.

Energy+’s CO2 emission savings will be equivalent to 925 tonnes of manufactured good, keeping 1478 cars off the road each year, and the home heating, electricity, and hot water needs of 925 households per year.

Potable water saved at Energy +, 17500 m3, is equivalent to the water requirements of 1660 people for a month, sustaining a population of 250000 people for a week, or conserving 0.95 ha of rainforest that receives an average annual rainfall of 1850 mm.

SOM also said it is in talks to construct similar buildings in the US, the Middle East and other European cities.

Image: Philip Brown at PMB Design.