The new ice arena at Bentley University in Waltham, Mass., has received LEED platinum certification from the U.S. Green Building Council for its environmentally friendly design and construction.
The university says the 76,000-square-foot Bentley Arena is the first standalone ice arena to achieve a platinum rating.
“Thanks to the combination of the rooftop solar technology and energy-efficient mechanical design, the overall grid energy required to power the arena will be less than half of what it would take to power a building of a similar size,” says Amanda King, director of sustainability at Bentley. “These technologies also cut the building’s carbon footprint in half.”
The Bentley Arena is home to the university's hockey team as well as events such as career fairs, speeches and concerts. The facility held its grand opening in February. It has a seating capacity of 2,000 seats for hockey and up to 3,400 for other events.
The sustainable features of the arena include:
- A 504-kilowatt, 1,400-panel rooftop solar array, designed and financed by Rivermoor Energy, that will generate 40 percent of the building's annual electricity needs.
- Technology that captures heat generated from the rink’s ice-making equipment to heat water throughout the building.
- An abundance of glass windows that admit natural light and decrease the amount of electricity needed to illuminate the building’s interior.
- High-efficiency LED lighting with motion-detecting controls that turn off lights when no one is present.
- Ice-making and air conditioning systems that use zero-CFC-based refrigerants. CFCs—Chlorofluorocarbons—have been found to destroy the Earth's ozone layer.
- High-efficiency plumbing fixtures, including waterless urinals, dual-flush toilets, and low-flow faucets and showers to reduce the demand for water.
- At least 50 percent of wood used in the building is sourced from forests with certified sustainable forestry practices.
- About 10 percent of construction and finish materials were locally sourced, and about 20 percent of construction and finish materials contain recycled content.
The architect is Architectural Resources Cambridge, and the builder is Suffolk Construction.
VIDEO of arena construction and opening:
