Penn Medicine Translational Research Center Earns LEED Silver

As the second phase of a planned multi-phased expansion of the Perelman Center for Advanced Medicine (CAM), the Translational Research Center, located in Philadelphia, PA, houses clinical expansion spaces that bring together clinical staff and researchers in one facility to participate in translational research while offering both independently diverse programs and support facilities. This 13-story, 531,000 sf center was built on the former site of the Philadelphia Convention Hall and Civic Center, which was classified as a Brownfield site, and has been remediated as part of this project. This location offers ample access to several modes of public transportation, and is within walking/biking distance of many basic community services.

Through collaborative efforts with Rafael Viñoly Architects, 7group guided the project team through the LEED process and consulted on a variety of aspects that culminated in a combination of sustainable strategies that earned the project Silver certification under the LEED NC v2.2 rating system. Energy efficiency strategies incorporated, such as steam condensate recovery, a facility monitoring system, airside energy recovery in addition to traditional energy efficient design strategies, resulted in an energy cost savings of 36%. Low-flow fixtures used throughout and landscaping that does not require irrigation contributed to an anticipated water savings of over 28%. The environmental impact of materials related to the project has also been limited by diverting over 88% of demolition and construction debris from landfill, and specifying construction materials that contain a high percentage of recycled, and regionally extracted and manufactured content. Strategies that improved the quality of the indoor environment included implementing an indoor air quality management plan during construction, IAQ testing prior to occupancy, specifying low-emitting materials and green cleaning products and practices, providing a comfortable thermal environment, and providing a high level of lighting controllability to the occupants.

This marks our portfolio’s 118th project whose efforts have been certified under LEED, Living Building Challenge and Green Globes. 7group is excited to continue collaborating with innovative project teams on such forward-thinking projects.