2022 Year in Review
February 13, 2023
Goodbye 2022! 4EA Building Science is nearing its second-year anniversary in April and we are excited to look back at our year in review and reflect on our firm’s hard work and accomplishments. We’ve gained and lost team members, lived and learned on our projects, and continued navigating the challenges of our ever-changing world. One thing that will never change? Our mission to improve the built environment with thoughtful, empowering, and simple solutions.
Continue reading to discover how 4EA upheld its mission, as we share our new services and notable projects!
New Services
4EA is excited to announce that we have a few new and expanded services!
We now provide a comprehensive set of compliance services to meet the requirements of the energy code in Washington State and Title 24 in California. Our team can help you with:
- Total Building Energy modeling
- Building envelope air leakage testing
- Quality assurance testing & commissioning
We also track building performance over time to analyze trends and help owners make data-driven decisions.
Passive House Verification & Consulting
Enclosure performance is a critical system for projects seeking passive house certification. As enclosure consultants, we work on some of the largest passive house projects in the Pacific Northwest. In addition to providing critical enclosure consulting and testing, 4EA Building Science also has the in-house knowledge to provide Certification and Verification for passive house projects through Phius (formerly, the Passive House Institute US, or PHIUS+).
Certified Passive House Consulting Services:
- Document Management for Pre-Certification with Phius
- Passive House-specific design review of Architectural and Mechanical Designs
- WUFI Passive Energy Modelling
- THERM Modelling
- Shading Studies
- Ongoing Consultation through Construction
Phius Certified Rater and Verifier Services:
- Project Team Training
- Liaison with Phius through the construction process
- Document Management for Certification with Phius
- Onsite field verification and documentation of installed Passive House systems
- Performance testing as well as oversight of third-party testing and balancing contractors
Our team of professionals has experience in multiple industries and is uniquely positioned to help you achieve success. We’re here to give you the tools and knowledge you need to make informed decisions so that your building is operating optimally. Let us show you what 4EA can do for you.
Project Spotlight
555 Tower is a Class A office building redefining the skyline in Bellevue’s growing tech hub and is designed to elevate both the cityscape and skyline. 4EA helped design the roofing and waterproofing systems, including the amenity deck spaces on several floors, tie-ins to the facade system, and the extensive green roof at the signature podium at the development’s base.
Scope: 4EA is currently involved with construction documentation through field reviews, support through CA, and building validation through air barrier testing and window testing.
Completion Date: Summer 2023
Sitka Apartments is an ambitious design demonstrating that high levels of sustainability can be achieved alongside incredible amenities. 4EA helped find a solution for many unique enclosure features like the steep sloped vegetated green roof. LEED Homes Platinum, Salmon-Safe
Scope: Collaborated with the project team throughout the project including the design of the building enclosure systems, construction documentation through field reviews, and building validation through window and air barrier testing.
Completion Date: 2018
Seattle House is a mixed-use condominium development with two 45-story towers and a podium, located near Amazon’s global headquarters.
Scope: We are the designer of record for the building enclosure and currently assisting the project through CA including field reviews and field testing of the enclosure.
Completion Date: Estimated 2024
The Bush School has a new Upper School building that is three stories and has approximately 20,000 SF of interior space. This building utilizes mass timber to help reduce carbon and improve energy efficiency, helping it become the first Passive House school on the West coast. Passive House (Phius), Salmon-safe, Net Zero Targeted
Scope: Collaborated with the project team on design review, field services, air barrier testing, and passive house certification.
Completion Date: 2022
Belltown 36 is a 29-story stepped tower in one of Seattle’s most livable and authentic downtown residential neighborhoods, Belltown.
Scope: Collaborated with the team to provide the design review for the full enclosure and currently engaged in CA phase support including field reviews and building enclosure testing.
Completion Date: Estimated 2024
James & Janet Sinegal Center. 4EA collaborated closely with the project architects to help simplify these roof lines and assemblies to achieve slender profiles without compromising insulation and thermal efficiency.
Scope: We provided design review services and CA support through field reviews and building validation testing of the windows and air barrier.
Completion Date: 2021
The Kaye project is a 31-story residential tower in Seattle’s Belltown neighborhood that respects the existing neighborhood character and scale while enhancing the quality of pedestrian street life.
Scope: Collaborating with the design and construction teams as the consultant for the full enclosure. We performed the design review and are currently supporting the project through CA with field reviews and building enclosure testing.
Completion Date: 2025
The University of Washington is establishing a new Behavioral Health Teaching Facility to improve the state’s Behavioral Health support system.
Scope: We are the building enclosure consultant on the Design-Build team for this important project. We supported the DB team through design with design review services and are currently supporting the project through CA with field reviews and other consulting support.
Completion Date: Estimated 2024
1617 Boylston was an adaptive reuse of the old Boylston Garage into a modern office space with an exposed timber frame and lots of natural daylight.
Completion Date: 2022
We are proud as a team to take on projects that align with our mission of improving the built environment. 4EA makes a point to work on projects that are sustainable and climate-conscious. This is our way of helping to create better communities with healthier and more equitable places for people to live, work and play. We strive to provide solutions that are both innovative and conscious of their environmental impact so that we can make the most meaningful change possible.
Awards
Swipe for some of the award-winning projects we collaborated on!
Ballard Food Bank – AIA Pacific Northwest, Citation Award; AIA 2022 Honor Awards, Award of Merit; . Photo Credit: Lara Swimmer Beam – NAIOP 2022 Awards, Multi-Family Residential Urban Development of the Year: More than 100 Units. Photo Credit: Moris Moreno Bush School – AIA 2022 Honor Awards, Award of Honor, Energy in Design Award. Photo Courtesy Lara Swimmer ʔálʔal – NAIOP 2022 Awards, Community Impact Development of the Year. Photo Credit: NW Skyview Imagery Ellie Passivhaus – 2022 Multifamily Executive Awards, Mid Rise: Merit Award; 2022 PCBC Gold Nugget Awards, Grand Award, Best Design for Energy Efficiency; NAIOP 2022 Awards, Sustainable Development of the Year. Photo Credit: Sound West Group: Hobson Place – NAIOP 2022 Awards, Affordable Housing Development of the Year. Photo Credit: Runberg Architecture Group Orenda – 2022 Jack Kemp Excellence in Affordable and Workforce Housing Award, Grand Award, Best Mixed-Use project; 2022 PCBC Gold Nugget Awards, Grand Award, Best Mixed-Use Project
We’re so grateful for all of our accomplishments in 2022 and we know that it couldn’t have been done without the dedication of our team. We have a lot of exciting projects in the pipeline and we can’t wait to see them through! Thank you for being part of our community and helping us make a difference. If you’d like to stay up-to-date on everything 4EA is doing, be sure to sign up for our newsletter! We can’t wait to continue working together to help improve the built environment for everyone.
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