John Scavelli- AE Senior Thesis

The New York Police Academy is a building consisting of an academic building on the east side of the site and a physical training building on the west side of the site. The two separate building are connected by a bridge that runs over a flowing stream which is actually a water management stream.

The Architectural aesthetics of the building has been designed to assure a modern and clean look. The sharp aluminum paneling mixed with a pre-cast concrete façade offers a complementing façade with a strong character which is all built upon a simple shape.

Major National Codes:

New York City Construction Codes (2008)

Zoning:

New York City M-1 & M-3

Building Enclosure:

Building Facade:

The primary façade types that can be found on the New York Police Academy is pre-cast concrete panels, aluminum paneling and a high performance glazing curtain wall system. The first level is primarily a flat pre-cast wall system. The upper levels have aluminum paneling that is arranged in a protruding geometric fashion to provide light shelfs as well as architectural character. There are also several sections of the building that are large atriums that are constructed as a curtain wall system. These atriums provide natural daylight to large areas of the building.

Sustainability Features:

The New York City Department of Design & Construction (DDC) is responsible for the construction of the civic facilities and structures of New York. The New York City DDC has taken an initiative to develop sustainable and high performing buildings. The New York Police Academy which will be built in College Point, Queens falls under the DDC’s jurisdiction and is to be constructed with conscientious attempt towards sustainability.

The New York Police Academy has a minimum project requirement of reaching LEED Silver. However, the project also has the potential to be LEED Gold. Perkins + Will and associate architect Michael Fieldman have developed a design for the Academy that introduces an all inclusive sustainable design that relies on high performing equipment, waste water management and innovative and creative design techniques.

The Academy is providing a minimum of 14% energy cost reduction with hopes of a 30% energy reduction to comply with the 2030 Challenge. Energy simulations will be performed on the building and the impact of certain energy efficient measures will prove the cost reduction values. Just a few of the energy efficient measures integrated into this building include a high performance envelope/glazing, carbon dioxide sensor for control of ventilation, and variable speed chillers, equipment and pumps.

Also the buildings site has a very unique drainage ditch that separates the East and West campuses. The drainage ditch appears to be a stream flowing through the site but it is actual an integral part to a sustainable waste water management system. Storm water discharge from this site will be reduced by 25% and the collected storm water will be used for irrigation of the native vegetation throughout the site. Sustainable water management will also be reflected in the plumbing fixtures used throughout the building

Overall, the New York Police Academy is continuing the goal of DDC in building sustainable buildings. The New York Police Department is an integral part of New York City and their Academy will set a good example for other New York City institutional buildings.

Construction:

The joint venture leadership of Turner Construction Company and STV Construction Company is leading the construction management services of the New York Police Academy. The New York City Department of Design and Construction (DDC) will also be responsible for overseeing the progression of the project. The proposed dates of construction will be from October 1, 2010 to December 31, 2013 and the total contract cost is $656,000,000.

The construction of the academy will take place in several different stages. Initial actions needed to take place will be environmental remediation. There is a local gas station that may have caused potential environmental hazards to the site that will needed to be justified before the Academy is constructed. After the site is prepped and excavation is complete the foundational piles will be installed followed by the steel super structure. The mechanical, electrical, and architectural finishes will follow in simultaneous phases. There will approximately be 2,400,000 gross square feet of total construction space which includes parking lots, landscaping, muster courts etc. The actual building accounts for 1,000,000 square feet

Electrical/Lighting

The total electrical load in the building is 8644kW. Eighteen percent of the load (1542kW) is attributed to the lighting needs, nineteen percent (1668 kW) is attributed to the power needs, and the final sixty three percent (5434 kW) is needed for the HVAC needs. Also the generators provide 1219kW of emergency power and 3361kW of standby power for a total of 4580kW of emergency power potential.

The electrical system will run off a high voltage and low voltage design. There will be 460/265V 3-phase high voltage power delivered to certain points of the building, then this high voltage will be stepped down to 120/208V-(3 phase) low voltage further down the electrical system. The transformers will range in size from 3KVA to 2500 KVA. 2.5MW/3.12MVA 460V diesel generators will be placed in the central plant to provide reliable power in the event of a utility power failure.

There will be a variety of lighting fixtures used throughout the building. Also 90% of individual work areas (offices and open plan workstations) will include task lighting incorporated in the workstation areas. There will be easy control-ability of lights so that spaces can easily be lit one section at a time. This will limit the use of lights in areas where people do not reside. Natural day lighting is prevalent along the perimeter of the entire academic building with a repeating window pattern that lines the building. There is also large central atrium that provides natural day light that can penetrate deep into the building.

Mechanical/ Fire Protection:

The academy has been designated into an East Campus and a West Campus. The East Campus houses the academic and office space for the academy. The West Campus includes the physical training areas of the academy such as gymnasiums, fitness centers and a pool.

Due to the size of the building WSP Flack + Kurtz ( Project MEP Engineers) designed a central utility plant in the West Campus. The central utility plant will be responsible for the hydronic needs of the entire Academy as well as air conditioning needs for the West Campus. The decision to house a central utility plant for the entire academy will increase the distribution energy use for pumping water. However, the ability to house all the mechanical equipment in a central location will allow for larger equipment to run at larger loads thus running more efficiently. Also the centralized location will allow for easier maintenance and accessibility of the equipment. Some of the equipment included in the central plant are chillers, boilers, generators, expansions tanks, heat exchangers, and pumps.

The air conditioning needs of the building will be met by 63 chilled water Air Handling Units (AHUs). The capacity of the AHUs range from 3,000 CFM to 30,000 CFM. The 63 Air Handling Units will be housed in different sections of the building. 18 AHUs will reside in the Central Plant, 26 AHUs will reside in the West Campus, the final 19 AHUs will be located in the East Campus. Indoor air quality needs will also be addressed with precautions such as a no smoking policy, indoor CO2 sensors, and appropriate placement of air intakes that will limit outdoor contaminants entering the building. There are three (3) water tube boilers that are located in the central plant that will be responsible for introducing the hot water for the entire campus. Along with the boilers there will be eight (8) 1350 ton chillers that will be supply all the cold water needs of the Academy. Please see Technical Assignment 1 for a detailed analysis of design measures that provide acceptable indoor air quality and energy efficiency.

The fire suppression systems is a mixture of wet-pipe, dry-pipe, and pre-action sprinkler systems. There also will be electric driven centrifugal pumps to supply the necessary water to the suppression systems. In the event of an emergency and lack of utility power, the electric driven pumps will have an automatic transfer switch for emergency power. Also smoke dampers will be installed in the ventilation system to suppress the oxygen delivered to potential fires.

Structural:

The predominant architectural shape of the New York Police Academy is a rectangle. Both the East Campus and the West Campus have a typical rectangular shape that allows for structural steel to be arranged in square bays. The bays are typically structured with wide flange beams spaced at 10 feet and girders spaced at 30 feet. The foundation of the academy begins with steel piles that each have a 100 ton capacity and are 16” in diameter. There may be anywhere from two to eleven of these steel piles for each concrete pad on the ground floor. The slab on grade is 14 inches thick while all other floors are 4” concrete slabs on metal decking.

Structural bracing can be found running diagonally across the vertical bays that provide structural stiffening. This technique is also used to support the main atrium of the building and it provides a pleasant architectural aesthetic.