TOWERING ICON:
Empire;State;Building;becomes;model;of;energy;efficiency
Joe;Brillhart,;Director,;Solar;Thermal;Business;Development,;Johnson;Controls;Inc.
Soaring;above;the;corner;of;Fifth;Avenue;and;34th;Street;in;the;heart;of;Manhattan,;the;Empire;State Building;is;truly;an;American;icon.;Dubbed;“the;world’s;most;famous;office;building”;and;“a;prewar trophy,”;it;has;been;featured;in;more;than;250;films;and;is;one;of;New;York;City’s;most;popular;and enduring;tourist;attractions.
To;engineers,;though,;the;Empire;State;Building;is;more;than;just
a;celebrated;skyscraper:;It;is;also;‘a;district;energy;system;standing;on
its;head,’;with;its;own;large;central;cooling;plant;below;street;level;and
piping;networks;supplying;chilled;water;as;well;as;district;steam;from
Con;Edison;to;individually;monitored;tenants;on;the;102;floors;above.
At;a;few;inches;over;1,453;ft;tall,;it;contains;more;than;2.85;million
sq;ft;of;rentable;office;and;retail;space.;It;houses;one;of;the;largest
broadcast;facilities;in;the;world.;From;the;ground;to;the;top;floor,
73;elevators;ferry;tenants;and;visitors;to;and;fro.;The;walls;and;floors
house;473;miles;of;electrical;wiring;and;120;miles;of;pipe.;Breathtaking
views;are;available;from;any;of;the;building’s;6,500;windows;as;well
as;the;observation;decks;on;the;86th;and;102nd;floors.
Prior;to;2008,;the;skyscraper’s;energy;and;environmental;per-
formance;was;about;average;for;office;buildings:;annual;utility;costs
of;about;$11;million;($4/sq;ft);;25,000;metric;tons;of;carbon;dioxide
emissions;( 22;lb/sq;ft);;and;peak;electrical;demand;of;roughly;9. 5;MW
( 3. 8;W/sq;ft).;Since;2008,;however,;an;energy;efficiency;retrofit;–;now
largely;completed;–;has;been;reducing;the;Empire;State;Building’s
energy;use;and;carbon;footprint.
Opened;in;1931,;it;was;the;tallest;manmade;structure;in;the
world;for;23;years.;Although;it;has;been;surpassed;as;the;loftiest;on
the;planet,;the;Empire;State;Building;is;well;on;its;way;to;becoming
a;global;model;of;efficiency;and;value;for;other;existing;commercial
buildings.
For;the;last;three;years,;the;Empire;State;Building;has;been;in
the;midst;of;one;of;the;most;ambitious;refurbishings;of;a;commercial
building;ever;undertaken.;At;a;cost;of;more;than;$550;million,;hallways,
restrooms,;observation;decks;and;other;public;areas;are;all;being
restored;to;their;original;grandeur.;But;the;improvements;go;well
beyond;skin;deep:;The;Empire;State;Building;Co.;is;committed;to;mak-
ing;its;building;one;of;the;most;energy-efficient;and;environmentally
conscious;office;towers;built;in;the;first;half;of;the;20th;century.
