College of Idaho Dorms
Additional Info
Award Winner : Lochsa Engineering
Architectural Excellence : The building layout is fairly straightforward in design. It is 3 stories, with the main floor consisting of a common area with a full kitchen, a laundry facility, and wheelchair accessible dorm rooms. The dorm rooms on the second and third floors contain 5 single bedrooms each, with two private bathrooms. Kitchenettes, energy-efficient appliances, HVAC system, including a full-size refrigerator, and quartz countertop. The interior finishes consist of water-based, no VOC paint throughout, along with quartz counters, beautiful high-quality vinyl flooring, and efficient windows, and high-density insulation and LED lighting throughout. The exterior consists of traditional stucco, along with steel lap panels, and looks like a completely traditional build.
Cost Energy Effectiveness : "This residential housing solution provides exceptional living space for our students and is consistent with the College's desire to support the sustainability of the environment. Combining these factors with the overall economics, the new housing project fits perfectly into our residential housing program," said Richard Erne, Vice President for Finance and Administration.
The cost per bed of an indieDwell complex is roughly half the cost of a large-scale conventional dorm construction and can be completed in less than half the time. The capability to design and build a dormitory facility like this, with time and budget constraints, was obviously appealing to the college, and therefore initiated the final result.
Utilizing a product such as an otherwise discarded shipping container allows for the reduction in other building materials, such as cement and steel. This in turn reduces overall construction cost, CO2 emissions, as well as, decreasing the number of containers in landfills.
Design Firm Name : neUdesign Architecture
Engineering Firm Name : Lochsa Engineering
Green Building Description : The College of Idaho Dorm Project is part of the Green Building Rating Program: Built to the U.S. Department of Energy Zero Energy Ready Home Standard
Research shows that green building improvements are a new trend in the sustainable field. Shipping containers as buildings material is providing benefits to the environment.
Taking the fact that there is a surplus of discarded shipping containers into account, it is clear that a solution is needed to avoid further damage to the environment. Therefore converting these containers into dwellings, would contribute to the reduction of waste, promoting sustainability.
The benefits to construction and the environment are as follows:
• Reduce Carbon emission
• Conserve natural resources
• Landfill space
• Reuse of waste material
• Materials age well and require very little maintenance
• Low Structural Cost - High Strength
• Short Construction Time
• Unlimited Potential for Difficult Sites, such as infill
Installer Firm Name : Andersen Construction
Occupied Date : 8/1/2020
Production Start Date : 12/6/2019
Project Location City : Caldwell
Project Location State Name : ID
Technical Innovation : The College of Idaho’s innovative and sustainable modular dorms are the first in the nation to be made from decommissioned shipping containers. Each building has 27 beds, and are constructed from 36 shipping containers. The two separate dormitory halls are named Sawtooth and Owyhee to recognize significant geographic areas in Idaho.
One of the primary focuses of this project design was to create an environment with energy efficiency and clean air. Each suite comes with its own router for the best internet connection possible. The paint throughout is water-based and contains no volatile organic compounds (VOCs) – these compounds can easily become vapors or gases. Each suite also includes a small AC/Heating unit that takes air from the outside and filters it for the cleanest possible air inside.
Each building includes energy-efficient appliances, HVAC systems, high-density insulation, and LED lighting throughout.
Total Square Feet : 11520
Category : Permanent: Dorm: over 10,000 sq. ft.