André-Laurendeau College was built in 1973 in line with the brutalist concrete bloc style common at the time. This architecture posed challenges for heating and cooling, creating many internal zones and resulting in high thermal inertia and heat accumulation in the building’s core. In addition, much of the electromechanical equipment had been in service since construction and was past its useful life. To improve the college’s energy performance and reduce maintenance, it was necessary to replace or renew essential components of the thermal power plant.
Ecosystem took advantage of this bloc architecture to design a cost-effective geothermal field coupled with an optimized internal heat recovery system. This solution benefits from Quebec’s cheap and clean electricity, while a solar wall preheats fresh incoming air in large ventilation systems. By drastically reducing natural gas consumption and using high efficiency heat pumps, the project resulted in a 78% GHG emissions reduction.
The new equipment delivers energy performance that has already exceeded expectations. The project aligns with green initiatives introduced by the college, reducing annual GHG emissions by 403 metric tons of CO2, equivalent to taking 179 cars off the road.
Geothermal energy
Ventilation system optimization
Solar wall installation
Chilled water network optimization
Optimization of centralized controls and recommissioning
Heat recovery
Heating system upgrade
Water tower replacement
Lighting conversion
Booster pump optimization
