When planning this two-storey trades facility, Okanagan College asked designers to push the limits of green construction to inspire a new generation of learners towards sustainable innovation. The Jim Pattison Centre of Excellence in Sustainable Building Technologies and Renewable Energy Conservation was to achieve net-zero energy consumption within its lifespan and use only locally-sourced products for construction.

Project Essentials

  • LocationPenticton, BC
  • ClientOkanagan College
  • ArchitectHDR | CEI Architecture
  • Size70,000 ft² (6,503 m²)
  • BudgetC$28 million
  • Sustainable FeaturesLEED Platinum Certified, Targets Living Building Challenge
Exterior image of Okanagan College Jim Pattison Centre of Excellence Interior image of the gym at the Okanagan College Jim Pattison Centre of Excellence

Compounding the challenges of this ambitious mandate was a fast-track schedule – the team would need to explore integration and prefabrication wherever possible to ensure the project’s success.

Programming includes 14 classrooms and labs, innovation incubation space, an on-roof test facility for alternative energy devices, five trade shops, a gymnasium.

 

To meet these goals, Fast + Epp developed a number of innovative structural components: our engineers pioneered the world’s first timber-concrete hybrid composite wall panels with integrated heating and cooling pipes, as well as steel-timber hybrid trusses, and the extensive use of FSC-certified and pine-beetle-kill lumber throughout.

 

Construction image of Okanagan College Jim Pattison Centre of Excellence showing the wooden beam being installed. Construction image of Okanagan College Jim Pattison Centre of Excellence showing the wooden beam being installed.
Interior image of a hallway in the completed Okanagan College Jim Pattison Centre of Excellence.
Interior image of assembly room with a piano placed in the middle of the completed Okanagan College Jim Pattison Centre of Excellence.