Herman N. Hipp Hall: it's not your father's academic building

What's wrapped in hidden heat-reflective tinfoil and has solar green glazing and carbon-dioxide sensors that detect the presence of humans?

No, it's not the space shuttle. It's Herman N. Hipp Hall. To the casual observer, the edifice resembles most any gleaming, modern university building. It has a sun-bathed lobby with lustrous tile floors, sleek new furniture and soothing teal and aqua-green colors. The bathrooms glimmer.

Of course, no new academic building would be complete without at least one piece of abstract art. Hipp's is Aquarii, a contemporary outdoor sculpture that is the centerpiece of a brick patio. Like most abstract art, the work first confuses, then delights.

But take a closer look. Although Hipp is as modern as its name implies, it is clearly not your father's academic building.

Completed late this summer, the three-story, 38,000-square-foot building was constructed under stringent environmental standards. Hipp's design, from its fly ash concrete foundation to its heat-reflective roof shingles, is intended to conserve energy while minimizing the building's environmental impact. "Green" construction, although popular elsewhere, has only recently gained inroads in the South.

Later this fall, Hipp Hall is likely to become the first LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) building in South Carolina. The U.S. Green Building Council, a national group of building industry leaders that encourages the construction of energy-efficient buildings, developed the LEED Green Buildings Rating System. Buildings are assigned one of four levels in the rating system - certified, silver, gold and platinum - based on the number of environmentally friendly features they include. A LEED panel ascribes points after reviewing documentation supporting each LEED prerequisite and credit.

Entering the lobby of Hipp Hall, an astute visitor might first notice the odor - or lack thereof. There's no harsh "new building" smell because, to reduce the possibility of indoor air pollution, no oil-based paint was used. You might also notice that the building's large windows appear to have a slightly green tint. In fact, all windows on the south, west and east sides of Hipp Hall are equipped with a (solar) green glass tint. The tinting allows the maximum amount of daylight to enter but blocks ultraviolet heat, which can cause the temperature in the building to rise. The glass also reduces glare.

Here are some more interesting "green" facts about Hipp Hall:

o Twenty-five percent of the materials used in construction of the building contain recycled content, compared with 15 percent for most buildings.

o Hipp Hall concrete is constructed with fly ash, a by-product of coal burning. It reduces the amount of cement required yet maintains strength. Cement production is a high-energy consumption process.

o Sensors in the building's duct work detect carbon dioxide, which is exhaled when we breathe. The data is used to monitor the air temperature and humidity in the building.

o R-19 insulation and a special tinfoil-like substance are layered under all the external brickwork. This combination reflects heat while keeping the interior cool during the summer and warm in winter. o Every room has occupancy sensors. Overhead lights turn off automatically if no one is in the room.

o More than 90 percent of the offices in Hipp Hall have a direct line of sight to the outside.

o External lighting reflects down only. This "down lighting" conserves energy while reducing light pollution.

o Thanks to tree conservation and new plantings, more than 30 percent of the sidewalk and parking area around Hipp Hall will be shaded in five years.

o Hot and sweaty after riding your bike to Hipp Hall? No worries. There's a shower in each of the lower-level restrooms.

o More than 75 percent of the waste generated during the construction of Hipp Hall was recycled.

Mary Pat Crozier, capital construction manager, says that implementing the environmentally friendly features added about $300,000 to the cost of the building. But those expenses are expected to be recouped through energy savings in about 12 years.

"This is too long of a payback period for most homeowners to consider beneficial," she says. "However, Furman and other universities and institutional clients build buildings with life cycles of 25 to 50 years, so a 12-year payback represents a viable savings. Plus, you're doing your part to protect the environment."