PG&E and the American Institute of Architects Announce Winners of Zero Net Energy Design Competition

SAN FRANCISCO--()--Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E) and the American Institute of Architects, California Council (AIACC) today announced the winners of the fifth annual Architecture at Zero competition for zero net energy (ZNE) building design. The competition has awarded the six student and professional winners with a total of $25,000 in prizes.

For the fifth year of the PG&E-sponsored competition, contestants designed a hypothetical ZNE building on University of California, San Francisco’s (UCSF) Mission Bay campus. Winners were chosen out of over 30 entries that designed plans for multi-family housing that will be a ZNE structure – which produces as much clean energy as it uses during a year through a combination of energy efficiency and on-site renewable energy generation.

Winners for student entries:

  • Citation Award to: “Breeze Block” by students from across the nation at Cornell University in New York, N.Y.; Kansas State University in Manhattan, Kan.; and Oregon State University in Corvallis, Ore.
  • Citation Award to: “Transformer” by students at the University of Cincinnati in Cincinnati, Ohio

Winners for professional entries:

  • Citation Award to: “Alveo” by EBS Consultants in San Francisco, Calif.
  • Honor Award to: “Conspicuous Consumption” by Weber Thompson in Seattle, Wash.
  • Honor Award to: “Estuary” by MITHUN in San Francisco, Calif.
  • Special Recognition Award to: “Mission Zero” by BAR Architects in San Francisco, Calif.

“The Architecture at Zero competition demonstrates how we can push the boundaries of reducing energy waste through innovative, efficiently designed buildings. Supporting zero net energy designs is one of the many ways PG&E can lead on its commitment to help support California’s ambitious energy efficiency goals – laid out in Senate Bill 350 and Assembly Bill 802,” said Vincent Davis, senior director of Energy Efficiency at PG&E.

"The American Institute of Architects, California Council is delighted to be the competition organizer,” said Lee Salin, President, AIACC. “The winning designs are not only aesthetically interesting but also demonstrate ZNE spaces that help UCSF Mission Bay continue its leadership in driving community change through innovative design solutions."

The competition engages architecture, engineering and planning experts in the pursuit of designing energy efficient buildings.

A panel of architecture, engineering and design experts chose this year’s winners at an event on the UCSF Mission Bay campus today. While the designs are not intended for actual construction by the university, the competition will generate new, innovative ideas for ZNE construction to help achieve the California Public Utilities Commission’s goals for all new residential construction in California to be ZNE by 2020 and all new commercial construction to be ZNE by 2030.

To learn more, visit www.architectureatzero.com.

About the American Institute of Architects, California Council

The American Institute of Architects, California Council (AIACC) is the voice of the architecture profession, dedicated to serving its members, advancing their value, and improving the quality of the built environment. The AIACC is an association of individuals in California, with more than 11,000 members including licensed architects, emerging professionals, and allied partners in design. All share their commitment to excellence and livability in the nation's buildings and communities.

About the University of California, San Francisco

UCSF is a leading university dedicated to transforming health worldwide through advanced biomedical research, graduate-level education in the life sciences and health professions, and excellence in patient care. Founded in 1864 as a medical college, UCSF now includes top-ranked graduate schools of dentistry, medicine, nursing and pharmacy; a graduate division with world-renowned programs in the biological sciences, a preeminent biomedical research enterprise and top-tier hospitals, UCSF Medical Center and UCSF Benioff Children's Hospitals. Please visit www.ucsf.edu/news.

About PG&E

Pacific Gas and Electric Company, a subsidiary of PG&E Corporation (NYSE:PCG), is one of the largest combined natural gas and electric utilities in the United States. Based in San Francisco, with more than 20,000 employees, the company delivers some of the nation’s cleanest energy to nearly 16 million people in Northern and Central California. For more information, visit www.pge.com/ and www.pge.com/en/about/newsroom/index.page.

http://www.pgecurrents.com/
http://www.facebook.com/pacificgasandelectric
https://twitter.com/pge4me
http://www.linkedin.com/company/pacific-gas-and-electric-company
http://www.youtube.com/user/pgevideo

Contacts

Pacific Gas and Electric Company
Ari Vanrenen, 415-973-5930

Contacts

Pacific Gas and Electric Company
Ari Vanrenen, 415-973-5930