Evaluation Criteria
Evaluation Criteria
Faculty sponsors are expected to develop a system to evaluate the work of their students using the criteria set forth in this document. Describing performance goals is encouraged as an integral part of the design process, encouraging students to scrutinize their work in a manner similar to that of the jury.
The final result of the design process will be a submission of up to four presentation boards describing the design solution (see Digital Presentation Format and Required Drawings sections of this document). In addressing the specific issues of the Competition Program, submissions must clearly demonstrate the design solution's response to the following Evaluation Criteria:
- Beneficial Ecological Impact
The design solution should achieve energy and environmental performance goals that significantly reduce energy use and environmental impact compared to standard practice. To this end, the project should adopt a whole-building design process (see definition below) that appropriately integrates building systems for performance. The project should consider life-cycle costs and benefits in adopting green design strategies pertaining to energy use, water conservation, and materials.
- A whole-building design process refers to the process where designers and operators with various expertise collaborate to achieve a common objective. The fundamental challenge of whole building design is to understand that all building systems are interdependent and the result of each set of decisions has a cascading impact on other design decisions. For example, the design of a daylighting system is the result of an architect designing a window system, working with an engineer designing a lighting and lighting control system, and an interior designer selecting wall color and interior furnishings. The result of this collaborative decision process is then used by the mechanical engineer when sizing the heating and cooling system and specifying duct sizes. The goal of the process is to lead to a building design where the building works and can be maintained for the life of the building as one integrated system.
- Minimal or No Fossil Energy Consumption
The Government of the Virgin Islands requires a 25 percent reduction in fossil energy consumption in the Virgin Islands by 2020. Normally, placing a facility like the Marine Research and Education Center on the island would inhibit the ability for the island territory to achieve this goal. Therefore, to increase the likelihood of achieving the 25 percent goal, students should rely heavily on reducing demand through energy-efficient building systems and generating the remaining energy loads with renewable energy from any and all naturally occurring sources.
- Ecologically Sensitive Water and Waste Water Systems
Caribbean communities either thrive or fail based on how they manage their fresh water resources. U.S. Virgin Islands code requires rainwater collection; and municipal water/sewer is not available at the project site. Furthermore, chemicals from treated water, failed septic systems, and poorly managed storm runoff are major contributors to decline in coral populations. The Marine Research and Education Center needs to capture, treat, store, and return its fresh water resources in a manner beneficial to the neighboring ecosystems.
- Minimal or No Impact to the Marine or Natural Environments During Construction
Students should seek to limit waste generation, emissions, or erosion of the natural environments of the Salt River Bay National Historical Park and Ecological Preserve as well as the island of St. Croix. This project is envisioned as a zero waste model for island construction.
- Architectural Expression that Embraces the Ethic of Culture, Sustainability, and Restoration
The design solution should demonstrate sustainable/restorative design as an integral and synergistic element of an architecture that is aesthetically delightful and contextually sensitive to people, place, and time. Many projects have as a goal the reduction of environmental impacts. The goal of this project is to design a facility that becomes a net asset to the occupants, campus, and community. The building itself should become a learning tool that invites and engages the campus community to see and experience sustainable design and, thereby, increase awareness of the positive ecological impacts a building can have.
- Integration of Solutions with Sustainable/Restorative Design Strategies
Architectural design and engineered systems must reinforce the common commitment to sustainability and restoration both in form and function as well as support long-term sustainable operations.
- Maintainability of Products and Facility
The delivery of a sustainably constructed and designed facility is only a first step toward meeting the objectives of this competition. The ability and durability of design, components, products, and systems must be readily accessible, cost effective in their maintenance, and long-lasting in providing the service for which they were intended. The maintenance process itself must have low environmental impacts on the staff, building occupants, and the community.
- Design for Human Performance
The design solution should support and enhance the learning process through spatial configurations that foster collaboration between students and their faculty, and through spaces that achieve high levels of indoor environmental quality pertaining to ergonomics, thermal comfort, visual quality, acoustic performance, and indoor air quality.
- Design for Research Functionality
The laboratory shall be designed to incorporate elements needed for modern marine science research with appropriate adjacencies between the indoor laboratories, classrooms, and outdoor research spaces.
- Design for Flexibility and Adaptability
The design solution should allow for changes in programmatic needs and associated laboratory configurations by using modular design and flexible distribution systems in order to reduce waste generation in the future and disruption of the building functions, and incorporates life-cycle strategies that consider living marine systems that are at once restorative and adaptive.
- Exceptional Innovation
Special credit will be given to competitors that incorporate particularly innovative ideas in their design solutions - ideas that achieve results beyond the expectations of the sponsors.
Design Innovation
The Marine Research and Education Center is a real project being developed by the Joint Institute for Caribbean Marine Studies in partnership with the U.S. government. Students should focus on their own innovative and original designs for the project.
Concepts and strategies contained in all submissions, not just winning submissions, have the opportunity of being applied at the actual Marine Research and Education Center campus. Students' contributions would be recognized if this occurs.
Sustainable Lab Competition Program (PDF)
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