With this in mind, Sifton Properties decided to make energy efficiency a priority at their new development. Named after the Titan god of the sun in greek mythology Helios, Helio, a 10-storey apartment building part of Sifton’s sustainable community West 5, will be the most energy efficient apartment building in Ontario due to being 70% more energy efficient than similar sized 10-storey apartment buildings. Once completed, the building will be wrapped in solar panels to provide solar energy to tenants resulting in huge savings in electricity.
The London based developer prioritized sustainability in all aspects of the project; including the building structure. The DELTABEAM® system from Peikko was chosen as the main frame for this building. The combined efforts of Diamond Schmidt Architects and VanBoxmeer & Stranges Structural Engineers made it possible to implement DELTABEAM®.
"By going with DELTABEAM®, we were able to completely hide our superstructure", says Rick Gooyers, Vice President of Sifton Properties. "The integration of beams inside our slabs was the biggest selling point", Mr. Gooyers adds. The 8-inch thick DELTABEAM®s match the 8-inch precast slabs used on Helio. Across the entire 21 000 square foot floor plate of each level, including balconies, the slab and frame are as shallow as possible.
Forward thinking engineers at VanBoxmeer & Stranges (VB&S) initially looked at DELTABEAM® for the project. The fire rated slim floor achieved with DELTABEAM® appeared to be a good fit for Helio. The proposed system was approved by innovative architects at Diamond Schmidt Architects (DSA). Through a close collaboration between DSA, VB&S and Peikko, the building design evolved to a flat floor plate, thermally broken balconies and an integrated 2-hour fire rated structure without additional fire proofing material being required.
Dcarbon8 Environmental Services, now a division of Deloitte, was commissioned by Peikko in 2010 to carry out an independent study on the carbon footprint of DELTABEAM®. The results of the study concluded that compared to a traditional method, DELTABEAM® offered a 10% reduction of carbon emissions during construction and a 5% reduction over the lifetime of the building. These results were made possible by a reduced requirement for raw material on beams, savings on other building materials due to DELTABEAM®, the reduction in the carbon impact of onsite activities and a more efficient structure for the life-time of the building with regards to heating or cooling.
Ellisdon Construction and Building Services are managing the construction of this exciting project. Hayman Construction and Middlesex Concrete Forming are installing the system while the Prestressed Group has taken on the supply of hollow core slabs on Helio / West 5.
