In this research endeavor,undergraduate senior civil engineering students from California State University,Northridge,under the supervision of Dr.Tadeh Zirakian and Dr.David Boyajian,introduced a design that maximizes...In this research endeavor,undergraduate senior civil engineering students from California State University,Northridge,under the supervision of Dr.Tadeh Zirakian and Dr.David Boyajian,introduced a design that maximizes sustainability of an infrastructure while limiting cost.The design consisted of a residential home with a two-story structure and steel moment resisting frame.A modern open concept theme was implemented that followed ASCE 7 safety features while incorporating multiple LEED(Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design)certified features to achieve high sustainability.The purpose of this study was to conduct a comparative cost analysis between a traditional and LEED supported design.Findings using RS Means software showed that a structure with LEED features(estimated at$876,357)was 46%more costly than one without LEED features($600,000);however,LEED implementation led to substantial cost savings over a nine-year period,ultimately reducing cost over time by$176,000.Completion of this project achieved several educational endeavors,namely enabling the students to apply their acquired engineering skills to real life scenarios and promoting the practice of communication and sharing of ideas in a diverse team setting.It is hoped that future generations will be able to benefit from the review of this study process and be able to apply similar models to inspire sustainable and cost-effective designs.展开更多
基金The student research team would like to express their sincere appreciation for the support provided by Dr.Tadeh Zirakian and Dr.David Boyajian,professors of Civil Engineering in the Department of Civil Engineering and Construction Management at California State University,Northridge,U.S.A.
文摘In this research endeavor,undergraduate senior civil engineering students from California State University,Northridge,under the supervision of Dr.Tadeh Zirakian and Dr.David Boyajian,introduced a design that maximizes sustainability of an infrastructure while limiting cost.The design consisted of a residential home with a two-story structure and steel moment resisting frame.A modern open concept theme was implemented that followed ASCE 7 safety features while incorporating multiple LEED(Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design)certified features to achieve high sustainability.The purpose of this study was to conduct a comparative cost analysis between a traditional and LEED supported design.Findings using RS Means software showed that a structure with LEED features(estimated at$876,357)was 46%more costly than one without LEED features($600,000);however,LEED implementation led to substantial cost savings over a nine-year period,ultimately reducing cost over time by$176,000.Completion of this project achieved several educational endeavors,namely enabling the students to apply their acquired engineering skills to real life scenarios and promoting the practice of communication and sharing of ideas in a diverse team setting.It is hoped that future generations will be able to benefit from the review of this study process and be able to apply similar models to inspire sustainable and cost-effective designs.
