Challenge

The Town of Hartford’s municipal offices were housed in a former early 19th-century school, meaning the building and its infrastructure was outdated and in need of a total renovation. In doing so, one of the main goals was to have a Net Zero Ready building without fossil or biomass fuel use.

Additionally, the building needed to create a healthy workplace environment, so the renovation needed to incorporate access to natural daylight, views of the outdoors, and fresh air while maintaining its historic roots.

Solution

The VHV Company was awarded the contract to perform all mechanical and plumbing renovations on a design-build basis and worked with GC Breadloaf Corp to provide the Town of Hartford with an efficient and effective solution.

VHV incorporated an air-cooled, variable refrigerant flow (VRF), heat pump system with simultaneous heating and cooling as well as a dedicated outdoor air system (DOAS) with integral energy recovery for the heating, cooling, and ventilation requirements for the building.

Water efficient plumbing fixtures were used as were instantaneous electric domestic water heaters.

The project was given Honor Award for Best in Commercial Building Design & Construction for Major Renovation after the project’s presentation at the Better Buildings by Design in 2015. In 2016, it was awarded Vermont’s Greenest Commercial Building by Vermont Green Building Network.