Case Study: Combined Transportation, Emergency & Communications Center

Project Goals
The primary design requirements for the facility were to provide a highly efficient and functional space that allowed various agencies within Austin and Travis County the ability to respond quickly in a combined and/or coordinated effort to emergency and other critical situations. A secondary requirement is to design spaces which aid in reducing the extreme stress and tension levels experienced by personnel working in these extremely demanding environments.

Project Description
The Combined Transportation, Emergency & Communications Center (CTECC) managed by the City of Austin for the City of Austin, Travis County, Texas Department of Transportation and the Capital Metropolitan Transportation Authority is a regional "mission critical" public safety facility with redundant infrastructure. The site, located on 13.94 acres, adjoins the now closed Robert Mueller Municipal Airport. The facility consists of a 75,000 square-foot emergency operations building and 5,600 square-feet in utility and support buildings.

Photos by DMJM

The CTECC supports the existing and new operations of critical emergency communications for the greater central Texas region. The secure operations center houses 151 public safety employees from four entities:

City of Austin: Police, Fire, Emergency Medical Service, Emergency Management Office and Travis County; Travis County: Sheriff, Constables, Emergency Management Office; Capital Metropolitan Transportation Authority (Cap Metro); Texas Department of Transportation (TX DOT): Courtesy Patrol, Intelligent Transportation Systems.

The building was designed to be the shell that protects, encloses, and supports sophisticated electronic equipment along with the highly trained emergency communications personnel who manage the various emergency response agencies. The building is an "essential facility" so that the dispatch areas and electronic equipment remain operational in case of severe storms, tornadoes, and other disturbances. The building was designed to withstand tornadoes with wind velocities of F-3 Category and is secure against manmade threats of explosive devices, small arms gunfire, vehicular breaches, and gases.

Project Features

Sustainable Sites (8 of 14 points):

• Prerequisite: erosion & sedimentation control
• Meets LEED requirements for site selection
• Brownfield redevelopment site
• Alternative transportation: bicycle storage and changing rooms
• Alternative fuel refueling stations: for electric cars
• Reduced site disturbance: over 50% of remaining open space on previously disturbed site has been restored with native vegetation
• Reduced site disturbance: reduced development footprint
• Landscape and exterior design to reduce heat islands, non-roof: replaced a portion of the black asphalt drive surface with lighter colored, reflective concrete paving
• Landscape and exterior design to reduce heat islands, roof: used white, highly reflective roof membrane

Water Efficiency (2 of 5 points):

• Water efficient landscaping: water use reduced by 50%
• Water efficient landscaping: no potable use or no irrigation: reclaimed water system installed for irrigation

Energy & Atmosphere (5 of 17 points):

• Prerequisite: fundamental building systems commissioning
• Prerequisite: minimum energy performance
• Prerequisite: CFC reduction in HVAC & R equipment
• Optimize energy performance, 30% new/20% existing: low E windows, air handlers with variable speed drives, chilled water HVAC system, lighting motion sensors, photocells, dimmers(3 points)
• Additional commissioning: to ensure system continue to operate at optimum efficiency
• Ozone depletion: no CFCs or HCFCs in air conditioning system

Materials & Resources (5 of 13 points):

• Prerequisite: storage & collection of recyclables
• Recycled content: ceramic tile and space partitions (2 points)
• Local/regional materials, 20% of materials and products manufactured within 500 miles
• Of 20% above, 50% harvested locally: locally quarried limestone
• Certified wood: wood doors clad by Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) certified veneer

Indoor Environmental Quality (9 of 15 points):

• Prerequisite: minimum Indoor Air Quality (IAQ) performance
• Prerequisite: environmental tobacco smoke control
• Carbon dioxide monitoring system
• Construction IAQ management plans: during construction and before occupancy (2 points)
• Low emitting materials: adhesives and sealants, carpet, composite wood (no urea-formaldehyde binders) (3 points)
• Controllability of systems, non-perimeter: workstations have Personal Environmental Modules (PEM) for individual control of comfort
• Thermal comfort: comply with ASHRAE 55-1992
• Thermal comfort: permanent monitoring system

Innovation & Design Process (4 of 5 points):

• Sustainable education: LEED information kiosk and special LEED signange throughout the facility
• Innovation in design: Ergonomic design of workspaces and entire operations floor
• Exemplary performance of MRc5 (Materials & Resources credit 5): use of locally harvested materials

Testing/General Results:

This building underwent an extensive commissioning process during and after construction and was re-commissioned a year after occupancy. The commissioning process was vital to this project because of the building's importance in regional security. "Maximum reliability" was the design intent for this building and there are many redundant systems.

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