Waterloo Career Center

The Waterloo Career Center project is an expansion to the Waterloo CSD’s CTE program housed in the Central Middle school. The 77,000 SF renovation provides space for an additional 15 training programs. One of the main drivers of the project was to create daylighting opportunities in a school that featured very limited natural lighting. The project also features a new main entrance to the career center part of the school.

To continue the district’s view on sustainability, the project includes a new geothermal pump and a reinjection system with a combination of high-efficiency ground source heat pumps and a central geothermal chiller/heater. The central plant provides heating and chilled water to chilled beams and the building’s ventilation system that consists of dual-wheel energy recovery ventilators (ERVs). The ERVs not only provide ventilation for the occupied spaces but also provides the humidity control that is required for a chilled beam system providing excellent occupant comfort capabilities. Much of the classroom space is open structure so the chilled beam system and associated piping are on display. The geothermal infrastructure was sized for future expansion into the middle school space.

The renovated spaces were designed with the latest lighting control technology including daylighting controls in the spaces that include natural daylight and vacancy/occupancy sensors. The system includes wireless components that helped keep the exposed structure clean from additional wiring/cabling. The classroom spaces include interactive technology that is current with today’s collaborative learning standards.