Descripción general
Caja Popular Mexicana
The Caja Popular Mexicana Corporate Building was designed to be an innovative project that is at the forefront of sustainability issues, which is why it was decided to pursue LEED BD+C: New Construction certification. It consists mainly of a mixed-use building, with a total of 6,792.90 m² of floor space, distributed over 3 levels of offices and 1 parking basement.
The project stands out because it provides world-class facilities, incorporating systems that promote optimal energy performance, such as control and monitoring systems, in order to ensure and reduce operating and maintenance costs. In this way, energy consumption savings of 20.9% were achieved, compared to a base case defined by the ASHRAE 90.1-2007 standard methodology.
The site on which it was built did not originally have public infrastructure for stormwater management, so innovative strategies for runoff water management were integrated by installing permeable concrete surfaces throughout the parking area, These channel rainwater to 11 rainwater absorption wells, which allow more than 120 m³ (considering an extraordinary rainfall event during 24 continuous hours) to infiltrate the groundwater table, and to rainwater harvesting systems that allow it to be reused to meet its own consumption demand.
As a result, a 41.8% saving in potable water consumption was achieved, compared to a base case defined by the EPAct 1992 standard. This use of rainwater was a completely innovative strategy, as it gave the project the capacity to meet its own water demand, making it a self-sustainable building in this area.
At the same time, waste was reduced by 64% during construction, which is equivalent to 2.48 tons of waste diverted from the landfill. In addition, 21.27% of the total cost of the materials have recycled content and another 27% are regional, reducing the environmental impact related to the extraction of raw materials and the transportation of materials.
It also cares for and promotes the health of its occupants through systems that renew and monitor indoor air quality, which has a positive impact on the health and performance of its employees. In addition, the Volatile Organic Compound (VOC) content of the adhesives and paints used in the finishes was restricted, and dust collection systems were installed at entrances to prevent indoor air pollution.
The project sought to promote the growth and connectivity of the area, supporting the municipality in improving the urban layout, in accordance with the Municipality's Urban Development Plan. As a result, access to the complex was improved, supporting public infrastructure and improving lighting in the area.
Another important point to highlight is the design and distribution of windows, since, thanks to its analysis of the location of spaces, more than 90% of the regularly occupied areas had natural lighting and quality views of the exterior. This provided benefits to the occupants' health by protecting circadian rhythms and, as for the building, reduced electricity consumption for lighting, since the natural light contribution was maximized during daylight hours.
Company
About Caja Popular Mexicana
Caja Popular Mexicana (CPM) is a savings and loan cooperative society whose purpose is to carry out various financial operations among and for the benefit of its members.
It is the largest cooperative in Mexico by number of assets and has almost 500 branches throughout the country.
Project
Example for others to follow
The Caja Popular Mexicana Corporate Building was designed to be an innovative project that is at the forefront of sustainability issues, which is why it was decided to pursue LEED BD+C: New Construction certification. It consists mainly of a mixed-use building, with a total of 6,792.90 m² of floor space, distributed over 3 levels of offices and 1 parking basement.
The project stands out because it provides world-class facilities, incorporating systems that promote optimal energy performance, such as control and monitoring systems, in order to ensure and reduce operating and maintenance costs. In this way, energy consumption savings of 20.9% were achieved, compared to a base case defined by the ASHRAE 90.1-2007 standard methodology.
Challenges
How to capture rainwater in the project?
Due to the location of the project, it would not be possible to connect to the municipality's rainwater sewer service, and a solution to the water demand was sought.
In view of this situation, several options were proposed to address the water demand of the project. A viable and sustainable solution was sought to allow the project's water needs to be met without generating negative impacts on the environment or people's health.
Solution
Permeable Concrete
The solution found in the exterior areas was the implementation of permeable concrete linked to 11 absorption wells and rainwater collection cisterns in the project; with the objective of capturing, infiltrating and using the stored water to cover the water demand for irrigation.
