Larkin Street Substation Expansion

Larkin Street Substation Expansion
© Mikiko Kikuyama

LARKIN STREET SUBSTATION EXPANSION

TEF Design

ARCHITECTS
TEF Design

LOCATION
San Francisco, United States

CATEGORY
Energy Plant, Sustainability & Green Design

AREA
12200 ft²

YEAR
2018

GENERAL CONTRACTOR
Plant Construction Company LP

LANDSCAPE ARCHITECTURE
Creo Landscape

MANUFACTURERS
ACUITY BRANDS, ARCHITECTURAL LIGHTING WORKS, BEGA, CAMBRIDGE ARCHITECTURAL PRECAST, CROSSVILLE, ETC, ECOSENSE, HEATH CERAMICS, HYDREL, JOHNS MANVILLE, KEMPER SYSTEM, LUMINII, VAPROSHIELD, ILIGHT, BASALITE CONCRETE PRODUCTS, CORNELL IRON, CREE, KREYSLER & ASSOCIATES, LITHONIA, NVELOPE, +2

LEAD ARCHITECT
Paul Cooper, AIA

CIVIL ENGINEERING
BKF Engineers

MEP ENGINEERING
MHC Engineers Inc.

PROJECT MANAGER
Paul Cooper, Aia, Leed Ap Bd+C, Dbia

PROJECT DESIGNER
Justin Blinn, Aia, Leed Ap Bd+C

STRUCTURAL ENGINEERING
Rutherford + Chekene

PRINCIPAL IN CHARGE
ANDREW WOLFRAM, AIA

PHOTOGRAPHS
Mikiko Kikuyama

EXTERIOR LIGHTING DESIGNER
HLB Lighting

ENERGY MODELING
ZNE Consulting Thornton Tomasetti

Text description provided by architects.

The newly completed electrical switchgear building is the first Net Zero Energy (NZE) targeted electrical substation building in the United States.

Larkin Street Substation Expansion
Larkin Street Substation Expansion

Tucked midblock on Eddy Street between Larkin and Hyde, the steel frame concrete structure is a modern addition to the existing historic 1962 substation building designed by PG&E to supply power to the northeastern part of the City.

The constrained property and need to accommodate crane and equipment lift access prescribed the expansion’s perpendicular orientation to the existing substation.

Larkin Street Substation Expansion
Larkin Street Substation Expansion

The utilitarian structure features street-facing façades that integrate three types of GFRP panels – sloped, perforated, and ribbed – to form a faceted surface that belies its otherwise modest materiality.

Each panel is individually crafted and unique, with ribs that cast linear shadow patterns in sunlight, creating an ever-changing surface throughout the day and year.

Larkin Street Substation Expansion
Larkin Street Substation Expansion
Larkin Street Substation Expansion

Sloped panels embedded with lighting fixtures pulsate across the building at night, expressing the City’s dynamic electrical power grid.

The west-facing green wall, planted in a geometric pattern that echoes the faceted concrete walls, provides biophilic relief to the urban block while asserting its contribution to green values.

A fine-grained metal mesh provides a transition between the existing and new addition and is also used to bookend the façade.

On top, 60 kW solar panel arrays offset the building’s energy consumption.

Larkin Street Substation Expansion
Larkin Street Substation Expansion

Large vents at the base of the building exploit the City’s cool temperatures through natural ventilation that help eliminate the need for artificial cooling and reduce the building’s energy load by nearly 40 percent.

Inside, supplemental fans, triggered only at high temperatures, help to cool the building only when needed.   A comprehensive deep dive to understand the electrical needs of each discreet piece of equipment – from mechanical systems to the hand dryer in the restrooms – led to an incremental load reduction.

Larkin Street Substation Expansion
Larkin Street Substation Expansion

The PG&E Larkin Substation addition is the first targeted net-zero electrical switchgear utility building to get a rating from the International Living Future Institute’s (ILFI) Living Building Challenge. The design team collaborated with ILFI in order to establish a rating system for registering the unprecedented building type.


Larkin Street Substation Expansion
Site plan
Larkin Street Substation Expansion
Plan - Ground floor


Larkin Street Substation Expansion
Axonometric
Larkin Street Substation Expansion
Power axonometric


Larkin Street Substation Expansion
Sustainability