An Iconic Example of Energy Retrofit Viability

Today, one of the world’s most famous buildings is undergoing a major sustainability retrofit to become a leading example of economic and environmental revitalization. Built during the Great Depression, this American Icon, once designed to be the world’s tallest building, will become one of the most energy efficient commercial buildings in the United States. The skyscraper will be more energy efficient than 90% of all office buildings, using half the energy per square foot of an average building.

A sustainability team of experts have joined forces to retrofit the Empire State Building using an innovative design process and state-of-the-art tools with one key goal in mind: to determine the most cost-effective measures that produce the most impactful energy-saving results. This ground-breaking process is intended to serve as a model for other owners of existing multi-tenanted office buildings around the world.

Chosen as one of eight individual measures, Serious Materials will upgrade the 6,500 dual pane windows in the Empire State Building by reusing all existing glass and creating super-insulating glass units in a dedicated processing space located onsite in the building. The integrated energy efficiency upgrades are targeted to:

• Reduce energy use by 38%
• Save $4.4 million per year in energy costs
• Save 105,000 metric tons of carbon dioxide over the next 15 years, equivalent to the annual emissions of 17,500 cars. (Source: SolveClimate.com)
• Pay for themselves in 3 years

We invite you to explore this site to learn more about the project and the critical role of the super-insulating window retrofit in the Empire State Building.

Photo courtesy Robert Deutsch, USA Today