Espace Montmorency

Year

2023

Market

Commercial

Residential

Expertises

Building

Building electrical engineering

Building mechanical engineering

Services

Design and planning

Plan design

Engineering

Sustainable development

Certifications and accreditations

Energy efficiency

Awards and Recognitions

Award of Excellence – Special Projects

Canadian Consulting Engineering Awards
2023

First Prize – New Commercial Building

ASHRAE Region 2 Technologies Award
2025

LEED^® v4, Gold

Neighborhood Development

LEED^® 2009, Platinum

Tower 2 – Core and Shell

LEED^® 2009, Gold

Tower 3 – Core and Shell

LEED^® 2009, Gold

Towers 1 and 4 – New Construction

Espace Montmorency is a multifunctional project consisting of four towers totaling 1.3 million sq. ft., built to offer a wide range of services and a vibrant, downtown-style atmosphere. In this major real estate development, gbi implemented an energy loop connecting the four towers, enabling the recovery and redistribution of the energy produced.

The four towers and the energy loop are located in a neighborhood designed around the principles of TOD (Transit-Oriented Development). This type of neighborhood is a medium- or high-density real estate development structured around high-capacity public transit.

A feasibility study was first carried out to assess the possibility of adapting an existing technology—an energy-sharing loop—to a large-scale, mixed-use complex within a TOD-type development. An hourly energy demand model for an entire year was used to compare the annual needs of a traditional system with those of a loop system that recovers and shares energy between buildings according to each one’s peak periods.

Large-Scale Energy Sharing

Adapting an oversized loop and thermal plant system to large, multi-use buildings came with a variety of technical challenges.

The energy loop, a water loop with a temperature range between 55 and 110 degrees Fahrenheit, allows for heat exchange between different uses. For example, unused heat rejected by office towers and commercial spaces can be transferred to residential towers for heating, and vice versa.

Through these exchanges and energy recovery between uses, energy demand, and of course, energy costs, are reduced. At the same time, greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions are also lowered.

46.2

% energy savings compared to the ASHRAE 90.1 reference building

50.4

% cost savings compared to the ASHRAE 90.1 reference building

79.4

% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions compared to the ASHRAE 90.1 reference building

Diverse Use of Spaces

The variety of space uses required great creativity and the full expertise of our professionals to integrate the necessary equipment throughout the towers.

Special attention was given to all building services due to the site’s scale. Sanitary and water supply systems were separated for each tower, while the stormwater network is directed to a common retention basin for the entire site. Part of this stormwater is also recovered and redistributed within the residential tower.

Design of the Energy Transfer Loop

A unique thermal plant located on the office tower’s roof powers an energy transfer loop shared across all sectors. The diversity of uses, occupancy patterns, and building orientation optimizes thermal exchanges. A combination of systems, including aerothermal modules for loop heating, an electric boiler, a high-efficiency condensing boiler, and energy recovery ventilators, allows heat to be injected into or rejected from the loop.

Sustainability Certifications

The Espace Montmorency project is pioneering in several ways. It is the first project in Québec to achieve LEED® v4 Gold certification for Neighborhood Development. The clients are also targeting LEED® Platinum for the building envelope and LEED® Gold for interior design and construction.

Water Management

Water retention and reuse were also integrated into the design. Low-flow or ultra-low-flow fixtures are installed in most spaces. Additionally, the office tower recovers rainwater in an internal retention basin. Part of this rainwater is stored in a daily basin supplying sanitary fixtures across 10 floors. Thus, the toilets and urinals use harvested rainwater.

Flexible and Adaptive

gbi designed the system to be flexible, adaptive, and scalable to meet future needs, adjust over time, and eventually supply energy to new buildings. Capacity and controls were planned with this vision in mind.