California Energy Designs

09/10/2022

05/28/2020

Our "Bellagio Estate" project in Bel Air has recently been making some waves after Uber co-founder, Travis Kalanick, snagged the 1.7 acre, recently renovated home for a $43.3 million final sale price.
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Featured on both local and national news (see links below), this project required unique engineering features to meet its precise climate and energy needs.
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From the 7,000 bottle-capacity wine cellar to the many fireplaces (and floor-to-ceiling windows) of the sprawling Bel Air estate, each aspect of this engineering project required a tailored approach, with custom design features enabling the modern needs of this historic property.
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Originally built in 1931 by renowned architect, Paul Willaims (who built homes for stars like Frank Sinatra, Lucille Ball, and other Hollywood darlings), Bellagio Estate underwent an extensive renovation that wrapped up in 2019. Spearheaded by Oz Architects, with JRC Construction as the builders and our firm, California Energy Designs, as the project MEP, we are delighted by the results and hope Travis loves the new residence.
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Project Details:
Architect: Oz Architects
Builder: JRC Construction
MEP: California Energy Designs
Landscaping: Arcadia Studio
Location: Bel Air, CA
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Sale Price: $43.3M
Sq. Ft: 20,000
Lot Size: 1.7 Acres
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Project Coverage:
Oz Architects Website: https://bit.ly/2X7UTCO
Business Insider: https://bit.ly/3gzeIdJ
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@ Bel Air, Los Angeles

10/21/2019

Check out our latest video on Air-Quality Control systems. From extremely precise temperature & humidity control to custom filter banks capable of removing particulate matter down to infinitesimal fractions of a micron, Air-Quality Control systems have applications wherever strict environment conditions are required by a facility.

Cleanrooms, particularly for pharmaceutical and aerospace facilities, are one such application where facilities may require extremely precise environment control to ensure the proper stringently aseptic conditions. Manufacturing facilities producing sensitive equipment or involving hazardous materials are another sector where AQCS is often essential to safe and sustainable operations.

With custom HEPA filter banks and proper airflow and ventilation design ensuring contamination control, hazardous particulate matter can be barred entry and removed from the facility before any negative impact may occur.

From ordinary paint spray booth exhaust systems with high-capacity ventilation to bespoke cleanroom facilities with airlock systems, Air-Quality Control systems serve a variety of critical functions in varied depths. To learn more about these systems or to submit a project inquiry, visit our company website contact form—linked below.

10/15/2019

California Energy Designs has officially joined YouTube. We look forward to sharing new videos about our work, services, and other engineering insights. For a quick preview, click the link below to learn more about our HVAC/R System Design Services.

California Energy Designs provides consulting engineering services for the design of innovative HVAC, Plumbing, & Air-Quality Control systems. With an unpara...

10/07/2019

Our LEED Platinum-Certified project, the Kaplan Pavilion at City of Hope, serves as an excellent model of how architects, engineers, and planning contractors can work collaboratively using an eco-conscious design framework to achieve superb energy savings.

Led by the notable architecture firm, Belzberg Architects, the Kaplan Pavilion project placed an emphasis on efficient and energy conscious design. By coordinating all structural, engineering, and landscape design features in unison, the design framework put in place was able to substantially improve resource use—while maximizing wellness impacts for occupants.

Everything from the facility’s structural openness to the north—reducing heat exposure—to the usage of efficient materials & equipment—including “low emissivity” glass, low-flow plumbing fixtures, and high-efficiency HVAC systems, optimized the project’s overall resource usage results.

We believe these collaborative design frameworks help projects achieve otherwise unattainable results with their goal-oriented focus, from “Concept to Concrete.”

This is not possible however, without an impeccable team. Without the incredible team assembled by Belzberg Architects, this LEED Platinum-Certified project for City of Hope would never have been able to properly flourish. It’s been a few years, but—thanks to social media—we’d like to give a shoutout to our fellow collaborators below.

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Project: Kaplan Pavilion
Client: City of Hope
Completion: 2015

Architect: Belzberg Architects
MEP Engineer: California Energy Designs
Structural Engineer: Nous Engineering
Civil Engineer: VCA Engineers Inc.
General Contractor: Winters Schram Assoc
Landscape Architect: Abhe Landscape Architects
LEED Consultant: Green Dinosaur

Renders by Belzberg Architects
📸 by Bruce Damonte Photography

09/10/2019

Energy-Efficient System Design is always a top priority for an MEP. With a multitude of factors impacting a facility’s energy-usage & resource transmission, it is important to adopt a holistic perspective on all integrated systems, designs, equipment, and materials used.

Some contributing elements are structural in nature, where design choices—both in engineering system designs and broader architectural decisions—can make a significant impact on energy-usage. For example, heat exposure from sun-facing windows can be minimized by altering their orientation and direction. As a result, HVAC systems will require fewer resources to properly cool the facility.

Where these choices are unavailable or undesirable, creative MEPs will utilize the latest in energy-efficient technologies to combat such deficits. Utilizing Low-E (or “low emissivity”) glass can preserve natural light while reducing heating effects of UV rays, PVC “cool roof” technologies can also serve to reduce the “urban heat island effect.”

Such added features can not only reduce energy-expenditure, they also can potentially turn environmental challenges into inherited benefits. Take solar paneling (PV) systems for example, by installing a roof-mounted solar system, a structure can turn a “heat trap” environment from a highly-sunny area into an independent source of energy to utilize in cooling and other building resource usage.

Beyond overt measures, innovative MEPs can also garner significant energy-savings through simple—and often unnoticed—system design choices. Vent positioning and smart ductwork can work with the context of a structure to gain systemic advantages. Even proper sizing and load calculations can make a material difference in energy-usage and a facility’s overall carbon footprint.

For more examples of innovative engineering design decisions, see our company website—link in bio.

08/22/2019

Air Quality Control systems (AQCS) come in a wide-range of unique configurations, allowing facilities to maintain a consistent & contaminant-free environment.

From simple indoor air-quality assurance for offices & homes to complex industrial, manufacturing, and cleanroom facility design, AQCS serve a variety of functions in varying levels of depth.

In the most basic form, AQCS can help prevent mold, dust, and other particulate matter from collecting and contaminating an area. At its most potent extent, AQCS can be utilized to create highly-sterile environments suitable for laboratories, cleanrooms, and pharmaceutical & aerospace manufacturing.

These systems can not only serve to produce reliable working conditions, but also to avoid any transfer of potentially hazardous matter through stringent contaminant control.

Yet, whether intended to enhance office air quality for a wellness design initiative or to be utilized in aseptic manufacturing for the production of space vessels that will traverse the solar system, all AQCS designs utilize the same basic principles to cleanse, monitor, and control air flow.

Temperature & Humidity: warm, wet environments are a breeding ground for microbial life. Bacteria and other microorganisms can be kept at bay through stringent temperature & humidity control.

Filtration & Particulate Removal: within the HVAC system, air is passed through HEPA (high-efficiency particulate air) filter systems—designed to remove 99.997% of particles from the air—minimizing systemic contribution of contaminants.

Ventilation & Air Flow: filtration may help prevent contaminants from entering, but proper ventilation & air flow design must be implemented to carry existing particles out of the controlled environment. Additional safeguards—including pressurized air chambers or “air locks”—allow further control, preventing external ambient air transfer during ingress and egress.

The two main system types—Turbulent Air Flow and Unidirectional Air Flow—each have different respective approaches to contaminant disruption & removal, and each holds equally varied energy requirements as well.

It is essential that facilities ensure their Air Quality Control system is designed with precision by a qualified MEP with a deep understanding of their unique energy & environmental needs.

If a system is improperly designed, or fails to meet the energy requirements of any unit, it may not only underperform but risk contamination of the sterile environment.

To submit an inquiry about an Air Quality Control system project, visit our website or send an email to California Energy Designs via the contact in our page bio.

08/14/2019

This Bird Streets estate, 1540 Skylark, was the result of an incredible vision forged by McClean Design and brought to life by an equally incredible, highly-collaborative team.
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California Energy Designs served as the MEP on this Bird Streets estate project, with Gallo Builders spearheading physical construction.
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Boasting stunning floor-to-ceiling windows, plentiful water features, and temperature-controlled interior garage with exterior access by car-lift, water features, 1540 Skylark required unique cooling & air control elements to suit its ambitious design.
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We love the incredible engineering innovations that spectacular projects like Skylark require. The constant drive to surpass the ordinary, and to achieve the truly extraordinary, is what fuels all of here at California Energy Designs.
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The striking visuals by encapsulate Skylark perfectly, and we can’t wait to see what marvel of engineering McLean Design will tackle next.
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Project Details:
1540 Skylark Lane, Los Angeles, CA

Architect: McClean Design
MEP: California Energy Designs Inc.
Builder: Gallo Builders
Video & Editing: Berlyn Media
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08/13/2019

Featuring aerial visuals by drone and a panoramic view of the Los Angeles skyline, this beautiful trailer video of 1540 Skylark Lane was the result of an incredible vision forged by McClean Design

California Energy Designs served as the MEP on this Bird Streets estate project, with Gallo Builders, Inc. spearheading physical construction.

With stunning floor-to-ceiling windows, plentiful water features, and a temperature-controlled interior garage with exterior access by car-lift, water features, 1540 Skylark required unique cooling & air control elements to suit its ambitious design.

We love the incredible engineering innovations that spectacular projects like Skylark require. The constant drive to surpass the ordinary, and to achieve the truly extraordinary, is what fuels all of here at California Energy Designs.

The striking visuals by Berlyn Media encapsulate Skylark perfectly, and we can't wait to see what marvel of engineering is next for McLean Design Group

Project Details:
1540 Skylark Lane, Los Angeles, CA, 90069

Architect: McClean Design
MEP: California Energy Designs
Builder: Gallo Builders, Inc.

Video & Editing: Berlyn Media

08/05/2019

Project Retrospective | Kaplan Family Pavilion at City of Hope

California Energy Designs was the MEP on this LEED Platinum certified Pavilion designed by Belzberg Architects.

Fitting the shift towards a more holistic approach to healthcare, this project for a leading medical research & treatment center, focused on the creation of sustainable environments designed to promote wellness.

The resulting design—an innovative approach spearheaded by Belzberg Architects—fused form and function to achieve comprehensive energy savings that enabled its wellness-enhanced environment.

Pairing structural features—such as the buildings’ openness to the north, preventing excessive heat gain—with the latest in energy-efficient methods—including a high-efficiency HVAC system, PVC "Cool Roof," and low thermal emissive glass—the collaborative approach produced a synergy between design and engineering, paying dividends in the project's overall success.

The LEED Platinum certified Pavilion achieved significant energy & resource savings while offering uncompromising excellence in physical environment for staff and visitors alike.

Notable Features:
High-Efficiency HVAC
PVC "Cool Roof"
Low-Flow Faucets & Toilets

Project Info:
Architects: Belzberg Architects
MEP Engineer: California Energy Designs
Structural Engineer: Nous Engineering
General Contractor: Winters-Schram & Associates
LEED Consultant: Green Dinosaur

https://www.vbt.io/goto/YPa