Ambler Boiler House

Ambler, PA
Expertise
Mechanical
Electrical
Plumbing
Fire Protection
Certification
LEED-CS Platinum

The Ambler Boiler House was built in 1897 and served as an asbestos plant for almost a century.  For decades, the dilapidated building stood dormant, with its lonely single stack penetrating the skyline.  In 2011, the 48,000 SF brownfield site was reinvented from its industrial roots to Class A office space.  

Bala provided MEP/FP engineering design and LEED commissioning services for this adaptive re-use project.  Our engineering services included all base building MEP/FP systems, as well as tenant fit-out for each tenant space.

Some of the LEED features include: geothermal heat pumps with 53 wells, low VOC interior finishes, bike racks and a grey water system.  

The project utilized a geothermal heat pump system to eliminate the need for any boilers, cooling towers or outside above-grade equipment. The interior spaces were configured in large open zones in order to minimize the number of heat pumps and the visible ductwork was configured in long straight runs to accentuate the linear building dimensions. The systems also included a latent heat recovery wheel with 100% of the building’s ventilation air passing through it to reduce ventilation energy costs by 70-75%. The building designs also included low mercury lighting fixtures and low-flow plumbing fixtures.