Centerbrook Architects

Centerbrook Office a Laboratory for Green Architecture

At Centerbrook Architects, the rooftop of their southern-most building at 67 Main Street in Centerbrook, CT has been turned into a mini electric power plant, with 100 solar photovoltaic panels converting sunlight directly into non-polluting electricity. The 16.50-kilowatt system produces about 10 percent of the energy required by the Centerbrook Architects complex. It is connected directly to the Connecticut Light and Power grid and reduces the amount of electricity purchased.

This solar array was the first of two solar energy systems installed at Centerbrook Architects. Completed in 2006, it joins many other green initiatives at Centerbrook’s 20,000-square-foot office complex. The firm has practiced innovative sustainable design since the 1970s, with its own office serving as a laboratory for green architecture as Centerbrook transformed the complex from a nineteenth-century drill bit factory into a twenty-first century architect’s office.

Centerbrook’s property, sited on the Falls River, has been a water-powered industrial site since 1721. Centerbrook’s renovations included the installation of a new hydro power turbine at the complex in 1982. Today hydro power generates approximately 10 percent of Centerbrook’s annual electrical needs. With the addition of Centerbrook’s two photovoltaic arrays, Centerbrook now generates approximately 41 percent of its annual electrical needs itself from clean energy systems.

As part of the firm’s ongoing research into sustainable building practices, Centerbrook installed a “green” roof over a portion of its office. The roof serves Centerbrook staff as an on-site experiment into the suitability of a variety of plants for use as roofing material. Green roofs reduce air pollution and help control heating and cooling costs.

Centerbrook is a member of the U. S. Green Building Council and has a number of LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) accredited architects on staff. Centerbrook’s buildings have received awards for sustainable design and certification in the LEED Green Building Rating System®.