New London County Mutual Insurance Company, Norwich CT
Architect: Richard Sharpe Associates, P.C.
Richard Sharpe, FAIA, first met William Bobenhausen, FAIA, in the early 1980's when Mr.
Bobenhausen was conducting a series of "Architecture and Energy"
workshops for the American Institute of Architects in the historic city of
Providence, Rhode Island.
This acquaintanceship and friendship led to collaboration on several projects with the New London County Mutual Insurance Company project being the largest (42,000 sf) and perhaps most noteworthy.
The controlled use of natural daylight in buildings is at the forefront of energy conserving strategies as lighting often consumes the most energy in large buildings. While nearly all buildings make some use of daylight from windows, it is rarely used to full advantage as an important light source for both visually critical tasks and ambient light levels.
Optimal use of daylight requires that glazed areas be located to admit light at reasonable levels of intensity, but without excessive solar heat gain or glare. Also essential are automatically dimming lights, the key to capitalizing on the reduced need for artificial illumination.
The New London County Mutual Insurance Company project demonstrates that solar gain can be controlled gracefully in a manner supportive of a design's aesthetic. Being keenly aware of sun motion and intensity, this project, and many others consulted on by Mr. Bobenhausen and the firm are developed through an interactive process with the design architect. To develop the appropriate solutions for a particular project on a unique site in a specific climate requires that experience and common sense often be complemented with the use of mathematical models and specialized computer software.
Another nearby project that William Bobenhausen consulted is a 180,000 square foot billing center/office building in Fairhaven, Rhode Island originally built by AT&T. The project features sun-controlled light courts.