The University of California, Irvine’s new Interdisciplinary Science and Engineering Building (ISEB) was designed with three major performance and aesthetic goals in mind: natural lighting, energy efficiency and sustainable design. Large expanses of glass dominate the building’s exterior to allow for an abundance of natural light, but the ISEB’s design team had to consider the energy impact of its ambitious design.

To maximize the project’s green design and enhance its energy efficiency, LMN Architects selected Solarban^® 70 glass by Vitro Architectural Glass, which offers optimal clarity, consistency and solar control performance.

Solarban^® 70 glass strikes the right balance between form and function with a transparent, color-neutral aesthetic and unprecedented solar control and visible light transmittance (VLT) characteristics. When coupled with conventional clear glass in a one-inch insulating glass unit (IGU), Solarban^® 70 glass features a solar heat gain coefficient (SHGC) of 0.27 and visible light transmittance (VLT) of 64%. 

Glass fabricator Glassfab Tempering Services Inc. and glazing contractor Walters & Wolf were partners in realizing the six-story building’s brilliant glass walls and enclosed outdoor courtyard.

“The balance with LMN’s astonishing design, Solarban^® 70 glass by Vitro, and glazing systems from Walters & Wolf has made the University of California’s ISEB building in Irvine, California a stunning success of architecture,” said Michael Goldfarb, vice president of sales, Glassfab Tempering Services Inc.

With more than 200,000 square feet dedicated to laboratories and offices, the ISEB will be home to an interdisciplinary corps of UC Irvine faculty, researchers and students representing a range of programs and disciplines. Its state-of-the-art research facilities were designed to foster collaboration across departments and schools that will accelerate discovery and establish scientific solutions to improve our world.

The ISEB is the 21^st consecutive construction project by the UC Irvine to achieve LEED^® Platinum certification, and, thanks to the university’s Smart Labs design system, it is expected to outperform the California Energy Code standards by more than 55%.