Darlington Hall, Nursing and Allied Health Building

Bel Air, MD

The Nursing and Allied Health Building is a three-story facility comprised of laboratories, classrooms, offices, and a variety of informal collaborative student learning spaces within a central atrium. The building houses a two-year nursing program, allied health program, as well as non-credit nursing programs.

Laboratories are AV/IT intensive spaces and designed to capture simulated tasks and nurse/patient interaction. The recorded video and audio data is then accessible to students and teachers in classrooms, control rooms, observation/debrief rooms, as well as, informal learning spaces. Active learning classrooms empower students to construct their own learning in collaborative creative problem solving exercises. Informal student and group study spaces are also provided throughout the central atrium.
The building is steel framed with masonry, glass, and metal panel over metal stud walls.

The main heating and cooling needs of the building are met by a series of three condensing boilers and a premium efficiency air cooled chiller.  The chiller and three air handling units sit on top of a low slope TPO roof membrane system.  A first floor mechanical room houses the boilers, heating and chilled water pumps and many hydronic system accessories.  The air handling units distribute air to several VAV terminal units throughout the building.  Each VAV terminal unit is equipped with a hydronic heating coil to allow for individual space temperature control.  Hot water radiant ceiling panels are also located in all perimeter spaces to enhance the thermal comfort during heating season.  Several energy efficiency measures including the use of VFDs on fans and pumps, economizer control and demand control ventilation are present throughout the building.