Project Overview

The Nueva School, a nationally recognized LEED Gold K–12 campus in San Mateo, CA, needed to expand its facility with a 2,000 sf office suite addition built out on a third level over the existing two-story structure. The original permit submission used the prescriptive path for Title 24 2022 envelope compliance, but the compliance software required design changes (thicker rigid insulation and tinted glazing) that would have increased drawing time and construction cost. Leddy Maytum Stacy Architects engaged A2 Efficiency to switch to the performance path, enabling trade-offs across envelope, lighting, and mechanical systems to achieve compliance without those added constraints.

Our Role

• Developed Title 24 2022 performance compliance energy model using CBECC 2022 software.

• Modeled envelope, mechanical, and lighting systems; iterated on envelope constructions to demonstrate code compliance through trade-offs.

Project Highlights

• Performance path modeling enabled compliance trade-offs across envelope, lighting, and HVAC systems for a constrained addition scope.