It is the first large medical and research facility in the United States to have earned LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) platinum certification — the highest attainable — from the U.S. Green Building Council, which sets the standards for green building.
- Eight levels of the building house physician practices, outpatient surgery and imaging across a wide range of specialties and programs including dermatology, family medicine, internal medicine, spine, neurology, neurosurgery, cardiology, oncology, surgical oncology, digestive health, plastic surgery, physical therapy, ophthalmology, urology, fertility and ear, nose and throat specialties.
- Four levels are dedicated to educational and research activities, including laboratory space for the biomedical engineering program. There is also a conference center in the building.
- The first two floors house march wellness, a comprehensive health and wellness center, which includes a full gymnasium, a four-lane lap pool, a therapy pool, cardio and weight training areas, multipurpose studios and a day spa.
- A three-story underground parking garage provides 634 parking spaces — 500 for patients and the rest for faculty and staff.
- An OHSU outpatient pharmacy, Casey Eye Institute optical shop and a Daily Café occupy the ground floor. A three-story atrium at the ground floor faces the lower terminal of the Portland Aerial Tram.
- The building is 61 percent more energy-efficient than required by Oregon code.
- The south-side façade on the 15th and 16th floors forms a 6,000 square foot trombe wall which is a giant solar air heater; warm air from it is circulated throughout the building in winter.
- Chilled beams that combine convective cooling systems with displacement ventilation cuts energy use by 20-30 percent under conventional HVAC systems.
- Sunshades on south façade double as solar electricity generators
- A gas-fueled cogeneration system powered by five 60-kw microturbines is the first of its size to be installed in an Oregon building.
- Heat and power production on site saves roughly 9 million pounds of CO2 emissions per year (equal to operating 903 North American cars).
- An onsite wastewater treatment plant keeps 15,000 gallons of wastewater a day from reaching the city’s overburdened sewer system, and a specially engineered bioswale filters and cleanses rainwater before it flows into the Willamette River.
- Building systems also include an integrated day-lighting system, naturally ventilated stair towers, and eco-roofs.
