How to Make Your Building Design Greener With Aluminum (5 Quick Ideas)

Should you incorporate aluminum into your green building design?

Aluminum has many properties that make it a good choice for design.

It has two attributes in particular that make it green:

It’s highly recyclable: Any aluminum you use in your project has probably been used before.

It’s lightweight and strong: Aluminum’s fantastic strength-to-weight ratio can help you create some unique features.

Here are 5 quick ideas to make your building project greener with aluminum.

#1 – Use aluminum to create lightweight framing systems that accommodate double and triple pane insulating glass. This will improve the thermal performance of your windows.

#2 – Install aluminum sunshades on your building’s exterior. These will help keep the interior cool. Optimize the building’s energy performance and decrease the demand on HVAC (Heating, Ventilating and Air Conditioning).

#3 –Use frames made of modern aluminum alloys to support heavy glass spans. These will allow more natural sunlight in and maximize daylight. Allow more light into the building to keep employees happy and keep energy costs down.

#4 – Incorporate solar cells into your building with aluminum frames. This will reduce the need for energy produced by fossil fuels. Generate green electricity that can meet your energy needs.

#5 – Utilize aluminum TDDs (Tubular Daylighting Devices). These will bring more natural light into the building’s interior. Reduce your energy costs and make building users feel at ease.

Use the ideas above to enhance your green building project.

As you consider what kind of materials to use in your building design keep these five ideas in mind. They could end up helping you make your project more environmentally friendly.

(image credit: here)

At Gabrian we are committed to the environment and our customers. Learn more about our aluminum extrusion capabilities.