A typical office building in New York City uses huge amounts of energy for heating and cooling. A new 16-story office tower in Manhattan takes a Nordic-inspired approach that’s fundamentally more efficient: One system, based on heat pumps and water-filled pipes, is designed to move heat where it’s needed on each floor, between floors, and even to and from the building next door.
The building, at 555 Greenwich, is expected to use 80% less energy than an average large office building in the city. That goes well beyond a city law that requires requirements large buildings to slash emissions 40% over roughly the next decade, with the first cuts beginning in 2024.
