Leadership in Engineering
Low-Impact Design
With the omnipresence of sustainability focused programs, LID solutions are becoming more commonplace and even mandatory in many municipalities. However, visualization of these novel solutions has not kept pace... until now. MKA’s 3-D visualizations clarify these complex systems for all involved, including owners, permitters, designers, and engineers from other disciplines, resulting in a more efficient, more accurate design.
MKA’s engineering of Theater Commons and Donnelly Gardens in Seattle (pictured above) helped it to achieve the first SITES certification in Washington. The project features cutting-edge LID methodology with the goal of creating protocols for application of similar strategies to additional public parcels in the future.
MKA has redefined the civil engineering approach to stormwater management. Rather than a traditional method of dealing with stormwater as a burden, MKA promotes the premise that stormwater systems can improve a project. This is contrary to years of engineering practice but pivotal to effectively dealing with growing stormwater management crises in the world’s expanding urban centers.
MKA funded research and developed a complex green roof performance-modeling tool that accounts for 10 different environmental processes and physical characteristics. It proves that building-specific green roof detention benefits can be substantial, with as much as 50% of the average annual building rainfall never becoming runoff or requiring detention.
When it comes to stormwater, one size does not fit all. While some civil engineers simply specify a detention tank, MKA’s proven suite of natural-systems-based solutions create best management practices that solve multiple problems, from providing tenant amenities to decreasing reliance on municipal sewage systems.
