Tubular daylighting devices were integrated with a new metal roof for the Komodo dragon exhibit at Woodland Park Zoo. The metal roof and daylighting devices were part of a retrofit project of a decades-old exhibit. The insulated metal roof replaced a glass roof to better seal in heat and humidity. The daylighting devices provided adequate natural light.
Northshore Exteriors Inc. installed AEP Span’s 24-gauge steel Span-Lok hp standing seam roof system in Cool Weathered Copper. Lumenomics Inc. installed 13 of Solatube International Inc.’s SkyVault M74 tubular daylighting units.
Kevin Murphy, animal curator at the Woodland Park Zoo, says, “This enclosure was originally designed back 20 years ago, and it was built inside essentially as a greenhouse with a glass roof. We didn’t have enough control over the environment, especially temperature and humidity. So, in this project, the number one goal was to gain complete control over the environmental conditions. In my experience, animals react positively to a natural photoperiod. So, we needed a design strategy that would allow us to close off the glass roof while still allowing natural light into the space and maintaining sufficient insulation.”
