The recently completed Crossroads School in Norfolk, Virginia is the district’s first LEED-certified educational facility. The original structure was built in 1945 and was recently replaced with a new, 145,000-square-foot campus. The enormous, state-of-the-art K-8 facility recently won one of only three Gold Design Awards presented by the 2012 Virginia School Boards Association at the Exhibition of School Architecture. Part of the project’s design success is owed to the ALPOLIC ACM featured on its exterior.

Moseley Architects utilized 53,000-square-feet of ALPOLIC’s Mist White panels for the perimeter of the building.

In securing a LEED Silver certification for the project, the architect utilized abundant natural lighting and incorporated features such as a vegetative roof, a solar hot water system and wind power. In an interview with local news station WVEC, the school’s principal, Mary Beers, explained:

"All of these features will actually be integrated into our science curriculum so the children can learn environmental sciences through the actual building."

The fabricators responsible for this project, Roof Services Corporation, have used ALPOLIC panels for several local educational facilities over the past few years.

Schools account for a large share of green building projects, due in part to the positive benefits to students and the lower operational costs. At the same time, educational facilities in particular are exposed to heavy use throughout the school year, so building materials must also be able to withstand that use over time. Additionally, when used on exterior envelopes and facades, architectural materials are left exposed to a variety of natural elements, including UV radiation, wind, and rain.

In order to prevent degradation from these factors, a protective coating containing Lumiflon FEVE resin was applied to the ALPOLIC panels used. This resin reduces deterioration, increases longevity, and keeps industrial maintenance costs low. Should any damage of the material occur, composite panels are cheaper and easier to fix or replace than many other types of traditional building materials. The use of ALPOLIC’s composite panels on educational facilities continues to increase as they prove to be a durable exterior cladding material.