Vancouver Aquarium Aquaquest

During this project, the Vancouver Aquarium at Stanley Park got a major facelift. The Aquaquest addition leads the way towards transforming the Aquarium from a public display to a more dynamic (not to mention more fun) aquatic research facility.

The Aquaquest project was the first phase of the Aquarium's Master Plan for this renewal. Included within it was the framework for a completely new mechanical and electrical infrastructure.

In keeping with Stuart Olson Dominion's guiding principle of sustainable construction, the project team assisted in the design of a heating and cooling system which extracts energy through stainless steel heat exchanges from seawater piped in from Burrard Inlet. The ambient temperature of the tropical and Pacific pools can be heated or cooled as needed - all from the energy obtained from these heat exchangers. Needless to say, the design went over swimmingly! The overall project is designed to achieve LEED® Gold certification.

The Aquaquest facility includes lecture theatres, teaching classrooms, research offices, and wet labs.

Its minimalist concrete architecture perfectly complements Stanley Park, and will be the first Canadian facility of its kind to be associated with a major aquarium.