Massachusetts Institute of Technology Albany Street Cogeneration Plant

The Albany Street Cogeneration Plant is part of a major utilities infrastructure modernization initiative at MIT. Ellenzweig provided architectural planning and design services for the initiative and the new Cogeneration Plant, which replaces the existing Cogeneration Facility also designed by Ellenzweig and completed in 1995. The new facility is a dual 20-MW Combined Heat and Power (CHP) Plant engineered to meet MIT’s greenhouse gas emission targets, enable campus implementation of even more efficient energy technologies, and allow the campus to operate in the event of a regional utility outage, storm surge, or major natural disaster. Resiliency and sustainability are central to the project’s design, including the elevation of all critical utility systems above the 500-year flood plain level.

Located in the densely populated, highly active urban environment of the City of Cambridge and the MIT campus, the Cogeneration Plant has a significant presence along Albany Street. The architectural expression is inspired by the industrial scale of the machinery and systems housed within, as well as their significant need for ventilation or “breathing” through the exterior envelope. The façade’s sculptural metal panel forms, or “cowls,” are specifically engineered to permit air transfer on all sides, similar in concept to the gills of a fish. A red accent color animates the cowls, highlighting the areas where fresh air enters and leaves the facility. The building’s tall exhaust stacks are made to feel as an integral part of the sculptural composition. Large windows along the street and the folded metal panels above provide visual relief to the necessary substantial structure. The window openings frame specific views of the inner workings of the building and impart a more pedestrian friendly feeling to the Cogeneration Plant, allowing for a composition well-suited to its use and highly appropriate for its place within Cambridge and on the MIT campus.