RWDI Unveils ClimateFirst Software: Transforming Climate-Risk Assessments and Resiliency Planning
RWDI launches ClimateFirst, a cutting-edge software solution designed to revolutionize climate-risk management in the real estate sector.
Sector: Education
Elevating Educational Environments
Inclusive design for inspired learning
Creating inclusive and flexible learning spaces that inspire and support the next generation of thinkers and innovators is crucial for student success. Our team of building engineers and climate specialists collaborates with you to create educational facilities that are not only high-performing and sustainable but also prioritize the health and well-being of students, faculty, and staff. From optimizing air quality and ventilation to enhancing acoustic environments and managing microclimates, we ensure that every detail of your educational environment fosters comfort, safety, and engagement.
Addressing education facility challenges
Campuses are significantly elevating the experience for students, staff, and visitors alike. While safety and comfort have always been important, many academic facilities are breaking ground in embracing natural sustainable green building and climate resilient strategies. Balancing net-zero goals with highly curated learning environments while minimizing costs is no easy feat. Our holistic approach to engineering solutions combines facility performance, sustainability, and human safety and comfort with cost efficiency.
The right insights at the right time
From design to operations, we have the right experience and expertise to solve any challenges in the education sector. Explore services for every stage of the academic facility lifecycle.
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Planning
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Design
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Construction
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Operations
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Refurbishment & Decommission
Services
- Environmental air quality, water, soil, waste
- Pedestrian wind, thermal comfort & safety
- Noise & vibration
- Energy, sustainability & wellness goals
How we help
We collaborate and support your vision with technical expertise across every climate and performance engineering discipline. Create more welcoming educational facilities that exist in harmony with their environment and community.
Climate-resilient and sustainable building design
With an increasing focus on sustainability and energy conservation, academic facilities are striving to achieve net-zero energy usage, contributing to environmental responsibility. Our innovative strategies focus on reducing energy consumption, minimizing environmental impact, creating resiliency against a changing climate, and meeting ambitious sustainability and net-zero goals.
Promote student and faculty health and comfort
Our human-centric approach means we understand wellness and inclusive design practices that center the well-being of students, faculty, and staff. Our expertise in air quality, daylight, enhanced ventilation, and acoustic design maximize well-being and performance. Our approach ensures that indoor environments in educational facilities support collaborative learning conditions and promote overall health.
Create inclusive learning communities, inside and out
We help optimize outdoor spaces on campuses, addressing factors such as pedestrian-level wind and overall microclimate. This expertise helps create comfortable and inviting outdoor areas that encourage student interaction and enhance the overall campus experience.
Advancements in learning with advanced technical solutions
With a passion for technical excellence and innovative problem-solving, we help educational institutions tackle complex challenges. We employ cutting-edge tools and unexpected approaches to push the boundaries of what’s possible in academic facility design and construction resulting in demonstrable innovation like net-zero labs, success with mass timber, and highly tuned learning environments.
Holistic engineering solutions
Education facilities design challenges are complex. Our holistic suite of services offers climate responsive design and human-centric solutions that maximize performance and minimize impact.
pedestrians on university campus
exhaust dispersion from building model
classroom
wind tower CFD
pedestrians on university campus
Microclimate analysis and outdoor environment design
Learning environments extend into the outdoors with inclusive and thoughtful outdoor design. We conduct microclimate analyses to optimize outdoor spaces around educational facilities, creating safe and inviting environments that promote improved mental health, physical health, and overall wellbeing. By assessing factors such as wind patterns, sun exposure, snow, rain or sand and temperature variations, we can create outdoor areas that enhance the aesthetic appeal of the campus while promoting well-being and social engagement among students. Our goal is to help academic institutions foster vibrant outdoor spaces that contribute positively to the overall learning experience.
exhaust dispersion from building model
Exhaust dispersion and ventilation design
Effective exhaust dispersion design protects pedestrians, adjacent buildings, and interior spaces from pollutants. Our services integrate exhaust control with pressurization and safety cabinet ventilation, ensuring safer, more efficient environments both inside and out while supporting long-term energy savings.
classroom
Acoustic design and noise control
Prioritizing optimal acoustical performance in educational environments is essential for creating flexible learning spaces that are multi-functional and adaptable to academic needs. Our acoustic design services ensure that classrooms, lecture halls, and common areas have appropriate sound levels and clarity, supporting both student concentration and effective communication between teachers and students.
wind tower CFD
Natural ventilation design
We work with educational institutions to implement natural ventilation systems that enhance indoor air quality and comfort for both students and staff. By designing systems that leverage the natural flow of air, we help reduce reliance on mechanical ventilation, leading to significant energy savings and a healthier indoor and transient to outdoor environments. Our focus is on creating spaces that not only ensure the comfort of occupants but also align with sustainable building practices, reflecting the modern values of education and environmental responsibility.
Canada
Sarah McLachlan School of Music
Acoustical adaptations to help a nonprofit music school be a good neighbour
Europe & UK
University of Sussex
Assessing the indoor air quality of a UK public research university office building
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FAQs about our education services
Still have questions? Contact us.
Yes, we have extensive experience delivering adaptive reuse services for academic and campus buildings, combining sustainability, performance, and preservation. Our team combines expertise in structural engineering, building envelope design, sustainability consulting, historic preservation, and code compliance to help repurpose existing buildings effectively, from support in the decommissioning phase to full revitalization. We ensure historical and architectural features are preserved while upgrading building systems to meet modern standards.
Yes, we have deep experience helping academic institutions meet ambitious sustainability targets, including carbon reduction, net zero energy, and high-performance building goals. We integrate sustainability goals into your campus’s overall vision, whether you’re targeting green building certifications or not. Our team integrates sustainability consulting, building science, energy modeling, and systems optimization to create practical, cost-effective strategies tailored to campus needs. Whether it’s a new project or a retrofit, we help clients design and operate buildings that minimize environmental impact while maximizing long-term value and resilience.
We have experience implementing sustainable building strategies for all different types of projects including individual buildings, campus masterplans, and larger portfolios across multiple academic sites.
Across our work with academic institutions worldwide, we’re seeing a strong shift toward learning environments that prioritize the student experience. Design is increasingly focused on transparency, safety, natural daylighting, and acoustical quality—all essential to supporting wellness and effective learning. Institutions are also embracing innovation through adaptable spaces, energy efficiency, and sustainable building systems that align with long-term performance and carbon reduction goals.
Yes. With our detailed understanding of climate, building adjacencies, pedestrian flow, and ventilation strategies, we’ve successfully designed high-intensity lab buildings in some of the most constrained urban and campus sites. We prioritize managing and minimizing risks from pollutants and odors to ensure safe, functional, and compliant lab environments even in dense settings.
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