UBC mechanical engineering students have put a new spin on the “green wall” with the recently installed Revolving Gardens, a SEEDS Sustainability Program project in the AMS Student Nest.
The innovative green wall is comprised of several, large wooden pods with hanging plants positioned along windows in the foyer of the Great Hall. What makes this version of a green wall unique is that the pods slowly spin to catch the sunlight during the day thanks to a solar panel. The plants also water and fertilize themselves courtesy of a custom-built automatic irrigation system.
The Revolving Garden team includes (from left) UBC Mechanical Engineering students Sonia Taylor, Keith Bystrom, Raymond Desjardins and Eli Nemtin. (Not pictured: Mallory Josephson and Professor Walter Mérida.) Photo by Paul Joseph, Communications and Marketing.
Last year the Alma Mater Society (AMS) approached the SEEDS Sustainability Program with the idea of building a green wall. UBC Mechanical Engineering students Keith Bystrom, Raymond Desjardins, Mallory Josephson, Eli Nemtin and Sonia Taylor took up the challenge and worked with Dr. Walter Mérida on the engineering capstone project.
The plans and photo of a prototype for the Revolving Gardens. Photo by Paul Joseph, Communications and Marketing
Taking their design inspiration from the elliptical light fixtures hanging from the ceiling of the foyer, the student-led team custom built the wooden pods and the steel frame that supports it. Sustainability was top of mind for the students but they were also challenged by their client to create a design that would be low-maintenance, explains Michael Kingsmill, Project Manager and Designer at the AMS Student Nest. The project was co-funded by the AMS Sustainability Fund and the SEEDS Sustainability Program.
UBC Mechanical Engineering student Sonia Taylor puts the finishing touches on the irrigation pipes which will hold water and fertilizer lines. Paul Joseph, Communications and Marketing.
“We told the students, not only do the plants need sunlight, they need to be irrigated and have nutrients added to the water stream. We said we couldn’t invest a lot of maintenance time on the plants and challenged the students to incorporate automatic watering and fertilizing features,” said Kingsmill.
UBC Mechanical Engineering student Raymond Desjardins holds a rotating section of the design. Photo by Paul Josephs, Communications and Marketing.
The students took on these challenges and successfully delivered a complex engineering solution built entirely at the UBC Engineering workshops in the Fred Kaiser building. The students utilized the workshop’s high tech equipment including waterjet cutters to precisely cut the wood for the pods and metal cutting saws to cut the steel supports and pipes. As luck would have it, project team member Eli Nemtin, held a current welder’s ticket through his previous work experience and welded all the metal pieces.
UBC Mechanical Engineering student Eli Nemtin cuts a metal piece for the frame that supports the project. Photos by Paul Joseph, Communications and Marketing.
Amongst the innovative, automatic features of the project is the solar panel located near the ceiling attached to a battery pack. On sunny days the solar panel collects energy and powers the pods to slowly turn, ensuring that all sides of the plants receive light. When the sun sets, or on overcast days, the pods become stationary.
UBC Mechanical Engineering student Keith Bystrom assembles one of the large, wooden pods. Photo by Paul Joseph, Communications and Marketing.
A customized cold-water irrigation system was also installed to allow water to run down supply lines hidden inside in pipes. Water slowly drops out through holes in the pipes and dribbles onto the plants, at a rate optimized to save water. Another line automatically adds fertilizer when it is needed.
The Revolving Gardens in the foyer of the Great Hall at the AMS Student Nest. Photo by Paul Joseph, Communications and Marketing.
“This project ties in the idea that plants rely on the sun to grow and when the sun shines it’s an active process and when it’s not it’s in repose. This is part of the sustainable messaging behind the wall, said Kingsmill.
The Revolving Garden joins in with organic forms found in the building design such as the large wooden nest, and other SEEDS projects located throughout the building including the rooftop garden (level 4) and Runoff vertical garden (level 1, near Pie R Squared). Visit the project on the level 2 of the AMS Student Nest, 6133 University Boulevard.