River Rock Casino Resort

This five-star facility includes a 70,000 ft² gaming floor complete with a 220-suite luxury hotel and spa. The River Rock Casino Resort offers a health and fitness center, swimming pool, water slides, multi-purpose conference space, retail space, seven restaurants and lounges, a 275,000 ft² car parking deck, and a state-of-the-art 950-seat show theater. Renovation work in 2009 included upgrading the theater with additional box suites, renovating the existing buffet area, adding a wine bar and seating area, and renovating the main lobby area to include a curved escalator.

Integral Group provided mechanical engineering services for the design of all mechanical systems. Project goals focused on minimizing energy usage while creating the ultimate gaming experience. Key project challenges included the incredible range of mixed-use needs and the project’s fast-tracked construction schedule.

Key design strategies included treating each space as an individual operating sector while allowing for variances in demand and waste energy sharing. The resulting mechanical system reuses waste heat given off by the slot machines and occupants within the casino. A central atrium was designed to draw the heat from the casino area upwards for reclamation or exhaust using the natural stack effect. Captured heat is reused in other parts of the resort requiring heating, such as the atrium, hotel corridors, support areas, and meeting rooms.

KEY FEATURES

• Unique energy transfer and air movement in the building
• High-efficiency equipment
• Heat recovery
• Radiant heating and cooling

A centralized Direct Digital Control system was also installed to optimize the mechanical systems while monitoring energy consumption. Operational savings due to energy conservation are estimated to be greater than $100,000 each year.