The group, who are all third year Architectural Environment Engineering students, won first prize in the Integrated Sustainable Building Design (ISBD) category at the ASHRAE 2013 Student Design Project Competition.
The competition encourages students to consider how to reduce the energy consumption of buildings, by designing innovative and energy-efficient heating, ventilation and air conditioning systems.
The group had to redesign an existing high-rise building of their choice according to green standards – their proposed system would reduce the building’s energy consumption by 35 per cent.
The group won $2,000 and will collect their award at the ASHRAE winter conference in New York in January 2014.
ASHRAE is a building technology society with more than 54,000 members worldwide. The society focuses on building systems, energy efficiency, indoor air quality, refrigeration and sustainability within the industry.
The group was made up of students Dalin Si, Jiayi Qiu, Ruijun Zhang, Xuyang Zhong, Yukai Wu, Zhiang Zhang and Zhongzhe Wu.
They are currently studying at The University of Nottingham’s UK campus - UNNC students on certain courses have the option of spending the final two years of their degree in the UK in order to gain a truly international prospective.
Zhang Zhiang, who led the group to success, said: “Winning this prize is the result of six months’ hard work and I am very pleased we have been recognised in this way.
“The recognition will be of great benefits in all our careers and is a tribute to the quality of the education we have received as students at The University of Nottingham.
“I am grateful for all the teachers, both in Ningbo and Nottingham, who have supported us.”
Siegfried Yeboah, course director for Architectural Environment Engineering at The University of Nottingham Ningbo China (UNNC), said: “We’re delighted the group has won this prestigious award.
“Designing and adapting new and existing buildings that are energy efficient is one of the great challenges for architects and engineers in the modern age.
“This award is recognition of the creativity of our students, who really are at the forefront of the sustainable building industry.”
More press information about UNNC is available from Tess Humphrys, communications and marketing officer, UNNC, on +86 574 8818 0940.