Building Design & Construction articles from August 2008

Building Design & Construction archives from August 2008

The Basics of Brick.
August 1, 2008... By C.C. Sullivan and Barbara Horwitz-Bennett Building with Brick and Masonry What do the Great Wall of China, Philadelphia's Independence Hall, and Boston Medical Center's new cancer care facility all have in common? They all feature...

Heery International reels in second aquarium assignment.(Brief article)
August 1, 2008... By Lenora Jane Estes, Editorial Intern After managing the design and construction of the Georgia Aquarium, Heery International, Atlanta, has been asked to get its feet wet again and manage the facility's $110 million, 84,000-sf expansion....

Six-acre redevelopment set to begin in downtown Austin.(Brief article)
August 1, 2008... By Lenora Jane Estes, Editorial Intern Dallas-based Trammell Crow Company, Austin developer Constructive Ventures, and the San Antonio office of USAA Real Estate Co. will redevelop the Green Water Treatment Plant and adjoining Austin Energy...

Battersea power station to be reborn in London.(Brief article)
August 1, 2008... By Lenora Jane Estes, Editorial Intern Real Estate Opportunities Limited, a London-based property company, has launched its vision and master plan for Battersea Power Station. For the first time in a quarter century, the station will be...

Diamond + Schmitt selected for new UBC law school in Toronto.(Diamond + Schmitt Architects)(Brief article)
August 1, 2008... By Lenora Jane Estes, Editorial Intern The University of British Columbia has chosen Diamond + Schmitt Architects, Toronto, along with CEI Architecture Planning Interiors, Vancouver, to design its new Faculty of Law building on the...

Green office building planned for Santiago, Chile.
August 1, 2008... By Lenora Jane Estes, Editorial Intern The design of El Bosque, New York-based Handel Architects's second project in Santiago, Chile, is well under way. The 21-story, 344,000-sf tower in Santiago's El Golf neighborhood includes 10,000 sf...

King Edward Hotel conversion aims to revitalize downtown Jackson.(Brief article)
August 1, 2008... By Lenora Jane Estes, Editorial Intern HRI Properties, New Orleans, is restoring and converting the long-vacant King Edward Hotel in downtown Jackson, Miss., into a 186-room Hilton Garden Inn that will also include 64 apartment units, 187...

Design unveiled for new home for Louisville basketball.(Louisville Arena Authority )(Brief article)
August 1, 2008... By Lenora Jane Estes, Editorial Intern The Louisville Arena Authority has unveiled new interior design images of Louisville Arena-the future home to the University of Louisville basketball teams. HOK Sport, Kansas City, Mo., has been...

Supercomputer facility under way at the University of Illinois.(Brief article)
August 1, 2008... By Lenora Jane Estes, Editorial Intern St. Louis-based Clayco has been named construction manager for a 90,000-sf computing facility for the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and the National Center for Super Computing...

Class A condo to top off in Florida.(Brief article)
August 1, 2008... By Lenora Jane Estes, Editorial Intern Florida East Coast Realty has announced that a Class A office condominium, 2020 Ponce, in Coral Gables, Fla., will top off at 14 stories. Construction began in June 2007, with Beauchamp Construction as...

9 Emerging Trends in Door Hardware.
August 1, 2008... By Lenora Jane Estes, Editorial Intern Turn and open. Sounds simple, but for decades Building Teams have been pushed to make door knobs, locks, and related door hardware as cost-effective, efficient, and good-looking as the rest of the...

'Modest decline' sounds ominous, but don't freak.
August 1, 2008... Robert Cassidy, Editor-in-Chief On July 16, the AIA released its semi-annual Consensus Construction Forecast with the headline 'Modest Decline in Nonresidential Construction Activity Anticipated in 2008 with More Dramatic Drop in 2009.'...

CityCenter Takes Experience Design To New Heights.
August 1, 2008... By Jay W. Schneider, Senior Editor It's early June, in Las Vegas, which means it's very hot, and I am coming to the end of a hardhat tour of the $9.2 billion CityCenter development, a tour that began in the air-conditioned comfort of the...

The Gateway: Welcome to the Neighborhood.
August 1, 2008... By Jay W. Schneider, Senior Editor The Mandarin Oriental, Veer, Crystals, and The Harmon The buildings in Block C serve as the gateway to CityCenter. This 'neighborhood' runs parallel to Las Vegas Boulevard-the Strip-and is considered...

Place Your Bets: The Casino/Hotel Experience.
August 1, 2008... By Jeff Yoders, Senior Associate Editor Aria and Vdara When the Wynn Resort replaced the Stardust Casino Hotel on the Strip in April 2005, longtime Las Vegas observers asked, 'Where's the theme?' Magnate Steve Wynn replied that his...

Hotel building boom slowing, but market still strong.(Brief article)
August 1, 2008... By Jim Haughey, BD+C Economist Hotel construction starts fell by one-third in the second half of 2007 as financing became more difficult to secure and concerns heightened regarding near-term room demand. However, half the drop was...

RSMeans costs comparisons.
August 1, 2008... By Jim Haughey, BD+C Economist [TABLE OMITTED]

Glass Reflects Nonprofit's Mission.(Spacesmith)
August 1, 2008... By Sam Oches, Editorial Intern The International Rescue Committee is a humanitarian organization dedicated to providing relief to victims of violence and oppression around the world. When the 75-year-old nonprofit group outgrew its...

New Tekla Structures 14 enhances BIM modeling.
August 1, 2008... By Jeff Yoders, Senior Associate Editor Atlanta-based Tekla recently released Tekla Structures 14, the newest version of its structural engineering BIM software. Version 14 streamlines the design, detailing, fabrication, and construction...

Tech Briefs.(Autodesk Inc.)(Bentley Systems Inc.)
August 1, 2008... Staff * Autodesk, Bentley sign interoperability agreement. San Rafael, Calif.-based Autodesk and Exton, Pa.-based Bentley Systems have agreed to expand interoperability between their architectural, engineering, and construction software...

Sustainable shopping center opens in Chicago's South Loop.(Brief article)
August 1, 2008... By Sam Oches, Editorial Intern Located in Chicago's South Loop, the Southgate Market was designed by Eckenhoff Saunders Architects, Chicago, to have more of an urban market rather than suburban mall feel, with a completely exposed concrete...

Coastal resort community embraces California style.(Brief article)
August 1, 2008... By Sam Oches, Editorial Intern The coastal California resort community of Seabridge Marina, designed by MVE & Partners, Oakland, Calif., features townhomes, apartments, live/work lofts, single-family detached homes, and 180,000 sf of...

St. Petersburg condos work around zoning requirements.(Brief article)
August 1, 2008... By Sam Oches, Editorial Intern Architects at Lord, Aeck & Sargent, Atlanta, had to work around city zoning requirements in order to fit the desired number of units in the Sage Condominiums in St. Petersburg, Fla. The finished structure...

New cathedral for archdiocese.(Ziegler Cooper Architects)(Brief article)
August 1, 2008... By Sam Oches, Editorial Intern Ziegler Cooper Architects, Houston, was commissioned by Archbishop Joseph Fiorenza of the Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston to design the new cathedral that will become the ecclesiastical center for the...

Native American themes throughout California resort.(Brief article)
August 1, 2008... By Sam Oches, Editorial Intern As the design architect for the 422,000-sf Agua Caliente Casino, Resort and Spa in Rancho Mirage, Calif., VOA Associates aimed to style the resort in honor of its owners: the Agua Caliente Band of Cahuilla...

World's largest forensic DNA lab a big step up.(Brief article)
August 1, 2008... By Sam Oches, Editorial Intern At 15 stories and 335,500 sf, the New York City Office of the Chief Medical Examiner DNA Forensics Biology Laboratory in Manhattan is a big step up from their previous 6,300-sf facility. Designed by Perkins...

HQ earns awards for LED lighting.
August 1, 2008... By Sam Oches, Editorial Intern By merging the principles of eco-friendly design with innovative uses of Philips's LED lighting, the new headquarters of Philips Solid-State Lighting Solutions in Burlington, Mass., recently earned 'Best in...

Pennsylvania school seeks LEED.(Blackney Hayes Architects)(Radnor Middle School)(Brief article)
August 1, 2008... By Sam Oches, Editorial Intern Radnor Middle School, a new $48 million complex in Wayne, Pa., is seeking LEED certification with a number of green features. The 195,000-sf, four-story building sports a vegetated roof, terrazzo floor with...

Insurer FM Global makes risk prevention data available at no cost.(Brief article)
August 1, 2008... Lenora Jane Estes, Editorial Intern Commercial and industrial property insurer FM Global just made life easier with access to previously exclusive loss prevention engineering guidelines. Thousands of pages of property protection...

Ingenium Group sells Giffels units, buys Stonefield.(Brief article)
August 1, 2008... Sam Oches, Editorial Intern The Ingenium Group, an architectural, engineering, interior design, construction and project management firm based in Toronto (#10 among engineers/architects on BD+C 's 2008 Giants 300 list), has sold four of...

News Briefs.
August 1, 2008... Staff * Architecture Billings Index rebounds, but still negative. The Architecture Billings Index (ABI) rebounded almost three points in June, after dropping two points the previous month. However, this is the fifth straight month that the...

Oakland apartments: sustainable, but affordable, too.(Brief article)
August 1, 2008... Sam Oches, Editorial Intern The $30 million Madison @ 14th Apartments, located in downtown Oakland, Calif., opened its doors in June as a sustainable mixed-use development. Designed by Leddy Maytum Stacy Architects, San Francisco, and...

People+Firms.(Edward Broderick promoted at EVP of Gilbane Development Co.)(Douglas Sproul appointed at Wilkinson Development)(Lida Dersookian appointed at KlingStubbins)(Brief article)
August 1, 2008... Staff * Natalie R. Petzoldt and Jill Bergman , both members of BD+C 's 40 Under 40, have been promoted to VP of Cannon Design , Buffalo, N.Y. The firm also opened an office in Phoenix. * Edward Broderick was promoted to EVP of Gilbane...

Clarifications.(Correction notice)
August 1, 2008... Staff In our July 2008 Giants 300 report, three firms were ranked incorrectly: * Bovis Lend Lease was mistakenly omitted from the Top 75 Contractors ranking and several other Giants 300 market sector ranking lists. The New York-based...

Letters.(Letter to the editor)
August 1, 2008... Staff 'Golden years' may requirea few remodeling jobs After almost 50 years spent very actively practicing architecture, I was looking forward with pleasure to the continuance of that practice until I dropped in my tracks. I truly...

Do's and Don'ts of Super-Low-Flow Showerheads.
August 1, 2008... By Shawn Martin, Technical Director, Plumbing Manufacturers Institute Switching to an enhanced water-saving showerhead is no slam dunk, whether for new or retrofit work. Poor design and improper specs can leave bathers bruised, shivering,...

Architecture firm chooses stucco for sustainability.(Brief article)
August 1, 2008... By Lenora Jane Estes and Sam Oches, Editorial Interns Architects Jim Winer and Tony Menefee knew they wanted to show off their work when it came time to move their Atlanta firm, Menefee & Winer, to a new location that they had built in the...

Green urban space.(Rehbein Environmental Solutions International)(Brief article)
August 1, 2008... By Lenora Jane Estes and Sam Oches, Editorial Interns With so little greenery available in urban areas, the owner of Bookmen Stacks, a new 10-story residential loft development in downtown Minneapolis, wanted to provide a beautiful rooftop...

Biometric locks.(Tychi Systems )(Brief article)
August 1, 2008... By Lenora Jane Estes and Sam Oches, Editorial Interns The Biometric door locking system fits standard doors, looks like a traditional door knob, and helps eliminate the need for mechanical keys. Authorized users of the BioLever lock program...

Glass product saves museum's aesthetic appeal.(Brief article)
August 1, 2008... By Lenora Jane Estes and Sam Oches, Editorial Interns When the building management team requested a design change on an addition to the Evergreen Aviation and Space Museum in McMinnville, Ore.-home of the WWII-era airplane Spruce Goose-the...

Big you-know-what fan creates a gentle breeze.(Big Ass Fan Co.)(Brief article)
August 1, 2008... By Lenora Jane Estes and Sam Oches, Editorial Interns Element, the latest industrial-grade fan from Big Ass Fans, uses a patented airfoil and winglet design to create more air with less drag for large commercial spaces, while remaining...

Weather-resistant sheathing helps project finish ahead of schedule.(Brief article)
August 1, 2008... By Lenora Jane Estes and Sam Oches, Editorial Interns One of the worst nightmares for a contractor is a weather-damaged site. Excessive rain and humidity can require costly and time-consuming tear-out of damaged materials on a site that has...

Long-term floor care for Huntsville hospital.(Chapman Sisson Architects )(Brief article)
August 1, 2008... By Lenora Jane Estes and Sam Oches, Editorial Interns Huntsville (Ala.) Hospital, one of the largest locally owned nonprofit hospitals in the nation, with 881 acute-care beds, had experienced problems with its vinyl tile flooring throughout...

Charlotte sports bar outfitted with out-swing doors.(Brief article)
August 1, 2008... By Lenora Jane Estes and Sam Oches, Editorial Interns Four professional basketball players got together with Atlanta architect Darin Stockdale to design Jocks & Jills Sports Grill, a restaurant and bar located across from the Charlotte...

'Talk about costs very early in hospital projects'.(Interview)
August 1, 2008... Staff John E. Kemper, chairman and CEO of KLMK Group, Richmond, Va., has provided project management and advisory administration services to hospital systems for more than 35 years. A member of the American College of Healthcare Executives...

CSI's GreenFormat: A new tool in green product evaluation.
August 2, 2008... By Dave Barista, Managing Editor Help is finally on the way for all you weary product specifiers who spent the better part of the decade trying to make sense of the green products maze. In mid-November at the Greenbuild show in Boston, the...

Insurer FM Global makes risk prevention data sheets available at no cost to AEC community.(Brief article)
August 2, 2008... Lenora Jane Estes Commercial and industrial property insurer FM Global just made life easier with access to previously exclusive loss prevention engineering guidelines. Thousands of pages of property protection information are now...

DOE launches EnergySmart hospitals program.(Brief article)
August 2, 2008... Staff The U.S. Department of Energy wants the nation's hospitals to improve energy efficiency by 20% at existing facilities and make new hospitals 30% more efficient than before. The DOE's EnergySmart Hospitals Initiative promotes improved...

Building codes now just a click away.(Brief article)
August 2, 2008... Staff Madcad.com has launched version 2.0 of its Web-based building codes application that provides instant access to more than 4,000 codes and standards from the International Code Council, National Fire Protection Association, and...

Easy-to-use bi-fold door goes up and away.(Hufcor Inc. )(Brief article)
August 2, 2008... Staff The Premier aluminum vertical bi-fold door folds up and out, requiring no floor track or panel storage on the side of the opening. The lightweight door, made of aluminum tubing, rides a jamb-mounted track and can be operated by...

Automatic dual-flush flushometer.(Sloan )(Brief article)
August 2, 2008... Staff Battery-powered, sensor-activated dual-flush flushometer for floor-mounted or wall-hung toilets automatically specifies the flush level (1.1 or 1.6 gpf) based on user interaction. As the user enters the beam's effective range (two to...

Standing-seam roof provides a jolt of power.(EnergyPeak )(Brief article)
August 2, 2008... Staff Building-integrated solar roofing system helps make solar energy more attainable for building projects by allowing Building Teams to specify a solar energy system without additional design or engineering. Available in seven sizes,...

Cover design gives fire vent increased insulation.(Bilco Co.)(Brief article)
August 2, 2008... Staff Bilco's domed fire vent, the Lumivent, offers a 40% improvement in insulation with a multi-wall, polycarbonate cover design. The cover also maximizes light transmittance, minimizes solar heat gain, is surface treated to resist UV...

Fabric roof for all conditions.(Birdair Inc.)(Brief article)
August 2, 2008... Staff By sandwiching Cabot Corp.'s Nanogel insulating gel between two layers of Teflon fabric, Birdair has created a highly insulated and lightweight roofing fabric for virtually any climate condition that will meet most energy and...

Silicone roof coatings can take a beating.(West Development Group)(Brief article)
August 2, 2008... Staff Solvent-free silicone roof coatings are effective against severe fire exposures, wind-driven rain, and snow, and offer resistance to cracking, peeling, shrinking, or becoming brittle and stiff. Designed for use on spray-applied...

Get a green roof on the cheap.(Carlisle SynTec Inc.)(Brief article)
August 2, 2008... Staff Consisting of pre-planted modular trays, Carlisle's GreenGrid Roof Garden System is approximately half the cost of a traditional roof garden installation and allows roofing contractors to install the entire system without the need...

TPO roof with factory-applied glue.(Brief article)
August 2, 2008... Staff Eliminate the mess, fuss, and intensive labor with adhered single-ply roofing systems with Versico's factory-applied, self-adhesive TPO membrane. The VersiWeld QA system doesn't require solvents, which makes installations...

LED downlights ideal for MRI rooms.(Everbrite Lighting Technologies )(Brief article)
August 2, 2008... Staff Using less than 60 watts of electrical energy to deliver 50 foot candles of light at task level, equivalent to the amount of light produced by a 150-watt incandescent light fixture, the MedLux XLS II LED downlight can decrease the...

LED high-bay fixture.(Albeo Technologies)(Brief article)
August 2, 2008... Staff High-bay light fixture for industrial, commercial, warehouse, and retail spaces uses LEDs in lieu of standard metal halide or high-intensity fluorescent fixtures, providing reduced energy costs, less bulb changes, quiet operation,...

Las Vegas school district bets big on daylighting to improve student test scores.(Brief article)
August 2, 2008... Staff There are studies that suggest students in classrooms with the most daylight progress further on math and reading tests in one year's time than those in classrooms with the least amount of daylight. Such statistics spurred the Clark...

Windows, doors provide accessible living.(Brief article)
August 2, 2008... Staff The Kolbe Ultra and Heritage Series of windows and doors provides options for more accessible, independent living. With motorized operators, longer crank handles, and oversized lever locks, windows can be easily operated from a...

Lengthen the day with tubular daylighting device.(Solatube International Inc.)(Brief article)
August 2, 2008... Staff Tubular daylighting device features a dome with up to 750 square inches of daylight capture surface, an insulating inner dome, and Raybender 3000 technology that captures more low-angle sunlight during the winter, as well as more...

Flick of a switch.(LaMar Lighting Co.)(Brief article)
August 2, 2008... Staff Self-powered wireless switch for fluorescent lighting fixtures can be installed anywhere on practically any surface and has a range of up to 150 feet. Switch-Smart does not require batteries or wires and allows users to switch on/off...

Mold-resistant exterior sheathing for veneers and curtain wall systems.(Temple-Inland Corp.)(Brief article)
August 2, 2008... Staff Fiberglass-faced gypsum sheathing is a mold-, moisture-, and weather-resistant gypsum board for a wide range of exterior veneers, including brick, stone, metal, wood, vinyl, EIFS, and various curtain wall systems. GreenGlass is...

Go green with SIPs.(Premier Building Systems )(Brief article)
August 2, 2008... Staff Consisting of a layer of expanded polystyrene insulation sandwiched between two layers of oriented strand board, Premier Building Systems's structural insulated panels (SIPs) feature a 60% higher whole-wall efficiency than...

Earn AIA/CES learning units with Building Design+Construction's 2008 continuing education series.
August 2, 2008... Staff Moisture Control: Envelope Strategies and Techniques for Protecting Building Value Among all the challenges plaguing buildings in the U.S., moisture-related problems are at the top of the list. This report offers design...

Metal mesh on the move.(Cambridge Architectural )(Brief article)
August 2, 2008... Staff Reelease provides the ability to raise and lower metal fabric with the touch of a button. A concealed, overhead-mounted, motorized reel releases the metal fabric downward and retracts it upward for concealed storage. The system was...

Stone veneer earns Greenguard certification.
August 2, 2008... Staff Manufactured with up to 10% fly ash and 10% scrap concrete, Cultured Stone and ProStone stone veneers from Owens Corning Masonry Products are certificated through Greenguard's Indoor Air Quality and Children & Schools product...

Light-transmitting concrete.(Brief article)
August 2, 2008... Staff Infused with thousands of glass fiber optic strands that transmit natural or artificial light, Schott's BrightBuild panels transform concrete from an opaque building material into one that can brighten any enclosed space. The panels,...

Channel glass.(Bendheim Wall Systems)(Brief article)
August 2, 2008... Staff An alternative to conventional interior, exterior, vertical, and horizontal glass wall systems, the LINIT channel glass wall system is a U-shaped cast glass produced in several widths from nine to 19 inches and in lengths up to 23...

Yarn gets new life as carpet tile.(InterfaceFLOR Inc.)(Brief article)
August 2, 2008... Staff New line of carpet tile from InterfaceFlor is manufactured with post-consumer yarn harvested through the company's ReEntry 2.0 closed-loop recycling program. Designed by David Oakey of David Oakey Designs, the Convert line is...

Glass wall opens without a track.(NanaWall Systems )(Brief article)
August 2, 2008... Staff NanaWall Systems has developed an adjustable locking receiver socket that makes it possible to use the company's trackless feature for exterior applications where water tightness is not a major concern. In the past, because of...

Coconut-palm flooring, wallcovering.(Smith & Fong )(Brief article)
August 2, 2008... Staff Plank flooring, plywood, and woven wall panels are made from 100% coconut-palm lumber that comes from reclaimed logs that are a byproduct of a palm plantation primarily devoted to the production of coconuts. Durapalm products are...

Modular carpet is fair and square.(J and J Commercial )(Brief article)
August 2, 2008... Staff Modular carpet for corporate interiors is architecturally tailored to provide a blend of complementing lights and darks. Fair & Square is available in nine colors and features a textured, patterned loop with varying pile heights....

Shaw, William McDonough collaborate on eco-carpet inspired by place making.(Shaw Contract Group)(Brief article)
August 2, 2008... Staff Drawing inspiration from the landscape of human creation and its impact on the world, the Essay of Clues carpet collection from Shaw Contract Group is a Cradle to Cradle-certified collection designed in collaboration with architect...

Biodegradable wallcoverings.(Wolf-Gordon Inc. )(Brief article)
August 2, 2008... Staff A new collection of seven biodegradable wallcoverings from Wolf-Gordon offers durability, washability, breathability, sustainability, and aesthetics--all at an affordable price. The Organics line is composed of three main elements....

Free building energy and carbon assessment software.(Integrated Environmental Solutions Inc.)(Brief article)
August 2, 2008... Staff Integrated Environmental Solutions's VE-Ware, available free online, provides limited access to its Virtual Environment Apache thermal analysis software, which allows Building Teams and facility managers to assess a building's energy...

Wind turbine is as quiet as a whisper.(Cascade Engineering)(Brief article)
August 2, 2008... Staff Rooftop wind turbine can generate up to 1500 watts of instantaneous power or approximately 2,000 kWh of electricity a year. The Swift Wind Turbine's design provides safe, efficient, quiet, and vibration-free operation (less than 35...

Solar-fighting paint.(Valspar Corp.)(Brief article)
August 2, 2008... Staff Spray-applied, factory-cured paint coating for the aluminum extrusion and wall panel market is formulated with solar reflective pigments that keep building components cooler than bare aluminum, anodized aluminum, and comparable paint...

Glass coating reduces glare, increases savings.(Guardian Industries Corp.)(Brief article)
August 2, 2008... Staff Low-e glass coating provides a neutral appearance with minimal glare while allowing an efficient amount of daylight to flood interior spaces. SuperNeutral 54 allows 54% light transmission and has a solar heat gain coefficient of...

Parking lot sprouts with vegetation.(Soil Retention )(Brief article)
August 2, 2008... Staff Drivable Grass consists of concrete "muffins" (right) that are connected by a grid system. The tile-like, 2x2-inch squares expand and conform to uneven ground surfaces without memory or coming apart. Even when saturated, Drivable...

Reach new heights in service and efficiency.(Brief article)
August 2, 2008... Staff Schindler's Miconic 10 elevator control system eliminates the standard push buttons inside elevator cars. Instead, passengers use an external keypad located in the lobby area of each floor to input their destination. The system...

Glass is hot on sound.(Saflex )(Brief article)
August 2, 2008... Staff Acoustic glass system combines three interlayers--including a patent-pending acoustical interlayer that transforms sound energy into heat--that are designed to decouple and disseminate sound waves by up to 50%. Saflex SilentGlass...

Recycled glass tile for walls, countertops, floors.(Crossville Ceramics)(Brief article)
August 2, 2008... Staff Created by color forecaster Barbara Schirmeister, the new Echo recycled glass line has a recycled content of 30-50% pre- and post-consumer material and is available in 15 colors, including white, black, and red, as well as soft...