Building Design & Construction articles from November 2003

Building Design & Construction archives from November 2003

Ciardullo: on design-build.
November 1, 2003... ROOTS What's interesting having gone to engineering school and worked as an engineer, is the point of view I gained as an architect about design-build. Usually, design-build puts architects and professionals in what appears to be initially a...

Greening the White House' redux.(Editorial)
November 1, 2003... Ten years ago, on April 21, 1993, President Clinton picked Earth Day to announce that 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue would soon be transformed into "a model for [energy] efficiency and waste reduction." The Greening of the White House is now...

The Red Cross moves with the times.(News & Trends)
November 1, 2003... Passersby familiar with the old American Red Cross National Headquarters building in Washington, D.C. may be doing a double-take these days: A 10-story building now rises behind the five-story building that has occupied the site since 1952. ...

Walter P. Moore Engineers and Consultants.(People/firms)
November 1, 2003... Structural engineer Walter P. Moore Engineers and Consultants, Houston, has opened an office in Los Angeles. Jeff Guh, S.E., has been named managing director of the new office.

Rolf Jensen & Associates.(People/firms)
November 1, 2003... Rolf Jensen & Associates, Chicago, has opened an office in Shanghai, China. RJA's current director of China operations, Fang Li, will head the new office, which will be located in the 88-story Jin Mao Building--currently the tallest building in...

Omaha, Neb.-based HDR Inc. has purchased certain assets of Store, Matakovich & Wolfberg, a South El Monte, Calif.-based mechanical/ electrical engineering firm.(People/firms)
November 1, 2003... Omaha, Neb.-based HDR Inc. has purchased certain assets of Stare, Matakovich & Wolfberg, a South El Monte, Calif.-based mechanical/electrical engineering firm. SMW staff members will co-locate with HDR's staff in a new Pasadena, Calif., office....

The Staubach Co.(People/firms)
November 1, 2003... The Staubach Co., Atlanta, has promoted Brian Terrell to executive vice president. Terrell leads Staubach's Design & Construction Consulting Services Practice Group.

St. Louis-based Guarantee Electrical Co. has acquired Kimsey Electrical Contracting.(People/firms)
November 1, 2003... St. Louis-based Guarantee Electrical Co. has acquired Kimsey Electrical Contracting, a division of Fischbach & Moore Electric Inc., forming Kimsey-Guarantee Electrical Contracting, headquartered in Denver.

A. Epstein and Sons International.(People/firms)
November 1, 2003... John Adams Dix has been named proiect director/architect for A. Epstein and Sons International, Chicago. He will lead the design efforts of Mc4West LLC, the design-build team for the McCormick Place West Expansion in Chicago.

Army captures 'SPiRiT' of sustainability.(News & Trends)
November 1, 2003... Green is now more than just the color of the uniform for the U.S. Army. A 43,000-sq.-ft. mission-critical communications facility under construction at Fort Gordon, Ga., is one of the Army's first projects to incorporate its Sustainable Project...

Clarification.
November 1, 2003... The story about Pittsburgh's David Lawrence Convention Center (August 2003) failed to mention that New York City-based Goldreich Engineering PC was the project's structural engineer of record, working in association with London-based Dewhurst...

A new $11.3 million undergraduate teaching and multi-disciplinary research laboratory.(Projects awarded)
November 1, 2003... * Charleston Southern University, Charleston, S.C., has broken ground on a new $11.3 million undergraduate teaching and multi-disciplinary research laboratory. When completed in January 2005, the two-story, 54,000-sq.-ft. building will house...

An adaptive reuse project.(Projects awarded)
November 1, 2003... * Dallas-based developer Simbol Commercial has selected The Weitz Co., Overland Park, Kan., as general contractor for an adaptive reuse project that will convert the historic 35-story Fidelity Tower in Kansas City into a mixed-use center with...

A $25 million, 120,000-s.f. expansion.(Projects awarded)
November 1, 2003... * The local desert landscape serves as design inspiration for a $25 million, 120,000-s.f. expansion to the Palm Springs (Calif.) Convention Center, which broke ground early this month. Designed by Denver-based Fentress Bradburn Architects, the...

New $100 million R&D facility in Suffern, N.Y.(Projects awarded)
November 1, 2003... * Skanska USA Building Inc., Parsippany, N.J., has been named CM for Avon Products Inc.'s new $100 million R&D facility in Suffern, N.Y. Expected to open in spring 2005, the new center will encompass chemistry labs for the development of...

Advocate of education.(Letters)
November 1, 2003... Our office of 54 currently has five LEED-accredited architects and landscape architects. We believe there is true value in sustainability and encourage environmental stewardship in our entire team. We hope to use our knowledge and experience to...

Costs going down.(Letters)
November 1, 2003... The LEED certification program does provide the project team with the best benchmarking available to analyze how "green" a building really is. It also allows the contractor to analyze what the cost impacts (both first and life cycle) might be...

Cooperation, please.(Letters)
November 1, 2003... There is still too much of an "us and them" attitude from the green building groups and developers. The focus has to be both what's right for the environment and what still makes good financial sense. LEED certification is not easy to achieve....

LEED in a hot climate.(Letters)
November 1, 2003... Most architecture-related and LEED-related discussions locus on temperate climates. We work on projects in a subtropical climate. It would be good to discuss building in a hot and humid climate. Christopher Kariher, AIA ...

Welcome mat put out for hotel recovery.(Industry Data)
November 1, 2003... If projections hold true, the five quarter surge in hotel spending would be the same length and pace as the last lodging market construction recovery in 1995-96. Although construction spending for hotels declined in June and July, activity...

After hitting bottom, office readies for a climb.(Industry Data)
November 1, 2003... Spending for office construction has been steady since January as the office vacancy rate has bottomed out at about 16.5% in the first two quarters But the first signs of a beginning recovery have now appeared. The square footage of vacant...

Manufacturing produces positive signs.(Industry Data)
November 1, 2003... Manufacturing is the most depressed construction sector, with no change in that status expected for several years. Nonetheless, the 70% decline since early 1998 has ended. Monthly spending was up in seven of the last 12 months, rising 1.8 % in...

Contractors keep hiring in soft labor market.(Industry Data)
November 1, 2003... Building and specialty trade contractors added 103,200 jobs year-to-date through September, while all other employers laid off 439,000 workers. By the end of the year, overall employment is expected to be increasing 50,000-100,000 jobs a...

Cost comparisons per square foot in select metro markets.(Industry Data)
November 1, 2003... Cost comparisons per square foot in select metro markets Hospital, 2-3 story Hospital, 4-8 story '03 '02 % chg. '03 '02 % chg. Atlanta 139.19 135.93 2.4 ...

Mediation of disputes an option to litigation.(Legal Insights)
November 1, 2003... Key points and benefits of mediation * Mediation allows the parties to control the outcome rather than turning the dispute over to strangers with no construction expertise. * Mediation is a process of compromise, and neither party...

Software to help make it green.(Computer Applications)
November 1, 2003... No doubt about it. Planning, designing, and building with an eye toward sustainability is more than just a fad. In the last three years, the amount of square footage registered for certification by the Washington, D.C.-based U.S. Green Building...

Driven to be green: with its U.S. headquarters addition, Toyota Motor Sales set out to prove that large-scale sustainability doesn't have to be a costly proposition.
November 1, 2003... The perception that sustainable design and construction inherently contains a substantial cost premium, especially for big projects, is belied by the completion of the south campus addition to the Toyota Motor Sales headquarters in Torrance,...

New station is high on hydrogen.(Sustainable Development)
November 1, 2003... While Toyota's south campus includes a host of sustainable elements, a unique adjunct to the campus was the installation of a hydrogen fueling and service station, which supports the company's fuel cell development program. Produced by...

Economics casts tilt-up as top choice for exterior.(Sustainable Development)
November 1, 2003... The project's limited budget and the fact that it was a campus setting, which would require significant amounts of paving stones and landscaping, led the design team to select tilt-up concrete for the buildings's skin, says Dan Heinfeld,...

Where passion prevails: a trio of projects--a speculative office building, a renovated storefront, and a nature center--show how sustainable design can mold a building's very soul.(Sustainable Development)
November 1, 2003... A Speculative Office Gamble Many speculative office developers consider sustainable design an expensive and troublesome luxury that offers little return on their investment dollar. But in its EcoWorks at Southlake office park in Lenexa,...

Walking the walk: the U.S. EPA leads by example with its newest laboratory--a LEED Gold-rated project.(Sustainable Development)
November 1, 2003... For officials with the U.S. General Services Administration and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, the New England Regional Laboratory in North Chelmsford, Mass., represented more than a new $18 million testing facility: It was an...

Meeting EPA's ever-changing laboratory needs.(Sustainable Development)
November 1, 2003... Laboratories are complex structures in comparison to typical office buildings or other commercial structures, and each lab has needs that are unique to its purpose. The U.S. EPA's New England Regional Laboratory in North Chelmsford, Mass.,...

Disposal discipline: contractors are upgrading their waste management programs to meet impending regulations and the demands of the green building movement.(Sustainable Development)
November 1, 2003... When it comes to the disposal of construction demolition and waste materials, contractors are cleaning up their act, and with good reason: at least one state is about to tighten up its construction waste regulations, Federal agencies will...

Contractor sets an example with green HQ.(Sustainable Development)
November 1, 2003... A Houston general contractor bought solidly into sustainable design by incorporating green principles in its new 22,000-sq.-ft. headquarters. SpawGlass Construction began planning for its new headquarters in May 2002, after finding a buyer...

Progressive collapse: structural engineers are discovering new ways to deal with this deadly phenomenon in the wake of the 9/11 attacks.(High-Rise Safety)
November 1, 2003... The destruction of the World Trade Center towers has heightened concern about the progressive collapse of buildings. Ironically, engineers disagree on the definition of this phenomenon, and many argue that the factors surrounding the 2001...

Top 10 green building products.(Green Products)
November 1, 2003... Laboratory casework made from straw-based particleboard and a spray-foam insulation derived from soybean oil--these are among the winners of BuildingGreen's 2003 Top 10 Green Products awards. The Brattleboro, Vt.-based publisher of the...

Say cheese.(Products at work)
November 1, 2003... Swiss-American Inc., an importer and distributor of specialty foods, used more than 80,000 square feet of horizontal, vertical, temperature-control, and partition-wall metal panels for its new headquarters facility in St. Louis. The cold...

Knock down.(Cladding)
November 1, 2003... Designed for low- to mid-rise buildings, the 8250 STX curtainwall system is manufactured to be knocked down so it can be shipped long distances and is easy to load and unload. The system features tubular vertical framing in lieu of I-beams to...

Going deep.(Cladding)
November 1, 2003... The Gillette Stadium in Foxboro, Mass., was designed by architect HOK Sport + Events + Venue with a 7 1/4-in. overall depth curtainwall that incorporates structured silicone glazing, captured with various-depth horizontal face caps. The...

Expanded education.(Products at work)
November 1, 2003... The renovation and expansion of Olin Hall of Science on the campus of Bradley University in Peoria, Ill., used 32,500 square feet of 4-mm Alucobond material in a champagne metallic color. Minimal floor-to-floor heights and the need to gut and...

Fresh produce.(Products at work)
November 1, 2003... Henry's Marketplace in Costa Mesa, Calif., is a natural and organic food market and the national test site for Alto T5 lamps, which offer the lowest mercury content of any T5 lamps, according to the manufacturer. The lamps are small, allowing...

Energy-efficient ballast.(Lamps & Ballasts)
November 1, 2003... Ballast combines multi-voltage capabilities with high energy efficiency. Its ability to run on 120 or 277 volts means fewer light sources are needed. A multi-voltage control allows the Ultramax electronic ballast to read an incoming voltage and...

Dim the lights.(Lamps & Ballasts)
November 1, 2003... Fluorescent ballast with built-in infrared dimmer is designed to make individual fixture control simple, with human control of overhead lighting through a handheld IR transmitter. The Eco-10 IR can be installed like standard nondimming ballasts...

Light maintenance.(Lamps & Ballasts)
November 1, 2003... Two-lamp ballast for operation of 14W, 21W, 28W, and 35W T5 fluorescent lamps can be used to drive one lamp, while maintaining a ballast factor of 1.00. Sensors in the Quicktronic PS shut when lamps reach end-of-life, while also avoiding false...

High powered.(Lamps & Ballasts)
November 1, 2003... Dimming ballast for the operation of one or two 18-watt Triple or Quad Tube Compact Fluorescent Lamps offers full-range, continuous dimming capability, allowing users to adjust lighting levels to fit their needs and enhance their visual...

Master protection.(Flooring)
November 1, 2003... Flooring system is a multipurpose broadcast, slurry broadcase, or mortar-applied floor-topping system that is designed for warehouses, institutions, and industrial manufacturing or processing facilities. The Series 237 Power-Tread system...

Slip and slide.(Flooring)
November 1, 2003... Vinyl flooring line includes three designs which come in a wide variety of styles and colors, including wood-, metallic-, and pearly-looking sheets. The flooring is suited for heavy-duty areas and large open spaces. Forbo Linoleum. ...

Emergency flooring.(Flooring)
November 1, 2003... Vinyl sheet flooring for healthcare facilities is available in 15 natural colors designed to resist indentation, rolling, and static loads. A protective urethane finish helps the floor increase scuff resistance. Heat welding allows for clean,...

Tough rubber.(Products at work)
November 1, 2003... The Lenape Meadows School in Mahwah, N.J., selected 65,000 square feet of rubber flooring products for its two-story, state-of-the-art facility. Chosen because it could be installed without seams, requires no waxing, and provides protection...

No sound.(Products Flooring)
November 1, 2003... Sound insulation flooring system for retrofit or new construction is a high-performance acoustical membrane. Ecosilence is effective directly underneath floor coverings, including wood, laminate, bamboo, vinyl, hardwood, granite, marble,...

Art alive.(Products Flooring)
November 1, 2003... The 18x18-in. carpet tile is a random combination of nylon yarn colors that enables tiles to mesh together, yet no two are the same. ArtCraft is made of 100% post-production yarn. Type 6,6 nylon is tufted in a loop pile for use anywhere in a...

A report on the Green Building Movement.(White Paper on Sustainability)
November 1, 2003... Sustainable development is the most vibrant and powerful force to impact the building design and construction field in more than a decade. In this White Paper, the editors of Building Design & Construction offer a brief history of green...

Why a White Paper on sustainability?(White Paper on Sustainability)
November 1, 2003... The November 2002 convention of the U.S. Green Building Council signaled a momentous upturn of activity and interest in sustainable design and construction. Attendance at Greenbuild 2002, as the Austin, Texas, conclave was known, was...

Executive summary.(White Paper On Sustainability)
November 1, 2003... This report traces the history of the green building movement in the U.S. and internationally, from the earliest days of the environmental movement to the present. It examines developments at the international, Federal, state, and local level,...

A brief history of green building.(White Paper On Sustainability)
November 1, 2003... What is green building? The Office of the Federal Environmental Executive defines green building as "the practice of 1) increasing the efficiency with which buildings and their sites use energy, water, and materials, and 2) reducing building...

The basics of LEED.(White Paper On Sustainability)
November 1, 2003... The Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design Green Building Rating Program is, in the words of the U.S. Green Building Council, "a national consensus-based, market-driven building rating system designed to accelerate the development and...

NAIMA North American Insulation Manufacturers Association.
November 1, 2003... The North American Insulation Manufacturers Association (NAIMA) is a trade association representing nearly all manufacturers of fiber glass, rock and slag wool insulations produced in North America. NAIMA's industry role centers on promoting...

The world's best roof: Duro-Last[R].
November 1, 2003... Since 1978, Duro-Last[R] Roofing, Inc. has manufactured a custom-prefabricated, reinforced, thermoplastic single-ply roofing system that is ideal for any flat or low-sloped application. Extremely durable and easily installed by authorized...

Where our readers stand on sustainability.(White Paper On Sustainability)
November 1, 2003... As part of our research for this White Paper, the editors asked the Reed Research Group, Newton, Mass. (a division of our parent company, Reed Business Information), to conduct a survey of Building Design & Construction's readers. The 76,001...

The Vinyl Institute.
November 1, 2003... All buildings have environmental impacts, and building materials figure into these equations. The Vinyl Institute, representing manufacturers of the most widely used plastic raw material in building and construction, appreciates the challenges...

Interface.
November 1, 2003... Inspired by our customers, Interface has discovered that the business case for sustainability is one worth pursuing Consider it in terms of risk management, markets, people, processes, products, profits, and purpose, all based on focusing...

Lafarge North America is the U.S. and Canada's largest diversified supplier of construction materials such as cement and cement-related products, ready-mixed concrete, gypsum wallboard, aggregates, asphalt and concrete products.
November 1, 2003... Lafarge North America is the U.S. and Canada's largest diversified supplier of construction materials such as cement and cement-related products, ready-mixed concrete, gypsum wallboard, aggregates, asphalt and concrete products. The company's...

International green building developments.(White Paper On Sustainability)
November 1, 2003... The United States is by no means the only participant in the green building arena. Europeans have been thinking green for a long time. Environmental building assessment got its start in the United Kingdom. It was there, more than 80 years...

The federal role in green building.(White Paper On Sustainability)
November 1, 2003... Federal agencies, both civilian and military, were among the earliest advocates of green building nationally. Today, U.S. government buildings comprise about 10% of the projects registered in the USGBC's LEED program. Federal agencies and...

State and local green initiatives.(White Paper On Sustainability)
November 1, 2003... As state and local governments scramble to pass green building legislation, it must be asked if these efforts do, in fact, promote the growth of sustainable building practices in the design and construction of public and private buildings. Do...

Sorting through the green product maze.(White Paper On Sustainability)
November 1, 2003... The green products market has exploded in the past decade, from low-VOC adhesives to energy-efficient lighting, to recyclable carpet. A number of independent product certification and standards organizations have sprung up, offering online...

Do green buildings cost more to build?(White Paper On Sustainability)
November 1, 2003... Do green buildings cost more to build than conventional buildings? And do they produce benefits beyond the norm--improved productivity of occupant workers, better health, higher job satisfaction, or other factors that create value for their...

Human and social benefits of green building.(White Paper On Sustainability)
November 1, 2003... Are green buildings healthier for occupants than conventional buildings? If so, does this benefit translate into improved worker productivity, greater creativity in problem solving, more efficient task-handling, perhaps even lower health...

Wood[TM] Promotion Network: be constructive.
November 1, 2003... The Wood Promotion Network is the first-ever North American coalition of wood product manufacturers, suppliers, associations and others. With over 300 partners, and more joining every day, our exclusive purpose is to tell wood's story: Because...

The future of sustainable development.(White Paper On Sustainability)
November 1, 2003... An estimated $15 billion worth of green buildings are currently in design or under construction in the U.S., representing 12-15% of total public construction and about 2% of private-sector construction, according to Capital E's Gregory Kats....

White paper action plan.(White Paper on Sustainability)
November 1, 2003... The following recommendations from the editors of Building Design & Construction are addressed primarily to the North American commercial, institutional, industrial, and multifamily residential construction market. The editors have strived to...

GSA.
November 1, 2003... GSA's Public Buildings Service is committed to incorporating principles of sustainable design and energy efficiency into all of our building projects. The result is an optimal balance of cost, environmental, societal and human benefits that...

The Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE) leads the Federal government's research development and deployment (RD&D) efforts to provide reliable affordable and environmentally sound energy for America's future.
November 1, 2003... The Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE) leads the Federal government's research development and deployment (RD&D) efforts to provide reliable affordable and environmentally sound energy for America's future. Our vision is:...

Gensler.
November 1, 2003... We are an international architecture and design firm--1,700 people in 25 cities--that works across the lull development cycle to connect building performance explicitly to our clients' organizational goals and strategies. In 2000, we were named...