7 must reads for the AEC industry today: April 7, 2020

1. As cities scramble for hospital beds to treat COVID-19 patients, Leo A Daly offers a hotel-to-hospital solution (BD+C)
Leo A Daly is currently negotiating with several hoteliers about converting large portfolios of hotels into healthcare facilities that follow the firm’s Hotel2Hospital prototype, which would conform with design guidelines released last week to state governments by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, which relax some of the hospital safety standards.

2. New South Korean retail building looks like a molting insect (BD+C)
The building, Galleria’s sixth branch, has a very unique design to say the least. The facade combines multifaceted glass that appears to be breaking out from within opaque stone, as if the building was shedding its old skin and revealing the new.

3. How to convert college dorms to support the coronavirus crisis (NBBJ)
With the number of global coronavirus cases increasing each day, health centers are more burdened than ever before, witnessing severe bed shortages for critically-ill patients. At the same time, housing at many higher education institutions now stands mostly vacant — with hundreds of thousands of students home for social distancing and instruction now delivered online.

4. COVID-19's impact on the multifamily sector (BD+C)
COVID-19 is taking its toll on the U.S. vertical construction market. In a March 23-26 survey by the Associated General Contractors of America, 20% of the 659 respondents from "buildings contractors" reported projects being shut down or delayed by government officials, while 45% of those surveyed said an owner had instructed them to halt or cancel construction on a current or planned project.

5. Number of confirmed delayed projects reaches 2,550 in the U.S., 1,350 in Canada (ConstructConnect)
ConstructConnect's Delayed Project Tracker is updated daily.

6. Climate-informed HVAC increases in relative humidity may fight pandemic viruses (SmithGroup)
Indoor relative humidity is a function of seasonal climate and building HVAC. The range of 40% to 60% RH may reduce contagion and help those who are infected.

7. Construction completed on first phase of Chicago's McCormick Place into Alternate Care Facility (Walsh Construction)
"Walsh Construction is leading the temporary conversion of a portion of the McCormick Place Convention Center into an Alternate Care Facility for novel coronavirus patients."