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Urban Planning

Bridging the gap: How early architect involvement can revolutionize a city’s capital improvement plans

Capital Improvement Plans (CIPs) typically span three to five years and outline future city projects and their costs. While they set the stage, the design and construction of these projects often extend beyond the CIP window, leading to a disconnect between the initial budget and evolving project scope. This can result in financial shortfalls, forcing cities to cut back on critical project features.



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Aug 11, 2010

TRACO wins Crystal Achievement Award for most innovative manufacturing plant

Cranberry Township, Pa. - TRACO has been selected as the winner of the 2009 Crystal Achievement…
Aug 11, 2010

Stimulus funding helps get NOAA project off the ground

The award-winning design for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s (NOAA) new Southwest Fisheries Science Center (SWFSC) replacement laboratory saw its first sign of movement on Sept 15 with a groundbreaking ceremony held in La Jolla, Calif. The $102 million project is funded primarily by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA), resulting in a rapidly advanced construction plan for the facility.
Aug 11, 2010

Performance-based Safety Code seeks to enhance new elevator technology

An elevator’s condition invariably makes a statement about a building. Basic functionality is…
Aug 11, 2010

Two Pennsylvania Capitol Complex buildings set to achieve 30% energy savings through efficiency upgrades, solar panels

BUFFALO GROVE, Ill., June 11, 2009 - Siemens Building Technologies, Inc., working in cooperation…
Aug 11, 2010

JanCom Technologies expands headquarters

JanCom Technologies, Inc., an Austin, Texas-based technology, infrastructure, audio-visual, and critical power systems consulting and engineering services firm, continues to grow due to an influx of high-profile international projects. The company recently expanded to a 5,000-square-foot office space at 206 Wild Basin Road. The move represents a 2,000-square-foot increase in space to accommodate the company’s growth.
Aug 11, 2010

New book on ‘Green Workplace’ by HOK’s Leigh Stringer, a BD+C 40 under 40 winner

The new book The Green Workplace is a comprehensive guide that demonstrates how green businesses can reduce costs, improve recruitment and retention, increase shareholder value, and contribute to a healthier natural environment.
Aug 11, 2010

LEED 2009 cites FloorScore Certification as indicator of indoor air quality

The U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) has cited FloorScore® certified flooring products as eligible for credits under the new LEED 2009 Version 3 guidelines. Reflecting the inclusion of FloorScore, the new LEED IEQ Credit 4.3 for Low-Emitting Materials has been expanded from “Carpet Systems” to “Flooring Systems” to include hard surface flooring.
Aug 11, 2010

BIM adoption rate exceeds 80% among nation’s largest AEC firms

The nation’s largest architecture, engineering, and construction companies are on the BIM bandwagon in a big way, according to Building Design+Construction’s premier Top 170 BIM Adopters ranking, published as part of the 2009 Giants 300 survey. Of the 320 AEC firms that participated in Giants survey, 83% report having at least one BIM seat license in house, and nearly a quarter (23%) have 100-plus seats.

Aug 11, 2010

New air-conditioning design standard allows for increased air speed to cool building interiors

Building occupants, who may soon feel cooler from increased air movement, can thank a committee of building science specialists. The committee in charge of ANSI/ASHRAE Standard 55 - Thermal Environmental Conditions for Human Occupancy—after months of study and discussion--has voted recently to allow increased air speed as an option for cooling building interiors.  In lay terms, increased air speed is the equivalent of turning up the fan.
Aug 11, 2010

Rouss & Robertson Halls
University of Virginia McIntire School of Commerce
Charlottesville, Va.

Rouss Hall, a historic 24,000-sf building designed by Stanford White, served as the home of the University of Virginia’s McIntire School of Commerce from 1955 to 1975. Thirty years later, the university unveiled plans to have the business school return to the small, outdated 110-year-old facility, but this time with the addition of a 132,000-sf companion building to be named Robertson Hall.
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