Greenbuild 2013 Report - BD+C Exclusive

As the AEC industry braces for the changes posed by LEED v4, we examine the state of sustainable design and construction through an exclusive BD+C trends survey and analysis of green building in nine key building sectors.

Architecture firm trends

Exclusive survey: Architects balance ideals, skepticism regarding green strategies

Architects are seeking affirmation that the complex array of programs, systems, and tools at their disposal actually do result in more sustainable buildings, according to a recent survey of architects by Building Design+Construction. Read the article.

Healthcare sector

LEED for Healthcare offers new paths to green

LEED for Healthcare debuted in spring 2011, and certifications are now beginning to roll in. They include the new Puyallup (Wash.) Medical Center and the W.H. and Elaine McCarty South Tower at Dell Children’s Medical Center of Central Texas in Austin. Read the article.

Data centers

Facebook, Telus push the limits of energy efficiency with new data centers

Building Teams are employing a range of creative solutions—from evaporative cooling to novel hot/cold-aisle configurations to heat recovery schemes—in an effort to slash energy and water demand. Read the article.

Government/military sector

Government work keeps green AEC firms busy

With the economy picking up, many stalled government contracts are reaching completion and earning their green credentials. Read the article.

Multifamily sector

Net-zero bellwether demonstrates extreme green, multifamily style

The 10-unit zHome in Issaquah Highlands, Wash., is the nation’s first net-zero multifamily project, as certified this year by the International Living Future Institute. Read the article.

Higher education sector

Halls of ivy keep getting greener and greener

Academic institutions have been testing the limits of energy-conserving technologies, devising new ways to pay for sustainability extras, and extending sustainability to the whole campus. Read the article.

K-12 schools sector

Net-zero movement gaining traction in U.S. schools market

As more net-zero energy schools come online, school officials are asking: Is NZE a more logical approach for school districts than holistic green buildings? Read the article.

S+T sector

S+T buildings embrace 'no excuses' approach to green labs

Some science-design experts once believed high levels of sustainability would be possible only for low-intensity labs in temperate zones. But recent projects prove otherwise. Read the article.

Hospitality sector

Green hotel trends: Industry expands its sustainability focus beyond laundry

There’s more to creating a green hotel than saving water and power by asking guests to reuse their towels. Read the article.

Office sector

Can Big Data help building owners slash op-ex budgets?

Jones Lang LaSalle set out to answer these questions when it partnered with Pacific Controls to develop IntelliCommand, a 24/7 real-time remote monitoring and control service. Read the article.

Across the country, multifamily rents have skyrocketed. Year-over-year rents are up by double digits in nine of the top 30 markets, while national YoY rent growth is up 6.3%. Emerging from the pandemic, a perfect storm of migration, enhanced government stimulus and a hot housing market, among other factors, has enabled this extremely strong growth.

STEM High School Post-Occupancy Evaluation (POE) HorizonTV, LPA Architects

K-12 Schools | Jul 9, 2021

LPA Architects' STEM high school post-occupancy evaluation

LPA Architects conducted a post-occupancy evaluation, or POE, of the eSTEM Academy, a new high school specializing in health/medical and design/engineering Career Technical Education, in Eastvale, Calif. The POE helped LPA, the Riverside County Office of Education, and the Corona-Norco Unified School District gain a better understanding of which design innovations—such as movable walls, flex furniture, collaborative spaces, indoor-outdoor activity areas, and a student union—enhanced the education program, and how well students and teachers used these innovations.

Interior designer Creative License International fashioned this community room for P83, a 250-unit rental community in Peoria, Ariz. 2021 Multifamily Amenities study

Multifamily Housing | Jul 7, 2021

Make sure to get your multifamily amenities mix right

One of the hardest decisions multifamily developers and their design teams have to make is what mix of amenities they’re going to put into each project. A lot of squiggly factors go into that decision: the type of community, the geographic market, local recreation preferences, climate/weather conditions, physical parameters, and of course the budget. The permutations are mind-boggling.

Industrial Facilities | Jul 2, 2021

A new approach to cold storage buildings

Cameron Trefry and Kate Lyle of Ware Malcomb talk about their firm's cold storage building prototype that is serving a market that is rapidly expanding across the supply chain.

A post-pandemic ‘new normal’ for apartments, Grimm + Parker, Building Design+Construction 2021 Exercise area

Multifamily Housing | Jun 30, 2021

A post-pandemic ‘new normal’ for apartment buildings

Grimm + Parker’s vision foresees buildings with rentable offices and refrigerated package storage.

Resiliency | Jun 24, 2021

Oceanographer John Englander talks resiliency and buildings [new on HorizonTV]

New on HorizonTV, oceanographer John Englander discusses his latest book, which warns that, regardless of resilience efforts, sea levels will rise by meters in the coming decades. Adaptation, he says, is the key to future building design and construction.