System for installing grease duct enclosures achieves UL listing

Morgan Thermal Ceramics worked closely with UL (Underwriter’s Laboratories Inc.) to certify a new installation method for grease duct enclosures used in commercial construction.

The new system, an update to the existing classification, results in a 33% space saving. To obtain UL listing for the modified installation method, Morgan Thermal Ceramics conducted extensive fire performance testing in accordance with ASTM E 2336.

The improved installation method is part of a complete system that includes all materials and the way the materials are installed. The wrapping system uses Morgan Thermal Ceramics’ FireMaster FastWrap XL products, which are installed using compression joints at all seams on both layers of a 2-layer grease duct system.

Also included is the new FireMaster FastDoor XL UL-listed access door for grease ducts, which provides a safe and easy way to gain access to kitchen ducts for cleaning and inspection.

The system is for use in commercial construction and is expected to be widely used by mechanical HVAC contractors, insulation, mechanical, and general contractors, as well as duct designers and architects. BD+C

Earlier this month, my colleague and I presented a session to a group of civil engineers and transportation agencies about the tech trends in the AEC space. Along with advice on how to prepare your plan for controlled collaboration, we also talked through some practical use cases. One such use case was especially interesting, as it outlined a challenge not unfamiliar to government agencies who are contemplating the leap from paper to digital processes: how to securely migrate workflows.

For an 1893 academic building in the Collegiate Gothic style at Bryn Mawr (Pa.)

| Apr 16, 2014

Upgrading windows: repair, refurbish, or retrofit [AIA course]

Building Teams must focus on a number of key decisions in order to arrive at the optimal solution: repair the windows in place, remove and refurbish them, or opt for full replacement.

Eli and Edythe Broad Art Museum, East Lansing, Mich. Photo credit: Justin Macono

| Apr 15, 2014

12 award-winning structural steel buildings

Zaha Hadid's Broad Art Museum and One World Trade Center are among the projects honored by the American Institute of Steel Construction for excellence in structural steel design.

| Apr 15, 2014

First look: Zaha Hadid reveals designs for dreamy sculptural hotel - CORRECTED

Hadid's design, which will become the fifth hotel tower in the City of Dreams entertainment hub, features a latticed exoskeleton enveloping the building's exterior. The 40-floor, 150,000-square-foot space is envisioned as a monolith with voids carved throughout.

David Chipperfield Architects has won the Nobel Center architectural competition

| Apr 15, 2014

Chipperfield's sparkling brass-clad scheme selected to be new home of Nobel Prize

The distinctive building, with its shimmering vertical brass elements and glass façade design, beat out two other finalists in the Nobel Center architectural competition.