BD+C editors and our contributors posted hundreds of blogs in 2013. Here's a recap of the most popular topics. They include valuable lessons from one of the first BIM-related lawsuits and sage advice from AEC legend Arthur Gensler.
1. Lawsuit teaches valuable lesson on BIM and communication
While browsing through some magazines on a flight, I read a cautionary tale about one of the first BIM-related lawsuits. The crux of the issue centered on the lack of communication between the architect, MEP engineer, and contractor. By Sasha Reed Read the post.
2. Eight of history’s biggest design blunders
“Learn from the mistakes of others. You can’t live long enough to make them all yourself.” Eleanor Roosevelt’s famous quote rings true when one considers the many failures and resulting lessons learned in the history of architecture, engineering and design. By Cannon Design Read the post.
3. Arthur Gensler to architects: Don't give away your ideas
The founder of Gensler advises dozens of up-and-coming AEC professionals at BD+C's Under 40 Leadership Summit in San Francisco. By David Barista Read the post.
4. Are these the '10 buildings that changed America'? Not likely
The other day we posted an announcement about PBS's upcoming special, "10 Buildings That Changed America." I don't pretend to be an architectural historian, but does anyone else think there are some unusual choices here? By Robert Cassidy Read the post.
5. Brainstorming solutions to BIM implementation challenges – What hardware do you really need?
Even as more owners, agencies, and AEC firms are turning to BIM, it is impossible to ignore the fact that many of these organizations are still struggling with BIM implementation. By Sasha Reed Read the post.
6. Three new insulation materials could be powerful solutions on commercial retrofits
Three innovative insulation materials, including vacuum insulation panels and phase-change materials, could soon be used for commercial building retrofits in the U.S., as costs of these products fall and revamped local building codes allow their use. By Drew Ballensky Read the post.
7. Does billing by the hour still make sense?
What’s an idea really worth? That’s the question posed by The New York Times in a provocative article that explores whether the notion of billing time still makes economic sense. By Steven Burns Read the post.
8. BIM 2.0 and Google Glass: Science fiction or coming attractions for a job site near you?
Todd Wynne of Rogers-O’Brien Construction is one of only 8,000 people around the globe granted a pair of Google Glass for testing. Here's what he's been up to with the technology. By Sasha Reed Read the post.
9. Better ways to manage PDF drawing sets – A customer's wish comes true
Sometimes in order to solve a challenge, you simply need walk around the problem and look at it from different angles. By Sasha Reed Read the post.
10. Shuttered Pyramid arena in Memphis to be renovated for Bass Pro Shops
The vacant Pyramid arena in downtown Memphis will be transformed into a Bass Pro Shop. Instead of a 210-room hotel on three floors around The Pyramid's interior, Bass Pro Shops founder Johnny Morris is considering building 60 to 80 "cabins" inside the building. By Drew Ballensky Read the post.
Related Stories
| May 31, 2013
Nation's first retrofitted zero-energy building opens in California
The new training facility for IBEW/NECA is the first commercial building retrofit designed to meet the U.S. Department of Energy’s requirements for a net-zero energy building.
| May 30, 2013
The Make It Right squabble: ‘How many trees did you plant today?’
A debate has been raging in the blogosphere over the last few months about an article in The New Republic, “If You Build It, They Might Not Come,” in which staff writer Lydia DePillis took Brad Pitt’s Make It Right Foundation to task for botching its effort to revitalize the Lower Ninth Ward of New Orleans.
| May 30, 2013
5 tips for running a successful BIM coordination meeting
BIM modeling tools are great, but if you can't run efficient, productive coordination meetings, the Building Team will never realize the benefits of true BIM coordination. Here are some helpful tips for making the most of coordination meetings.
| May 29, 2013
Realtors report positive trends in commercial real estate market
Realtors who practice commercial real estate have reported an increase in annual gross income for the third year in a row, signaling the market is on the road to recovery.
| May 29, 2013
6 award-winning library projects
The Anacostia Neighborhood Library in Washington, D.C., and the renovation of Cass Gilbert’s grand Beaux-Arts library in St. Louis are among six projects to be named 2013 AIA/ALA Library Building Award winners.
| May 28, 2013
LED lighting's risks and rewards
LED lighting technology provides unique advantages, but it’s also important to understand its limitations for optimized application.
| May 28, 2013
Minneapolis transit hub will double as cultural center [slideshow]
The Building Team for the Interchange project in downtown Minneapolis is employing the principles of "open transit" design to create a station that is one part transit, one part cultural icon.
| May 24, 2013
James Turrell's art installation turns Guggenheim Museum into 'skyspace'
James Turrell, an artist whose projects are more properly defined as "light sculptures," will have a major installation at the Guggenheim Museum this summer, turning Frank Lloyd Wright's famed serpentine atrium into a show of shifting colors and textures. The site-specific project, Aten Reign, will run from June 21 to September 25.
| May 24, 2013
First look: Revised plan for Amazon's Seattle HQ and 'biodome'
NBBJ has released renderings of a revised plan for Amazon's new three-block headquarters in Seattle. The proposal would replace a previously approved six-story office building with a three-unit "biodome."
