Iano's backfill

BIM On the Construction Site

BIM, Beyond Clash Detection (www.constructech.com, March 29, 2011) provides an interesting discussion of recent trends in the intergation of building information modeling (BIM) with the construction process. Of particular interet to this author is the role of BIM in increasing the organization and efficiency of subtrade work, an aspect of building construction that lags behind many other industries.

Carbon Negative Cement

Material ConneXion has given its 2010 Material of the Year Award to Carbon Negative Cement, developed by Novacem. Unllike traditional portland cement production, a major contributor to global greenhouse gas emissions, the production of Novacem's cement actually consumes carbon dioxide, making it a carbon-negative material.

Sustainable Very Tall Buildings

Newton Suites and other endeavors (video, Council On Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat) is an interesting lecture given to the Council at their October 2009, Chicago conferance. WOHA founding partner Mun Summ Wong's disusses sustainable tall buildings. Some of the idea discussed include:

Monsoon windows Natural ventilation Daylighting Natural clothes drying Double-skin facades Sky streets Sky parks/sky gardens Intimate scales within a taller structure Vertical green Individualization of facades elements

The Comparitive Sustainability of Structural Materials

Materials Matter (Architecture Record, March 2011) compares the life cycle effects of wood, steel, and concrete construction. this article provides an informative discussion of life cycle analysis techniques and interesting comparisons of these three structural materials. (Caveat: The article is sponsored by a group affiliated with the forestry industry.)

Regarding comparing the embodied effects of various building materials, the current issue of Architecture Record (March 2011, p. 115) has an article comparing the life cycle effects of wood, steel, and concrete construction. As I mentioned in my talk, this article was sponsored by a group affiliated with the forestry industry. Nevertheless, I think the material is useful.

 

The article is also available online here: http://continuingeducation.construction.com/article.php?L=221&C=754 .

High Snow Loads Lead to Roof Collapses

The heavy snow accumulations of the 2010/2011 winter, especially in the Northeast U.S., have caused an unusually high number of roof collapses. Suggested causes include inadequate engineering attention to drifted snow loads, and ice damming at fronzen roof drains leading to excessive standing water accumulation.

• Ice, Snow Take Toll on Northeast Roofs, But Engineers Say Codes Are Adequate, enr.construction.com, 2/16/11
• Across U.S., Snowloads Test Roof Structures, midwest.construction.com, 02/13/2011
• Forensics Team Seeks Cause Of Midwest Green Roof Collapse, midwest.construction.com, February 17, 2011

The Growth of Green Building

Is the rate of growth of green building high (The Extraordinary Growth of Green Building – A Rebuttal to The Green Building Adoption Rate is Slow, Find Out The Practical Reasons Why, greeneconomypost.com, February 18, 20011)?

Or is it low (The Green Building Adoption Rate is Slow, Find Out The Practical Reasons Why, greeneconomypost.com, January 6, 2011)?

Tall Buildings and The City

How Skyscrapers Can Save the City, Atlantic Magazine, March 2011, is a provocative analysis of the role of tall buildings and density in the development of cities and the fostering of social equity. Some additional interesting features are also included, such as a interactive graphic of the historical development of tall building structures, an interview with article author Edward Glaeser, an historical gallery of architecture by Louis Sullivan, articles on the world's most dynamic cities, and more.

Net-Zero Growth

Tallest Net-Zero-Energy-Use Building in U.S. Planned for Portland, Ore., enr.construction.com, 12/8/10, reports on the planned construction of the 7- to 9-story Oregon Sustainability Center. The project is being designed to receive Living Building Challenge certification, which includes in part, net-0 energy comsumption, net-0 water use, and net-0 carbon emissions.

(Image: Sketch from aplanning session, from the Oregon Sustainability Center website)

Modular Schools

Back To School in Los Angeles,The Architect's Newspaper, 2/7/2011, reports on the Los Angeles Unified School District's recent selection of a modular, prefabricated system of building parts for the future design of schools ranging in size from 6000 to 30,000 sf in size. Using designs from local firms Hodgetts+Fung, Swift Lee Office, and Gonzalez Goodale, four or five facilities will be built, with more to follow if the initial results are satisfactory. The designs are purported to be inexpensive and quick to construct, easy to maintain, and--of course--sustainable.

Houses Fabricated to Order

Custom-Made House (MIT Spectrum, Winter 2011) reports on MIT Professor Larry Sass's efforts to industrialize the automated production of custom housing. In Sass's vision, prospective home owners would choose from house design options online. A computer driven process would then fabricate components to be delivered to the construction site. These precision-fitted could be assemblied without the need for nails or other mechanical fastners.

Related info:

• MIT Digital Design and Fabrication Group

Shanghai Tower planned for 2014

In The Master Builder, urbananatomy.com reports on the Shanghai Tower, which will be the world's second tallest building when completed in 2014.

This interesting interview with the design architect, Marshall Strabala discusses the cultural context of the project, technical aspects of the tower, and some of the sustainable features contributing to the building's LEED Gold pre-registration.

Tunneling the New York City Subway

Engineering News Record is publishing a series of videos about tunneling work for the New York City Second Avenue Subway line. The tunneling work itself, as well as the complex planning and logistics required, are both interesting:

Video Part 1

Video Part 2

 

Green Challenge: Are we really making better buildings?

LEED Sets New Standard; Critics Question If It's Living Up to It (Architecture Record online, 1/30/2011) reports on questions coming from within the design and construction industry regarding the true beneifits of standardized green design. Is a building designed to LEED standards really more energy efficient than one that is not?

More info:

• USGBC, LEED Targeted by Class-Action Suit
• Lies, Damn Lies, and... (Another Look at LEED Energy Efficiency)

First, green roofs, next green walls?

In Portland, Going Green and Growing Vertical in a Bid for Energy Savings (New York Times online, January 30, 2010) describes the planned renovation of the Portland Edith Green-Wendell Wyatt Federal Building General Services Administration building. The project incorporates green fins, more than 200 feet high, that will support a vertical garden wall. Plant type will be selected to provide shade in the summer and increased light transmission in the winter. Questions of plant maintenance and irrigation are still being resolved. 

The $133 million project is being performed under the GSA's new Office of Federal High-Performance Buildings program. When complete, the building is predicted to consume 60 to 65 percent less energy than comparable buildings.

LEED Pilot Credits Program

USGBC's LEED credit piloting program provides a framework for testing and refining proposed new prerequisites and credits prior to their formal introduction into the core LEED rating systems. Building teams interested in making use of pilot credits can apply to participate in the program. Current pilot credits include:

Life Cycle Assessment of Building Assemblies and Materials

This credit seeks to encourage the use of environmentally preferable materials based on life-cycle analysis scoring. An approved Environmental Impact Calculator is used to assess materials in various assembly types, such as columns and beams, floors, exterior walls, windows, etc. Results of this assessment are transferred to a second calculator, the USGBC Credit Calculator, to determine a life-cycle impact score and number of LEED points to be awarded. Up to 5 points, plus 2 additional innovation points can be achieved.

A this time, the approved environmental impact calculator is the Athena Institute's Eco-Calculator for Assemblies.

PBT Source Reduction: Dioxins and Halogenated Organic Compounds

This credit is intended to discourage the use of materials classified as persistent bioaccumulative toxic chemicals (PBTs). PBTs are considered to have significant adverse health effects on humans because they are toxic, long-lasting, and given to accumulating in the biological food chain. The PBTs specifically targeted by this credit are halogenated organic compounds. Examples include plastics containing chlorine or fluorine (polyvinyl chloride, PVC, being perhaps the most commonplace example) and brominated or halogenated flame retardants.

This pilot credit appears to signify the USGBC's change in position regarding the environmental suitability of PVCs for use in building construction. See this blog's previous discussion of this issue in Complexities of Sustainability, November 2007.

Medical and Process Equipmenet Efficiency

This credit encourages the purchase of energy efficient medical and other types of equipment.

Innovative Ventilation

This credit encourages the use of mechanical or natural ventilation systems that improve occupant comfort and well-being while reducing energy consumption in comparison to conventional systems. Example potential technologies include displacement ventilation systems, low-velocity ventilation systems, under-floor air delivery systems, and natural ventilation designs.

Preliminary Integrative Project Planning & Design

This credit is intended to encourage innovative strategies for achieving integrative, cost-effective green design and construction methods. Two credits are included, the first applied to the programming and pre-design phases of a project, and the second for the following design and construction phases. These credits require early identification of LEED rating goals, institution of cross-disciplinary design practices, performance based incentives, and other sustainable building design best practices.

More Info

• LEED Pilot Credit Library
• EPA Persistent Bioaccumulative and Toxic (PBT) Chemical Program