The National Institute of Building Sciences Building Enclosure Technology and Environment Council (BETEC) and the Building Enclosure Council (BEC) – Philadelphia will present the fifth triennial BEST Conference Building Enclosure Science & Technology™ (BEST5) on April 15-18, 2018. In furtherance of our mission of communication and collaboration with other industry … [Read more...]
First Net-Positive Energy Office Building Planned for Canada
The Howland Green Business Centre, in Markham, ON, will be Canada’s first net-positive energy office building, producing more energy than it consumes, when completed. Innovative features will include enhanced insulated concrete framework (ICF) with a thermal resistance value of at least R-40, R-80 roof insulation, and fiberglass windows employing low-emissivity argon gas with … [Read more...]
Prosecutors Studying Building Alterations Following Taiwan Earthquake
The public prosecutor’s office in Hualien, Taiwan, is conducting a probe into possible human errors in design, construction, or modification of four of the worst-hit buildings after a 6.4-magnitude earthquake shook the east-coast city on February 6. The quake killed 12 people and injured 275. Some of the buildings were left leaning at more than 40 degrees. Prosecutors are … [Read more...]
W350 Will Be Tallest Timber Skyscraper
A Japanese lumber company that has been around for three and a half centuries is planning to build the world’s largest timber skyscraper. Sumitomo Forestry Co. Ltd. has partnered with architectural designers Nikken Sekkei on a 350-meter-tall (1148-ft.) structure in Tokyo that will be composed of 90% wood. The W350—so-named for the anniversary of the company and the height of … [Read more...]
Unemployment Continues to Fall
The number of Americans filing for unemployment benefits fell to its lowest level in nearly 45 years in February, raising expectations of faster wage growth in 2018, according to the Labor Department. Initial claims decreased to a seasonally adjusted 221,000 for the week ending February 3, the lowest level since January 1973. This marked the 153rd week that claims remained … [Read more...]
BLS Study Touts Construction Productivity
A new U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) study, “Measuring Productivity Growth in Construction,” shows impressive productivity gains in an industry that had previously been thought to show negative or zero productivity growth. “By focusing on specific output indexes for subsectors of construction, BLS avoided relying just on the change in cost of the materials that go into … [Read more...]
Christ Church Mosaic Roof Recognized
An interesting mosaic on the former Christ Church in Hillier, Prince Edward County, Ontario, has received recognition by the Asphalt Roofing Manufacturers Association (ARMA). Al Anthony Roofing of Consecon, ON, was granted an honorable mention in ARMA’s annual Quality Asphalt Roofing Case-study (QARC) Awards for its installation. The mosaic was designed by Helga Boelen and … [Read more...]
Vegetative Roofs: A Problem, or the Future?
By Jon Crumrine, RRO, GRP As a roofing technology, vegetative roofs have been widely installed in the United States for only about the last 20 years. The market acceptance of vegetative roofing continues, and the industry has gradually moved beyond the knee-jerk reaction held by many that vegetative roofs were “problems waiting to happen.” In fact, owners, architects, and the … [Read more...]
RICOWI Holds Spring Conference
By David J. Balistreri, RRC, CDT, BECxP, RCI Liaison to the RICOWI board of directors and Chair of RICOWI The Roofing Industry Committee on Weather Issues (RICOWI) held its spring conference just prior to the RCI International Convention and Trade Show in Houston, Texas. Nearly 100 people attended educational seminars during the first day of the conference (Thursday, March … [Read more...]
Hail & Hailstorm Workshop Planned; Abstracts Sought
The National Science Foundation (NSF), the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR), and the Insurance Institute for Business & Home Safety (IBHS) are organizing the first North American Workshop on Hail and Hailstorms, to be held August 14-16, 2018, in Boulder, CO. Across North America, hailstorms are responsible for over $10 billion in annual property damage. … [Read more...]