|
November 2007
|
|
|
|
Architects, school superintendents, PTA members, and school board members from U.S. Green Building
Council (USGBC) chapters nationwide met this fall in Washington, D.C., for training as Green School
Advocates. USGBC’s idea is for these advocates to go back to their communities and organize
local Green School Advocacy Committees to educate parents, teachers, and policymakers about the
benefits of building green schools.
The USGBC vision is to have every school in America be a green school within a generation.
According to the USGBC, not only do green schools improve our environment, they can also save
school districts money. A 2006 study by the American Federation of Teachers, the American
Institute of Architects, the American Lung Association, the Federation of American Scientists,
and USGBC found that building green would save an average school $100,000 each year in energy
costs alone. USGBC’s LEED for Schools green rating system provides green-building
guidelines and third-party verification for green building.
USGBC states that green schools have a superior indoor environment, with clean air free of
dangerous chemicals; make use of natural daylighting; and maximize students’ ability
to concentrate and stay healthy. At the same time, such schools dramatically reduce energy
costs and greenhouse gas emissions. Green schools, USGBC notes, use 33 percent less energy
and 32 percent less water than conventional schools.
Better lighting, temperature control, ventilation, and indoor air quality in green schools help
reduce asthma, colds, flu, and absenteeism; help improve learning and test scores; and improve
teacher retention. Greening all school construction, USGBC says, would also create some 2000
new jobs each year from the use of new energy-efficient technologies.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Precast Concrete Binder Available in December: A new visual and heavily referenced binder with ideas,
details, and techniques for integrating precast and prestressed concrete as part of a
design solution for building structures of all kinds is now available from the Precast/Prestressed
Concrete Institute (PCI). Targeted to architects, the Designing with Precast and Prestressed
Concrete binder outlines components, material capabilities, fundamentals, design techniques, and applications.
Green Games: The athletes' village at the Vancouver Olympics is being designed to the LEED
Gold standard and the project’s community center is being designed to LEED Platinum. The village will house
2800 athletes during the games. Features include rainwater capture, green roofs, a sewer heat recovery
system, solar hot water and waste heat recovery, and a ceiling-mounted radiant heating/cooling system.
Architects include Arthur Erickson, Nick Milkovich Architects Inc., Gomberoff Bell Lyon Architect Group,
Lawrence Doyle Young Wright Architects, and Walter Francl Architect Inc.
More >
Stirling Piece of Work: The Museum of Modern Literature in Marbach am Neckar, Germany, has won the Stirling
Prize for 2007. Designed by David Chipperfield Architects, the 40,900-square-foot structure sits on top
of a ridge overlooking the River Neckar and is adjacent to the National Schiller Museum and the Archive
for German Literature. The prize honors the building making the greatest contribution to British
architecture.
More >
Getting Exposed: New building for the University of Arizona’s College of Architecture and Landscape
Architecture features exposed mechanical and electrical systems and visible structural connection details,
as well as a rainwater-collection system, a vine-covered “green wall,” a green roof, and a
photovoltaic solar system. The project also included remodeling of the existing architecture building.
More >
Hanging Gardens: A unique structure is under construction in Mumbai, India. Designed by Perkins + Will,
Chicago, Ill., the 490-foot-tall structure includes parking and corporate meeting facilities on the lower
levels, topped by vertical and horizontal gardens as part of a residential area for the family of business
tycoon Mukesh Ambani. Trellises contain hydroponically grown plants.
More >
|
|
|
|
|
Architectural Precast Concrete Manual Updated
The third edition of the Architectural Precast Concrete manual has been released by the
Precast/Prestressed Concrete Institute.
The hardbound, 600-page publication includes new sections on energy conservation, condensation
control, sustainability, and designing for blast resistance. Extensive revisions were made to
sections on color, texture and finishes, weathering, tolerances, connections, and windows. The
manual also features detailed specifications to meet today’s construction standards.
The book is packed with more than 400 four-color photographs, detailed illustrations, and
informative text. It includes a bonus DVD of the complete manual for easy electronic searches
and reference needs.
Produced to allow designers to achieve design objectives quickly and economically, the manual
shows how architectural precast concrete fits into a wide range of projects with its
versatility and beauty, and it encourages designers to express their imagination and
creative expression.
The manual costs $90 for PCI members and $180 for non-members. Shipping is an additional
$12 per book. It can be ordered at PCI’s online bookstore at
www.pci.org.
New Architectural Resources
PCI Certification >
Precasters: Share Your Tips >
|
|
|
A First for Adjaye – The first public building in the United States by London-based architect David Adjaye is
the new home for the Museum of Contemporary Art in Denver, Colo. The 27,000-square-foot structure uses tinted glass
for the exterior walls backed by a skin of MonoPan, a translucent material made of woven plastic and used in storage
sheds. The double skin provides insulation but allows filtered light to highlight the galleries. Born in Dar-Es-Salam,
Tanzania, Adjaye is noted for his ingenious use of materials.
More >
Khan Jobs – Nine projects from Asia, Africa, the Middle East, and Europe have been selected as winners of the
$500,000 Aga Khan Award for Architecture for 2007. Projects include:
- Samir Kassir Square, Beirut, Lebanon
- Rehabilitation of the city of Shibam, Yemen
- Central Market, Koudougou, Burkina Faso
- University of Technology Petronas, Bandar Seri Iskandar, Malaysia
- Restoration of the Amiriya Complex, Rada, Yemen
- Moulmein Rise Residential Tower, Singapore (shown)
- Royal Netherlands Embassy, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
- Rehabilitation of the Walled City, Nicosia, Cyprus
- School in Rudrapur, Dinajpur, Bangladesh
More >
Windy City Winner – Chicago, Ill., architect Joe Valerio of Valerio Dewalt Train
was a major winner at the AIA’s Chicago chapter’s recent annual ceremony honoring the
year’s best designs. Valerio won for both his Kresge Foundation headquarters in Troy, Mich.,
and his Garmin International flagship store in Chicago. The Kresge building features 38 energy-saving
strategies, including a daylight-harvesting system. The Garmin store is centered on a curving
interior wall.
More >
Pier Review – Reiach and Hall Architects, Edinburgh, has won the Andrew
Doolan Best Building in Scotland award from the Royal Incorporation of Architects in Scotland for
The Pier Arts Centre in Orkney. The Project involved refurbishment of historic pier buildings, along
with a new gallery structure. The jewel-like new structure easily nestled beside its neighbors and
became an integral part of the townscape.
More >
Endowed – Maurice Cox, an associate professor of architecture at the University
of Virginia, has been appointed Director of Design for the National Endowment for the Arts. Cox is a
founding partner of RBGC Architecture, Research & Urbanism and a founding principal of the Community
Planning and Design Workshop in Charlottesville, Va.
More >
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
“The local USGBC chapters are a critical
component in the council’s vision of green
schools for every child within a generation.
There are now chapter members from across
America who are engaging in local
outreach and education.”
|
|
USGBC President/CEO Rick Fedrizzi on
the council’s Green School Advocacy
Program.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
The precast/prestressed concrete industry offers a wide range of AIA/CES approved box lunch programs.
Find out more >
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Green – “Go Green, Save Green,” a program by the Green Building Institute, will be held December 1, 2007, at
the Enviro-Center in Jessup, Md. It includes lessons on conservation and reducing energy costs, as well as a green-building tour.
More >
More Green – EcoBuild Fall will be held December 10–13 in Washington, D.C. The program covers green building, sustainable
design, renewable energy, environmental planning processes, and information collaboration strategies for commercial, industrial,
institutional, and residential construction.
More >
Architecture Inside/Out – Program demonstrates the unfolding of space by exposing architectural interiors through a range of
typologies, including libraries, hotels, retail, entertainment venues, work spaces, and healthcare facilities, including circulation
patterns, adjacencies, and networks. Until December 19, 2007.
More >
Art in Architecture – An exhibition featuring David Macaulay’s original architectural drawings is available at the
National Building Museum, Washington, D.C., until January 21, 2008. Exhibit focuses on Macaulay’s visual research, inventive
perspectives, ability to reveal structural realities, and playful imagination.
More >
Builder Show – The National Association of Home Builders’ International Builders’ Show takes place
February 13–16, 2008, in Orlando, Fla. The keynote speaker is William McDonough, William McDonough + Partners,
speaking on “The Promise of Cradle to Cradle Design: Sustainable Architecture for the 21st Century.”
More >
Piranesi – An exhibit at the Cooper-Hewitt National Design Museum in New York City examines Piranesi’s influence
on architecture from the 18th century to the present. Exhibition runs until January 20, 2008.
More >
AIA – The AIA Convention is scheduled for May 15–17, 2008, in Boston, Mass. Focus will be on our place in the
world—where we live, where we work, how we come together, and our place on the land.
More >
Parking – The International Parking Institute show, the largest parking show in North America, will be held June 1–4, 2008
in Dallas, Tex. It draws 2500 parking and transportation executives, city and county commissioners, suppliers, engineers, architects,
and parking consultants. The theme for 2008 is “Creating a Sustainable Future.”
More >
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
