AIA offers course on sustainable materials in restrooms and locker rooms

The AIA Continuing Education course entitled “Sustainable Materials in Restrooms, Locker Rooms and Other Applications” is designed for architects and designers in commercial markets. The course will cover the sustainable attributes and benefits of HDPE materials in the design and construction of bathroom and locker projects. Scranton Products leads the industry as a manufacturer of [...]

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Schools report health and productivity benefits from green school efforts

According to a new report by McGraw-Hill Construction entitled New & Retrofit Green Schools-The Cost Benefits and Influence of a Green School on its Occupants, both K-12 and universities are reporting significant benefits from their green school efforts—both in improved child health, wellbeing and performance, but also teacher and faculty satisfaction. These results are accompanied [...]

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CREST helps contractors, consultants, and building owners compare roofing systems

GAF

GAF, North America’s largest roofing manufacturer, has recently released CREST, the Cool Roof Energy and Sustainability Tool. CREST helps contractors, consultants and building owners compare the energy cost savings of different roofing systems options. CREST makes it easy to compare roof design options, varying levels of reflectivity, and multiple thicknesses of insulation. It allows the [...]

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Economic indicators on the rise

With increasing demand for design services, the Architecture Billings Index (ABI) is continuing to strengthen. As a leading economic indicator of construction activity, the ABI reflects the approximate nine to twelve month lag time between architecture billings and construction spending. The American Institute of Architects (AIA) reported the February ABI score was 54.9, up slightly [...]

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“Enlightening Libraries” Award Winners Selected

AIAS

The American Institute of Architecture Students (AIAS) and Kawneer Company, Inc. recently announced the winners of their national student design competition, “Enlightening Libraries.” Laura Boykin, a graduate student from Clemson University, under the advisement of Ufuk Ersoy, was awarded first place and $3,000 for her design, “Mediascape: An Enlightened Library for Pendleton, SC.” The competition, [...]

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Architecture Billings Index Surges

AIA

As the prognosis for the design and construction industry continues to improve, the Architecture Billings Index (ABI) is reflecting its strongest growth since November 2007.  As a leading economic indicator of construction activity, the ABI reflects the approximate nine to twelve month lag time between architecture billings and construction spending.  The American Institute of Architects [...]

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Learn LED Basics

LED LIghting

LED Lighting: A Primer to Lighting the Future by Sal Cangeloso. Maker Press/O’Reilly Media, Sebastopol, CA. makerpress.com. 59 pages. ISBN 978-1-449-33476-5. Light-emitting diode (LED) lighting has become all the rage. While the technology is still more expensive than incandescent or fluorescent lighting, there are many applications where the benefits outweigh the cost. What are those [...]

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Asphalt roofing awards program honors projects that are beautiful, affordable, and reliable

Ashphalt Roofing Mfrs. Assn.

The winners of this year’s Quality Asphalt Roofing Case-Study (QARC) Awards Program include a building that houses a federal agency that monitors marine life and climate, an insurance company that wanted to add a vegetated roof and an upscale home in a bucolic residential community prone to frequent rainfall. Sponsored by the Asphalt Roofing Manufacturers [...]

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Award Honors Recycling Ingenuity

excellence-eps-recycling-award

The EPS Industry Alliance has created a new annual award to recognize advancements in expanded polystyrene (EPS) recycling. The Excellence in EPS Recycling Award will be presented in Cincinnati this March at EPS EXPO, the EPS industry’s annual conference. The award has already received a friendly welcome from the recycling community. Matthew McKenna, President and [...]

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UL Environment Validates First Landfill Waste Diversion Claim

Underwriters Laboratories

UL Environment, a business unit of UL (Underwriters Laboratories), announced today that leading North American roofing manufacturer GAF is the first company to achieve UL’s Landfill Waste Diversion claim validation. Launched in June of 2012, UL Environment’s Zero Waste to Landfill, Virtually Zero Waste to Landfill, and Landfill Waste Diversion claim validations recognize companies that [...]

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