{Re}habitat

Builders and project leaders are taking on a heightened level of responsibility when it comes to deciding whether to participate in certification programs, determining which programs best reflect their values and standards, and ultimately selling the idea and cost of certification to the owner. I spoke with several industry experts to get a better understanding of the challenges associated with building green and certification programs. Although opinions certainly vary, it seems that participation has not yet become an industry-wide expectation because some builders are not yet convinced that certification is necessary.

Empowerhouse: a collaboration between Parsons The New School for Design, Milano The New School for Management and Urban Policy, and Stevens Institute of Technology

The Solar Decathlon competition requires teams to meet pages of rules, so not much time remains for considering what will become of the houses following their debut on the National Mall. However, the students of Parsons The New School for Design, Milano The New School for Management and Urban Policy, and Stevens Institute of Technology have a definite post-competition plan in mind: to provide housing for two families in the Deanwood neighborhood of Ward 7 in Washington, DC. The team has partnered with Habitat for Humanity and DC's Department of Housing and Community Development to build Empowerhouse, an affordable model for living that uses passive design strategies.

In recent years, CSI, or crime scene investigation, has become an increasingly popular term thanks to television. However, CSI takes place every day in the real world, in ways that you may not have previously considered. Forensic engineers assess damage to properties, determine the cause(s), and offer possible remediation. Situations in which structural CSI is required can include water infiltrating a structure; storms, fires, or explosions damaging a building; or a product defect or a material deficiency occurring.

Only you and those around you know what color your thumb is. For those of you without a green thumb, plants have a few environmental needs to grow and stay alive: temperature, water, soil, and sunlight. When Mother Nature doesn't provide these, you need to. That all seems rather easy, right? Whether you are planting a new garden or adding to an existing one, a little knowledge, planning, and preparation will go a long way toward earning your green thumb and determining the future success of your garden.

Most of us don’t ever really think about shipping containers unless we work in logistics or caught the second season of The Wire. They have been steadily making their way into the architectural world -- their low cost and ambulatory nature making them appropriate in a variety of contexts, such as upscale housing and small workplaces or getaways. The creativity of these spaces emerges with the challenge of fitting design into a box, quite literally. Here, however, we will examine that creativity a bit further in a few other uses, while discussing shipping container design with Pittsburgh-based architect Gary P. Moshier of Moshier Studio.

BIG's Amager Waste-to-Energy Plant not only exemplifies the cleanest waste-to-energy treatment possible, it offers a ski slope to Copenhagen's residents.

A building down which you can ski and where garbage is burned: some surrealistic fun is coming to Copenhagen. Such a building is the result of the winning competition entry from Bjarke Ingels Group (BIG) with realities:united and Topotek / Man Made Land. Expected to be completed in 2016, the $650 million (USD) Amager Waste-to-Energy facility (Amagerforbrænding) in Copenhagen really does incorporate a ski slope into the design, among its other captivating qualities. Amagerforbrænding combines the waste incineration and pollution control plant, offices, visitor center, and the alpine ski slope in one shell.

Sustainability is quickly becoming a mainstay of the building industry. Although a builder’s motivation for embracing sustainable practices may vary from personal values, to code adherence, to marketing strategy, to owner expectations, there’s no doubt that sustainability is having a major impact on the way we build. The selection of sustainable materials has become one the most challenging aspects of building green, due to the overwhelming availability of product options, negative connotations and misunderstandings related to green terminology, and the industry-wide need for education on sustainable technologies. If you are attempting to cut through the clutter when it comes to material selection, consider these suggestions from some of the industry’s leading sustainability professionals.

Since the release of Autodesk’s 2012 product suites in April, Buildipedia’s BIM series (see Contractors Look to BIM to Streamline Construction and BIM: Bridging the Gap Between AEC and O&M) has been highlighting changes and upgrades to the software systems. Each year, Autodesk's line of products forges into new territory, and one of its most recent areas of development has been 3D modeling for infrastructure. Applying the same principles currently used in BIM on the scale of individual buildings, BIM for infrastructure expands that 3D vision outward, taking it to a new level – literally.