344 results

  • Glass Spandrels and Shadow Boxes

    Glass spandrels are a common design strategy utilized to opacify floor levels in building facades. These opaque glass assemblies are integrated into

  • The Myth of Simplicity

    There were good why reasons early US Modernism first evolved in California– wide open sites with no constraints (physical or zoning), and effectively

  • Form Follows Well-Being

    Recent planning recognizes a growing demand for buildings that provide higher levels of occupant well-being. Often, well-being in buildings is

  • Kinetic Solar Envelope featured image

    Kinetic Solar Envelope

    Kinetic responsive systems are gaining attention in architectural applications, to reduce the building’s energy consumption and environmental impact,…
  • More Than a Facade

    In 2014, the American National Standards Institute (ANSI) approved the Precast/Prestressed Concrete Institute (PCI) as an accredited ANSI Standards

  • Inside the Box

    The trend towards modular and unitized facades continues to grow in popularity due largely in part to the efficiencies gained in terms of cost and

  • Novel Thermal Break Solution

    Thermal-break-blanket technology is a novel and high-performance thermal break solution for aluminum curtain walls. The thermal-break-blanket is

  • Parametric Louver System

    The Parametric Louver System is a customized tool that expedites several design iterations while embedding multiple design parameters. The ambition

  • The Carapace Pavilion

    The Carapace Pavilion is a university-based, design-build, full-scale custom prototype for a possible replacement of the standard precast concrete

  • Stainless Steel 101

    This paper presents a summary of the industry advances beyond T304 and T316 austenitic stainless steels. The greater availability of precipitation

  • When Facades Kill

    The tragic fire of June 14, 2017 at the Grenfell Tower in London, England has brought to a very public global forum issues related to the impact of

  • Unitized Curtain Wall

    Unitized curtain wall has become ubiquitous in contemporary facade design and construction due to advantages associated with speed of erection, lower

  • International Facade Education

    Globalization in the construction industry has brought about new demands for buildings and construction projects, new demands that still need to take

  • Elliptical Ways

    Construction projects almost invariably encounter a critical stage at the moment of handover between the designing and the executing party. At this

  • Climate-Oriented Prefabricated Building Envelopes

    Facades developed in response to climactic factors increase performance and human comfort while reducing energy loads. A single building envelope

  • Verifying Thermal Performance

    Architects specify curtain wall thermal performance criteria and usually identify simple modeling software, like THERM, to perform thermal analysis

  • Vertical Louvered Solar Control

    Exterior shading devices, when typically used, are horizontal planes that are most effective at the south face of buildings in the northern

  • Vintage Vinyl

    Mid-century through 1980’s buildings with lock-strip or “zipper-gasket” glazing systems are an ever present part of the urban landscape in many

  • Working With Big Data featured image

    Working With Big Data

    Big data is having a noticeable impact on enclosure engineering design. With continuing advancements that liberate the geometrical form and the…