| CODES and STANDARDS NEWS LEED v4 to Add System for Existing Multifamily LEEDUSER.COM The U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) is accepting public comments on what will become the first LEED rating system for existing multifamily projects with 20-plus units. The LEED for Operations and Maintenance: Multifamily rating system (in LEED jargon, it would officially be an "adaptation" of the LEED for Existing Buildings). The first public comment period for LEED for Operations and Maintenance: Multifamily, is now open through May 29, 2015. USGBC plans a member ballot on the system in Fall 2015. Read more. LEED Offers Living Building Challenge Alignment BUILDINGGREEN.COM The U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) has announced that projects certified under the Living Building Challenge (LBC) can automatically earn most of the points available under its LEED rating system for energy and water efficiency. Teams will still have to grapple with the mismatched timeframes of the two rating systems. Read more on BuildingGreen.com.
GREEN BUSINESS NEWS Building Information Modeling, or BIM, is not about sustainability per se, but it certainly can be an valuable tool in delivering high performance buildings. The article below takes a critical look at masonry and the future of BIM. ~Tina BIM is the Future for American Masonry ENGINEERING NEWS RECORD Building information modeling, also known as BIM, is a 3D modeling process that "saves time and cost, improves estimation accuracy, reduces waste and avoids conflicts in the field," writes James Boland in this article. "It is no doubt the future of masonry," says University of Pennsylvania engineer David Biggs, program coordinator of the BIM for Masonry Initiative. "It's not a choice, but a must." ONENYC: A Strong and Just City 1.NYC.GOV Mayor de Blasio unveiled OneNYC, his Environmental and Economic Sustainability plan for New York City. When it comes to buildings, the new plan reinforces the ambitious goals outlined in One City Built to Last, released last fall. Learn more on the OneNYC webpage. The Future of Incorporating LCA CENEWS.COM In recent months, the Life Cycle Assessment Working Group of the Structural Engineering Institute (SEI) Sustainability Committee has published several articles introducing the first ever Top 10 list of questions most commonly asked about sustainable design and LCA. This list aimed to answer questions with reputable research and quantifiable data on the sustainable alternatives. This article covers questions addressing the future of LCA. PRODUCT NEWS We often include news on new alternatives to portland cement because it is an essential element in many masonry products. The link below features yet another innovation in the effort toward "greener" cement. ~Tina Greener Cement Alternative Uses Steel Dust PBS.ORG Using steel dust, silica, fly ash, limestone powder, salty water and other ingredients has led environmental chemist David Stone to create a greener cement mix that captures carbon dioxide. Narayanan Neithalath, a civil engineer at Arizona State University, finds the product is five times stronger than concrete made with portland cement. This video explains Stone's process. The Promise of Permeable Pavement EPA.GOV This blog talks about dealing with stormwater, and how a more sustainable solution is to replace or substitute conventional pavements with permeable pavements - a green infrastructure tool. Walmart's "Sustainability Leaders Shop" PEF-WORLD FORUM On February 2015, Walmart introduced its Sustainability Leaders Shop, an online portal for consumers. It is based on information from Walmart's Sustainability Index which was previously available just to Walmart and its suppliers. Products of manufacturers who rank as No.1 among its peers for its sustainability management practices in a given product category, are given a Sustainable Leader badge. In categories where there are many leading suppliers, products made by any supplier that scores over 80% will also qualify.
EDUCATIONAL NEWS 12th North American Masonry Conference May 18-20 THE MASONRY SOCIETY It's not too late! You can still register for the 12th North American Masonry Conference (NAMC) and The Masonry Society (TMS) Spring Meetings to be held in May 14-20 in Denver, CO. The NAMC is a forum for the exchange of scientific, engineering, architectural, construction, evaluation, and repair information on masonry. For more information and registration for the NAMC click here. Learn more about the TMS spring meetings. Sustainable Construction Materials and Technologies Conference UNLV The University of Nevada Las Vegas (UNLV) has announced a Call for Papers for their 4th International Conference on Sustainable Construction Materials and Technologies to be held in August 2016. Abstracts are due no later than July 15, 2015. For more information, visit http://www.unlv.edu/scmt4. |
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