Structure & Site
Fall 2022
PROJECT SPOTLIGHT: Harbor View Square
Harbor View Square consists of four newly constructed residential buildings encompassing a whole city block on the City of Oswego’s waterfront. Onsite amenities include a 24-hour fitness center, a residence lounge with a full kitchen, and a rooftop terrace overlooking Lake Ontario. Harbor View Square received the Project of the Year Award for the Upstate Region from the New York State Association for Affordable Housing.
Klepper, Hahn & Hyatt provided structural design services for this project. The largest building on-site is a 5-story structure containing 57 mixed-income rental units located above retail space on the first floor. The neighboring structures are 2-story townhomes, totaling 18 additional residences.

The main building employed a design concept for a five-story wood-framed structure over a "podium" slab. The "podium" was constructed of a composite 6 1/4" concrete slab on metal deck supported by a braced steel frame. This relatively stiff one-story structure provided support for the upper four stories of the wood-framed building.

This project reflects an industry trend in using wood to frame structures. The upper floors, and the roof, were framed with metal-plate-connected prefabricated wood trusses and the walls were delivered to the site as pre-assembled wood-framed panels. Wood framing was used to construct the townhomes as well.

The design of lateral stability bracing for high wind loads was a challenge on this lakefront property. Steel-braced frames at the bottom floor and wood-framed shear walls above were used to resist the impact of high winds and seismic loads. Another challenge was the design coordination of the intricate details of the multiple balconies and the rooftop patio.

The offset facade on each building is enhanced by the combination of multi-color siding, brick, and stone which adds to the visual appearance of this property. Each townhome looks like a distinct unit within its row. The five-story building is wrapped in stone on the first level and brick or complimentary colors of siding on the upper levels.

For the full project profile visit our website here.
Changes To The Way A/E/C Business Is
Done In The Empire State
NYS Bans High GWP HFCs on Commercial Projects
On January 1, 2022, it became illegal to use certain types of insulation, as well as certain aerosols and refrigerants used in compressors, on commercial projects in New York State. The ban is on products using hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs) that have high global warming potential, or GWP. Several other states have also enacted a similar ban. See https://www.dec.ny.gov/regulations/119026.html

The building insulation products affected include Extruded Polystyrene (XPS) as well as closed-cell polyurethane spray foam – two materials that are commonly used. Fortunately, all of the major manufacturers have alternative formulations of the insulation products already available for use: Use of high-GWP HFC materials has been prohibited in Europe for over ten years.

Unfortunately, the banned products are all still allowed to be used on residential projects. This means the products that are prohibited for use on commercial projects will still be available through building supply channels. We have already seen the outlawed products showing up on commercial project sites – even though alternative, acceptable products had been submitted and approved. Like any change, it will take some time for the construction industry to understand and to adapt.
Portland-Limestone Cement Replaces Ordinary Portland Cement
Quickly and with very little warning, over the past six months or so all or most of the concrete batch plants in Central New York have switched to using Portland Limestone Cement (PLC) instead of Ordinary Portland Cement (OPC). Fortunately, this change has very little impact on the performance or the quality of the concrete produced, since the properties of the two cement types are very similar.

The most significant impact is that concrete batched with PLC results in about a 10 percent reduction in the amount of carbon dioxide emitted into the atmosphere, compared with OPC concrete. In other words, the embodied carbon content of ready-mix concrete available for use in buildings, infrastructure, sidewalks, and all other uses of concrete has just dropped by about one-tenth. Further reductions can be made with the use of Supplementary Cementitious Materials (SCM) such as fly ash or slag cement. Just like with OPC, SCM can be substituted pound-for-pound for 20 to 30 percent of the PLC in a concrete mix.

Technically, PLC is a type of blended hydraulic cement that complies with ASTM C595 Type 1L. KHH has been specifying it as an acceptable alternative to ASTM C150 Portland Cement for structural design for years, in anticipation of PLC becoming available. This sweeping change is occurring all across the country. Contact KHH if you have any questions about this exciting new development.
KHH Employee Anniversaries
We are excited to celebrate the following employee anniversaries:
Nada Elturk, 26 years

Joseph Ward, 16 years

Richard Grezesik, III, 3 years

Paul Twyman, returned 1 year ago
Jeff Packard, 29 years

Deb Lamont, 17 years

Terri Rossi, 4 years

Robert Catalina, 3 years
Existing Buildings and the Energy Code
By Jim D'Aloisio P.E., LEED AP

Some buildings leak a lot of energy through a poorly performing thermal envelope. Although there is no mandate to upgrade existing buildings to comply with current energy code standards, every time a portion of an existing building’s thermal envelope is modified, the energy code kicks in with requirements that must be followed. This is true for all building projects, unless the project is exempt, such as for historic buildings. Further, compliance with the energy code coupled with an understanding of the hygrothermal conditions at play can reduce the potential for problematic conditions to develop. The energy code requirements are identified in Chapter 5 - Existing Buildings, which refers to other sections of the code depending on the type of work being performed, for both residential and commercial buildings. Below are some examples (see the text of the energy code for clarification for your specific project):

  • Additions must EITHER comply with the energy code OR the entire building including the addition and the original building must comply. Either way, the construction documents must satisfy one of the compliance paths allowed, in addition to other code requirements such as creating an effective air barrier.

  • Replacing specific elements of the thermal envelope such as a section of a wall or roof requires the new portion to fully comply with the energy code, as if the building was brand new. There is no requirement to upgrade the adjacent building elements. For such work, one of the prescriptive compliance paths is usually most appropriate.

  • For projects involving exposing existing batt insulation in stud walls or floor or roof joists or roof rafter cavities, the code allows the assembly to remain as-is, provided the cavities between framing members are completely filled with batt insulation.

Click here for more examples of energy code requirements for residential and commercial building projects (including fenestration replacement, reroofing, and relocating a thermal envelope plane).

Existing building renovations represent a tremendous opportunity to reduce a building’s energy demand, improve interior thermal comfort, and address problematic conditions such as excessive roof icicles and condensation. Some projects, however, have challenging and – dare we say – interesting conditions that need to be carefully addressed. As always, contact KHH with any questions.
LATEST EVENTS
The KHH Employee Event, held in August, was a fun-filled afternoon at the Chittenango Landing Canal Boat Museum. Employees, together with their families, enjoyed a catered lunch and participated in a scavenger hunt of the grounds and historical artifacts within that had everyone asking "What is a hoggy horn?"

At NESEA'S Building Energy NYC Conference in September, Jim D'Aloisio delivered the presentation "Thermal Bridging '22: What to Know and What to Do."

KHH was a Copper Sponsor of the NY Statewide Preservation Conference held at the Marriott Syracuse Downtown. Jim Palumbo attended and participated in the multi-day events and informative sessions.

In early November Jim D'Aloisio traveled to Chicago for the NCSEA Summit to present "Structural Engineers, Envelopes, and Energy Codes."

KHH has joined the SE2050 Commitment along with over 100 other firms nationwide to promote understanding, reducing, and ultimately eliminating embodied carbon in our projects by the year 2050.
Join us on social media!
Check out a time-lapse video from the construction site for the UHS Wilson Memorial Hospital in Johnson City, NY. KHH utilized all three of its disciplines to complete the structural design, site design, and building envelope work for this project.

Click here to see a five-week progress of construction for Wilson Tower in just under two minutes!

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KHH IS HIRING
Klepper, Hahn & Hyatt is seeking professionals for positions in our structural engineering and building envelope disciplines. Talent, experience, and enthusiasm can lead to significant growth potential. We are a modest-sized, multidisciplinary design firm with a friendly, collaborative work environment, and offer an excellent benefits package. For more information on our open positions, please visit us at https://khhpc.com/contact-us/careers/  
315-446-9201