According to The New York Times, 42 states across the nation, as well as the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico, have enacted a shelter in place directive, in one way or another urging citizens to stay home to help slow the spread of coronavirus (COVID-19). There’s not one industry that hasn’t in some way…
Without question, we’re facing a trying time as the world copes with the spread of COVID-19 and its fallout. As we all adjust to our new “normal” centered around social distancing, we’ve seen several venues quickly convert to temporary medical facilities or homeless shelters, and many others are sitting virtually empty. With federal guidelines currently…
The recent spread of the pandemic coronavirus (COVID-19) has brought several new questions to the forefront with respect to the design and operation of the buildings in which we spend much of our time, specifically when it comes to infection control. Many of us are asking “how clean are our buildings, really?” and, “what can…
Our healthcare system has been pushed beyond capacity by the ever-growing number of COVID-19 patients. The need for hospital beds, ventilators, PPE, and isolation rooms has vastly outstripped the available supply, and the country is looking for spaces to repurpose into healthcare service. Our team of healthcare experts, along with design experts across diverse building…
As a society, we are all currently watching the coronavirus (COVID-19) updates, intently looking for information. We have seen information provided by the World Health Organization (WHO), the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) and in healthcare, and the American Society of Healthcare Engineers (ASHE). As designers in the healthcare setting, we are constantly reminded of…
At a project’s conception, the renderings are clean, timeless. As construction begins and the building systems are integrated, more and more devices are incorporated into the design. Despite efforts to coordinate, at the final walk-through, you see it…a light switch and a thermostat, right next to each other, and they aren’t aligned. There’s no single…
It’s no secret that core growth in dense urban areas is on the rise. From cities like Austin, Nashville, and Atlanta that are experiencing massive spikes in development through revitalization, to more established cities like Chicago, Los Angeles, and New York City, growth is rampant. While spaces in these areas present many benefits, they can…
School today feels more like the workplace of tomorrow. The growing trend is to design education facilities that mirror occupational reality, which helps students better prepare for their future careers. Medical education programs are simulating emergency situations, culinary programs are engraining kitchen safety, and even high schools are striving to recreate the corporate workplace environment….
Adaptability is a common term in today’s construction climate as more building spaces are becoming multi-functional. Instead of creating various rooms for specialty functions, schools are now incorporating educational spaces that can serve many needs. This helps districts future-proof with adaptable spaces that can be repurposed as needs change in the future. ADAPTABLE SYSTEMS FOR…
The goal of educational institutions has always been to create an optimal environment for learning. With the list of needs often exceeding the capital budget’s available balance, achieving that goal can seem impossible. Many facility managers are forced to find quick solutions to everyday issues just to keep things running. As a result, they are…
Fires today burn faster and create greater heat release than they did just a few decades ago, due in part to the evolution of building materials and construction techniques. This not only leads to greater property damage and more rapid structural collapse, but the time to escape a burning residential structure prior to flashover has…
5G — the fifth generation of cellular network technology — is expected to provide ultra-fast download and upload speeds beyond that of the current 4G LTE networks, making latency and buffering a thing of the past. What feels like the latest buzzword, 5G is just two simple characters but a major shift for how we…