By Rolando Conesa, AIA, NCARB   Despite acting as safeguards of wellness, health, and quality of life, many hospitals and healthcare offices need more warmth, comfort, and efficiency that coincide with their mission. While skilled and selfless doctors and nurses work around the clock to provide necessary care, the spaces themselves need to provide a welcoming and stress-free atmosphere that puts patients, guests, and staff at ease. Research indicates that good design has the potential to act as an aid in recovery, mental well-being, and healing. What’s more, it can provide a more pleasant ..read more

By Robbie Davis From the April 2024 Issue   As sustainability becomes a global corporate mandate, major organizations are making bold commitments to decarbonize building operations and conserve resources. Altogether, buildings account for 40% of global emissions, which makes them a critical focus area for businesses to reduce their carbon footprint. But there’s a problem. Many organizations don’t know where to begin on decarbonizing their operations — let alone have the data transparency needed to set realistic goals. Without this essential insight, it’s difficult to make informed decisio ..read more

By Nora Wang Esram & Anna Johnson Courtesy of ACEEE Investments in U.S. manufacturing surged by an impressive 63% in 2023, the most substantial industrial sector expansion in nearly 75 years. Industry is likely to become the largest source of greenhouse gas emissions in the United States if new manufacturing investments are not paired with rapid deployment of decarbonization solutions. Directly electrifying industrial process heat to avoid combustion of fossil fuels is essential. Some green hydrogen and carbon capture and storage will be needed but, due to their expense and other challeng ..read more

By Patrick Kiessling   Your aging facility needs some construction work to update it, bring it up to code, or make it a more pleasant space for your employees. But closing down a business during renovation projects can severely cut into your profits and harm the financial well-being of your workers. Using a combination of new barrier technologies, a lot of planning and some creative ingenuity, you can keep your business open while still keeping your team safe from noise, debris, and the construction site itself. While the ultimate goal of a renovation is to improve your office space, the ..read more

By Jennifer Goetz From the April 2024 Issue   All organizations evaluate business risks and are increasing facing new and sophisticated challenges, from pandemics to workplace violence incidents. Risk management is one thing, but business continuity planning is another. Some companies may look at creating a business continuity plan like filling in a template — what are some of the major business risks, and what do we now have to update about these risk factors year-to-year? Now with the power of generative AI, facilities can even ask AI to write up a business continuity plan. A business ..read more

Investing in AI-powered devices¹ will help their employer stay competitive, say 75% of employees recently surveyed by Insight Enterprises. A similar number (73%) expect to be more productive in their daily lives thanks to AI. Despite this optimism around next-gen, on-device AI, close to half (45%) are cautious that AI-powered devices will make what they do less relevant to their employer, according to the survey, which Insight conducted in partnership with The Harris Poll. Employees want specific direction from their employers, citing an interest in training and guidelines/policies around AI u ..read more

By Tracy Dacko From the April 2024 Issue   Avant garde museum designs often require concrete and steel structures to penetrate insulated walls and roofs, allowing heat energy to flow from heated interiors to cold exterior environments. In addition to wasting heat and increasing carbon emissions, thermal bridges can chill interior surfaces adjacent to structural penetrations, forming condensation and mold. A potential problem in any modern airtight building, mold is a larger problem in museums. To preserve invaluable artifacts and paintings, museums typically maintain above-average humidit ..read more

Georgia-based solar companies have joined together to install an innovative solar array on top of the parking deck at Georgia Power’s headquarters in downtown Atlanta. The collaboration represents a significant step forward in distributed, sustainable energy infrastructure. The project uses state-of-the-art canopy racking technology developed by Quest Renewables at Georgia Tech, and is powered by QCells’ 580 watt modules. Radiance Solar, LLC was in charge of engineering, procurement, and construction (EPC) for the project. Georgia Power headquarters in downtown Atlanta. (Photo: Radiance Solar ..read more

By Bronson Terry From the April 2024 Issue   Patterns occur everywhere in nature. From the rising sun to the falling leaves, the Fibonacci spiral and breaking ocean waves—we don’t need to look far to find a natural pattern occurring. Think of it, even in the most remote forest of Patagonia, where human hands will never touch, life flourishes. Why? Patterns. Some short and simple, others long and very complex. But, with near metronomic precision, these patterns occur, and, should these patterns be interrupted, chaos ensues. If the most complex and dynamic ecosystems benefit from repeated p ..read more

By Elizabeth Ruggles From the April 2024 Issue   Accessibility is constantly evolving, in terms of both the general public’s understanding, and legal terms/requirements. This means that failing to keep up with both public opinion and the law can result in reputational and litigation risk. This is especially important for building executives to consider — it is costly to make the wrong choices and have to redesign things later on. The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) has put a stronger emphasis on creating accessible spaces to prevent lawsuits. However, there is a way to create upfron ..read more