Board Convenes for Spring Meeting
Heidi Brock, a member of the National Institute of Building Sciences Board of Directors and vice president of federal and international affairs for the Weyerhaeuser Company, explains a viewpoint during the Board’s spring meeting.
Reformulated Consultative Council Holds First Official Meeting
The reformulated Consultative Council, consisting of organizational
representatives from major sectors of the building community, met in Washington,
D.C., last week for its first official meeting. The Council approved a new
charter and consensus procedures to direct its activities.
 Representatives
identified six issues of interest to the building community that will serve as
the basis for the Council’s work over the coming year. Topics to be addressed
include: defining high-performance, rnergy and water efficiency, education and
training, codes and standards adoption and enforcement, sustainability, and
existing buildings. As the Council progresses, solicitations for input relating
to the areas of focus will appear on the
Council’s
webpage.
Jim. Sealy, chairman of the National Institute of Building Sciences Board of Directors, welcomes industry representatives and thanks them for participating in the Consultative Council.
Give Some Credit: Nominate a Potential Award Recipient
Each year, the National Institute of Building Sciences recognizes individuals and organizations that have made an exceptional contribution to the nation and the building community. If someone familiar fits that description, why not nominate him or her for an Institute Award? The Institute Awards Committee is seeking nominations for the 2010 Institute Honor Award and the 2010 Institute Member Award. Award recipients will be honored at the 2010 Annual Award banquet, to be held during the Institute’s Annual Meeting in December. Download the nomination forms:
Member Award or
Honor Award.
Save the Date! Annual Meeting to be December 6-10
Mark those calendars! The National Institute of Building Sciences Annual Meeting will be held December 6-10 in conjunction with Ecobuild America in Washington, D.C. The Institute Board of Directors, councils and committees will convene for program meetings and to discuss new ideas for improving the built environment. Come experience the scope of the Institute’s activities. Plan to attend the buildingSMART alliance™ Conference, FEDCon® ’10, Advanced Materials Symposium, COBie Challenge, the Institute’s Annual Awards Banquet and more!
Plus, it is a great opportunity to participate in everything else that Ecobuild America,
which is sponsored by the Institute, has to offer. New co-located events this year include the Associated Builders and Contractors Green Building Symposium and the World Energy Engineering Congress and Tradeshow.
Get the latest information.
Perkins+Will Receives National Building Museum Honor Award
RK Stewart, FAIA, Hon. FRAIC, Hon. JAI, LEED AP, vice-chair of the Institute's Board of Directors, attended a gala in Washington, D.C., to see his employer, Perkins + Will, honored. The firm was one of three organizations to receive
a 2010 Honor Award from the National Building Museum. The award, which recognizes civic innovators, celebrates Perkins+Will for “its legacy of socially-relevant design that has promoted well-being over the course of the firm’s 75-year history.”
Stewart, an associate principal in the firm’s San Francisco office, was one of a number of Perkins+Will representatives to witness the event. Other award recipients included the U.S.
Department of Energy Solar Decathlon and New Orleans Habitat Musicians’ Village founders Harry Connick, Jr., Branford Marsalis, Ann Marie Wilkins and Jim Pate.
Watch the video.
Paper on Accessibility Could Earn Someone $2,500
Know everything there is about accessibility for people with special needs? Then write a paper for a chance to win $2,500! The U.S. Celebration of World Standards Day Planning Committee and the paper competition’s sponsor, the Standards Engineering Society, invite paper submissions for the 2010 World Standards Day Paper Competition. This year’s theme is “Standards for Accessibility.” Cash prizes are awarded for the three best papers submitted. Winners will receive their awards during the World Standards Day Dinner, to be held September 23 in Washington, D.C. The Institute is a member of the Planning Committee, which hosts the U.S. World Standards Day Dinner and Reception.
View the competition rules.
Meet the Coordinating Council
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Tobin |
The National Institute of Building Sciences membership is at the heart of this organization’s success. Involved in the Institute’s numerous councils, committees and projects, our members participate in the detailed processes of task forces and working groups. The Coordinating Council works to harmonize efforts among the various Institute programs to enhance synergies across programs. In this issue, we focus on the Multihazard Mitigation Council (MMC) representatives on the Coordinating Council. Brent H. Woodworth serves as MMC chair. L. Thomas Tobin serves as MMC vice chair. Read more about
Woodworth and
Tobin.
2014 Provisions Update Committee Approved
The Building Seismic Safety Council Board of Direction has approved the membership of the 2014 Provisions Update Committee (PUC), the hands-on group responsible for developing the next edition of the
NEHRP (National Earthquake Hazards Reduction Program) Recommended Seismic Provisions for New Buildings and Other Structures. One of the group’s first chores will be to identify topics for in-depth investigation over the next year.
Read the article.
Great Ways to Celebrate High-Performance Building Week
There are lots of ways to celebrate High-Performance Building Week. The 2010 celebration, which occurs June 13-19, is a great opportunity to highlight how high-performance buildings can help to meet national goals; recognize those organizations, industries and people who work to achieve high-performance buildings; and salute high-performance success stories.
In honor of the occasion, the High-Performance Building Congressional Caucus Coalition (HPBCCC) will host a number of activities.
View the list.
“Cash for Caulkers” Heads to Senate
The U.S. House of Representatives passed the Home Star Energy Retrofit Act of 2010, H.R.5019, affectionately called “Cash for Caulkers,” earlier this month. According to the House
Committee on Energy and Commerce, Home Star is expected to help three million families retrofit their homes to be more energy efficient. The legislation incentivizes home energy retrofits and stimulates employment in the construction-related sectors. It establishes rebates to encourage homeowners to invest in energy-saving activities and technologies such as replacing windows,
air sealing,
improving insulation and upgrading water heaters. Homeowners who conduct a comprehensive energy audit could receive significant rebates for implementing energy saving measures. Consumers are predicted to save $9.2 billion on their energy bills over the next 10 years as a result of Home Star's energy efficiency investments. The bill now heads to the Senate.
Learn more.
ARRA Energy Code Compliance Materials Now Available for States
The American Recovery and
Reinvestment Act requires states that accept funding to adopt
current energy codes and develop a plan to ensure 90% compliance. To assist this
effort, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Building Energy Codes Program has
developed materials to help states with their compliance evaluations. In
addition, over the next year, DOE will be funding pilot studies in eight states
to evaluate the compliance procedures and tools and get recommendations on
potential future enhancements.
Learn more about the requirements.
Download compliance evaluation materials.
VA Releases BIM Guide to the Public
The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) is committed to incorporating building information modeling (BIM) into its process requirements. To help achieve this goal, VA recently released its new BIM Guide, which documents strategies and procedures to incorporate BIM into the design of VA facilities. The Institute worked with VA to develop the updated online reference tool. VA also adopted
Construction Operations Building information exchange (COBie) methodology to electronically transfer building information to help manage its facilities. VA now requires construction product submittals to use the COBie Standard and the BIM Guide includes the COBie2 Template as part of its commissioning requirements.
View the BIM Guide.
Award-Winning School Integrates Sustainable Design, Curriculum
A new school in Virginia is designed around the premise that people, especially children, cannot be expected to preserve or protect something they do not understand. Manassas Park Elementary School, designed by the Charlottesville (Va.) firm VMDO Architects, was recently selected by the American Institute of Architects Committee on the Environment as one of the top 10 examples of sustainable architecture and green design solutions.
Conceived as a teaching tool to shepherd children along a path of environmental stewardship, the school, inside and out, integrates sustainable design with the elementary curriculum. Since its opening in April 2009, the school has garnered a number of awards.
As members of the Coalition for Green Schools Executive Committee, National
Clearinghouse for Educational Facilities staff were able to see the school
firsthand during a tour organized by the U.S. Green Building Council.
Read an article by the National Education Association.
Watch a film by the Chesapeake Bay Foundation.
Alliance, Canada BIM Council to Work Together on Standards
The buildingSMART alliance and Canada BIM Council have signed a memorandum of agreement to work together to develop open building information modeling (BIM) standards. The two organizations will collaborate on development of a National BIM Standard, which would be adapted to address country-specific issues.
Learn more.
COBie2 Gets Industry Attention
Since the most recent Construction Operations Building information exchange (COBie) 2 Challenge was held in Baltimore, Md., at the National Facility Maintenance and Technology conference March 17,
COBie is definitely attracting attention. Several recent articles have focused on the new technology, which simplifies the
facility handover process that goes with facility operation and maintenance.
Examples include
designatlantic.com and
aecbytes.com.
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