We had these conversations grouped by size of firm. 

Guiding Questions:

Knowledge Management By Firm Size

How to give people the info they need, when they need it?

Is the COTE Top Ten a good framework?

This seems extremely daunting in a large firm. How do we manage content that is produced and shared... Read more

If anyone else has gotten confused going between parts-per-million and percentages (parts per hundred!) for material reporting here's a little infographic that might help. Feel free to use or improve! 

Hi there SD Leaders,

We're running an LCA on one of our projects that's about to start construction that has had serious embodied carbon goals and I got a result that really surprised me. I haven't been able to find any obvious/glaring issues with the work, but these results are strange enough that I'm not feeling confident. I'm hoping... Read more

Hey all - sorry I won't be able to join our call today. I had a client request an emergency meeting today (boo) because corporate mandated that they eliminate fossil fuel use from all their buildings (yay!) by 2025 and they've got a project underway that needs to pivot quickly. 

Had I been able to join, I wanted to share this in case... Read more

All,

I've probably spoken to a few of you over the phone, but I wanted to make sure all of you know that we are hosting a 4 part webinar series on our Tally LCA software, kicking off tomorrow 10/10. We just released the new of Tally version and ended up doing far more development work than initially anticipated, in no small part due to... Read more

Has anyone completed an LCA for an engineering structures lab, particularly one that has a strong wall and strong floor? 

Pipe that delivers domestic water in North America is typically made from copper, chlorinated polyvinyl chloride (CPVC), cross-linked polyethylene (PEX), all of which present environmental challenges. Bimodal polyethylene  (PE-RT) and polypropylene (PP) are potential alternatives with lower climate and health impacts.
... Read more

Concrete and other cementitious materials have both environmental advantages and disadvantages. As builders and designers, should we be looking for alternatives or embracing concrete over competing materials?

This special report takes a look at how these materials are made, presents the key environmental considerations relating to their... Read more

Hey Peer Network! Curious, if we can crowd-source a solution here for the pervious pavers at our Omaha office (climate zone 5A). Apparently over the years we've tried to add different kinds of fill here (gravel) but it keeps... disappearing. Any recommendations with either a replacement product or fill item? 

Asking for a colleague:

"Have you ever had a large number of fire retardant tarps used to temporarily enclose a building during construction? Do you know of any solutions for recycling/reusing them or another product that doesn't use toxic fire-retardants that meets the performance criteria?"

I think we've all seen poly or fabric... Read more

This is the body field.

Show & Tell Breakout: share what’s working and what isn’t! Which tools are your favorites? Have you developed any innovative applications? Discovered new pitfalls?

Presentations:

Hi everyone! I'm extremely pleased to be back in this group after a couple of years out and I'll spare no time in spamming your inboxes. 

MASS is working with UT Austin to help them evaluate their campus buildings for reuse firstly and then deconstruction and material reuse. Their campus, as with most campuses, is constantly being built... Read more

Hi everyone, on our SDL Regional Leaders call today we touched on how different offices are engaging with the Youth Climate Strike on Sept 20, and I offered to share a few resources that we've developed:  

1) Here is our public-facing official statement/endorsement: https://www.vmdo.com/architecture-blog/vmdo-youth-climate-strike/?fbclid... Read more

Colleagues:

I "lurk" on the list serve of the American Physical Plant Administrators.  I wanted to share a posting from that forum:

Hi All,

Two questions here: wondering if any Universities in the Pacific Northwest have a thermal comfort standard they adhere to for new building design on campus? UBC is currently undertaking... Read more