Norsteel On YouTube

Published November 13, 2009 Norsteel Buildings News Leave a Comment
Tags: , , ,

If you happen to be looking for some visual inspiration to get started on your next building project, why not check out Norsteel Buildings on YouTube? We have more than a couple 3D renderings of existing building projects that you can take a look at from every angle. I guess you could call it a bare bones virtual tour! While we only have a few videos online right now, we will absolutely be adding more in the future.

If you would like to discuss any of the projects that you see on our Norsteel’s YouTube channel, please check out our website, www.norsteel.com or for mini storage building, take a look at www.norsteelministorage.com. As an added source of visual inspiration, feel free to peruse our steel buildings photo gallery. You will find a wide variety of steel building images and projects that have taken place across Canada.

As winter is quickly descending upon us, it is a good idea to get all of your ducks in a row for your upcoming steel building project.

Wind-driven rain resistance

Published November 11, 2009 Norsteel Buildings News , Pre-Fabricated Building News , going green Leave a Comment
Tags: , ,

A voluntary specification for windows, doors and skylights has been released by the American Architectural Manufacturers Association, Schaumburg, Ill. The publication, Voluntary Specification for Rating the Severe Wind-Driven Rain Resistance of Windows, Doors and Unit Skylights, provides an optional rating of the ability of fenestration products to resist severe wind-driven rain.

This voluntary specification is based on a rapidly pulsed pressure differential method, recognizing that conditions encountered during tropical storms, hurricanes or severe thunderstorms are not static. In addition, the procedures and equipment required to perform the specified tests are provided. The specification details the testing apparatus used; defines test specimens and installation, and describes test methods utilized, as well as stating what information the test report should include.

Source:  http://www.metalarchitecture.com

New Firestone division focused on energy

Published November 11, 2009 Pre-Fabricated Building News , Steel Building Tips , going green Leave a Comment
Tags: , ,

Firestone Building Products Co. LLC, Indianapolis, is introducing a new business division–Firestone Energy Solutions. This new division is committed to providing products, systems and services that assist in conservation and the production of energy for the commercial building envelope.

“Firestone Building Products is making a positive impact on the environment every day with its wide array of durable, sustainable and recyclable products and processes,” said Mike Vall, president of Firestone Building Products. “Firestone Energy Solutions enables us to expand our footprint, offering renewable energy solutions that meet emerging 21st century needs.”

Through a comprehensive offering of rooftop photovoltaic and daylighting systems, Firestone is positioned to provide either turn-key or custom energy solutions to meet renewable energy demands. Firestone Energy Solutions’ product approach provides access to domed daylighting systems, FM-approved smoke hatch/daylighting systems and crystalline and thin film PV technologies from major manufacturers, as well as ballasted or penetrating racking solutions. In addition, Firestone’s rooftop PV program features trained and licensed installers, thorough analysis capabilities at project onset and completion, system performance monitoring and assistance to fund solar installations.

“It is important that owners have a choice when it comes to solar electric selections to ensure they can meet their power and financial needs,” said Jeff Henegar, general manager of Firestone Energy Solutions. “As a leader in the commercial roofing industry, Firestone brings superior roofing products together with leading-edge solar technologies from trusted manufacturers and top notch support offerings to engineer the right roofing system for both the building and solar installation.”

According to Henegar, one of the critical components when embarking on a solar installation is ensuring a properly designed roof system is in place that can sustain the potential 20-30 year longevity of the PV or daylighting system. Working with Firestone Building Products, Energy Solutions will provide a single source for both roofing and roof-based solar systems that address renewable energy interests. In addition, Energy Solutions is enhancing the technical capabilities of Firestone’s commercial roofing installer network to provide the services necessary to address solar roofing system installations.

For more information: www.firestonebpco.com

Source:  http://www.metalarchitecture.com

LinkedIn For Green Building News

Published November 6, 2009 Pre-Fabricated Building News , going green Leave a Comment
Tags: , ,

Last week we discussed the merits of utilizing LinkedIn as a valuable resource for workplace safety information, tips, and news. This week, we would like to continue along the LinkedIn theme and mention that it is also a valuable source of information for those in the green construction industry.

To begin with there are a plethora of green building industry professionals on Linked in that would likely be more than happy to connect with likeminded individuals. And if you are looking for those professionals, you can find them in the various green constructions groups that have been created specifically to promote industry awareness, networking opportunities, and information sharing.

Here are a few green construction groups that might be of interest:

Building Green, a Sustainability Group

A group dedicated to connecting Green and Sustainable Architects, Builders, Developers, and end users together to facilitate a sustainable construction processes.

The LEED Professional Group

A networking site for professioanals that are interested combining energy and construction. All group is professionals involved in construction, real estate, finance that realize the importance LEED certification will be towards our future.

Green Real Estate a subgroup of Real Estate Finance & Investment Society

The group for environmentally-friendly sustainable/green building, such as LEED certified designs, clean technology, hydroelectricity, renewable energy, solar, wind, natural gas, recycling, etc. Open to those in development, investment, architecture, design, planning, construction, energy, law, etc.

Green Building

We practice increasing the efficiency with which buildings use resources — energy, water, and materials — while reducing building impacts on human health and the environment, through better siting, design, construction, operation, maintenance. We strive to regenerate and can supersede Carbon neutral

Green Real Estate: Building, Design, Planning, Products, Investment

A chance to network with professionals interested in promoting Green Building, Design & Planning projects. We are looking for Builders, Green Construction Products, Contractors, Developers, Architects, Planners, Realtors, Brokers, Bankers, Attorneys, Investors, Appraisers, etc.

GREEN CITIES: Smart Growth & Sustainability for the DENSE URBAN context.

For those involved with or interested in Smart Growth and Sustainability,”Green” Design, “Green” Infrastructure, “Green” Urban Planning,”Green” Construction, and Deconstruction..Material Re-Use & RE-construction….all for the DENSE URBAN CONTEXT.

Sustainable Facility and ED+C magazines, websites and webinars

Sustainable Facility and Environmental Design + Construction are the leading resources for the forward thinking green building professional SF supports the facility manager, owner, engineer and service provider. ED+C supports the architect, interior designer and building contractor.

Eco | Consulting US

Residential | Commercial Retrofits | LEED Consulting | New Construction | Green Point Rated

These are just a few of your options if you are looking to connect and learn from Green Construction industry professionals on LinkedIn. If you have the time and have not yet joined LinkedIn, take a little tour.

What Makes Metal Green?

Published November 3, 2009 Norsteel Buildings News , Pre-Fabricated Building News , going green Leave a Comment
Tags: , ,

Metal is represented by a wide-ranging family of products that can be engineered through coatings, finishes, profiles and textures to meet the needs of building owners and the performance standards of codes.  Below is a list of those products:

Adaptable and Green – Metal is the only material that can offer this comprehensive type of engineering so that  metal products can be applied to almost any component of a building envelope and designed to meet all codes and architectural designs.  This superior diversity and design flexibility is also one of the reason metal is so appropriate for green building applications.

Cool Roofing – The most talked about use of metal in green building is for cool metal roofing, which is helping curb energy use around the globe.  Cool metal roofs have been engineered and proven to provide high solar reflectance and thermal emissivity.  These are achieved through the choice of coatings and can be enhanced by special techniques.

ASV – A Cooler Technique – Beyond roofing product coatings are techniques that can enhance a roof’s energy-saving ability.  One proven method is to install the roof off of the deck surface, a phenomenon called Above Sheathing Ventilation.  Without ASV, the direct to deck heat is conducted through the sheathing and into the attic space of a building.  With ASV, the air space provides heating and cooling reductions because the heat is dissipated out in warm climates and the air gap acts as added insulation to prevent heat loss in cooler weather.

Solar Systems – Metal roofing is also an excellent platform for photovoltaic installations.  Peel and stick (amorphous) grid and crystalline panels can be mounted to a metal roof without penetrating the roof membrane.  Passive solar water heating systems can also be mounted on a metal roof. 

Walls – While the attention on energy efficiency has been focused on metal roofing, metal wall systems have become “cool” products.  Walls now can achieve a 10 percent reduction in energy needs. 

Environmental Impact – Metal has a favorable impact on the environment in other ways.  All metals are 100 percent recyclable and have a high range of recycled content.  Most metal is light in weight, which allows it to be installed over existing roofing products, reducing waste from old roof tear offs.  Metal is an inert material that has no off-gassing and no emitted VOC’s, which helps reduce a building’s carbon foot-print and mitigate the urban heat island effect.  Overall, metal offers more sustainable benefits than other building products.  It retains its properties over decades, offers a low life cycle cost, has low impact on the environment, offers energy efficiency in any climate, and improves air quality during construction and when the building is occupied.

Metal building products are well-engineered, highly adaptable, have low environmental impact, provide documented performance and are good for the bottom line.  This offers many options to designers and builders and huge benefits to green building.

For more information on green building, please visit:  www.metalarchitecture.com

Source:  Green Metal Inc.

Survey Shows Weatherability, Corrosion Resistance as Top Priorities for Metal Roofs and Walls

Published November 2, 2009 Norsteel Buildings News , Pre-Fabricated Building News , Steel Building Tips Leave a Comment
Tags: , ,

Recently, a national survey of architects found that more than 95 percent ranked weatherability and corrosion resistance as “critical” or “very important” to specifying, recommending or approving coatings for metal roof and wall panels.  Conducted by Media, Pa.-based International Communications Research, the study explored a broad range of topics including which performance attributes architects who specify metal coatings considered most important and how they rate various brands.

According to the more than 100 architects who participated, the five most important attributes of coatings on metal roofs and walls, in order of importance, are corrosion resistance, weatherability, colour retention, warranty and freedom from maintenance.  Less important attributes cited by the respondents are gloss retention, dirt pick-up, colour range and initial cost.

Architects in the study specify almost equally by brand (49 percent) as by performance criteria (51 percent).  Eighty-six percent of the participants named resin-based coatings with Kynar 500 as their top choice and 57 percent also responded that Kynar 500 resin-based coatings are important in the performance of cool roofing technology. 

Kynar 500 is a registered trademark of Arkema Inc., headquartered in Philardelphia.  For more information on the research study and its results, visit arkema-inc.com or kynar500.com

Source:  www.metalartchitecture.com

HAPPY HALLOWEEN from Norsteel Buildings

Published October 30, 2009 Norsteel Buildings News Leave a Comment
Tags: ,
halloween construction cartoon

halloween construction cartoon

LinkedIn For Safety

Published October 30, 2009 Construction and Workplace Safety , Norsteel Buildings News Leave a Comment
Tags: , , ,

For those of you who are looking for online resources that cater to workplace safety, we at Norsteel Buildings would like to suggest visiting LinkedIn.

LinkedIn has earned a reputation as an effective online resource for professionals to connect and network. But what many people don’t realize, even people who log in on a daily basis, is that LinkedIn really can provide a wealth of information on hot topics in most industries. Construction is no exception to this fact. To give you an idea of what you might find, there is a group called Safety Training. In their own words, The Safety Training  Group is devoted to Safety, Human Resources and Training Professionals who must meet the challenge of training employees in safety and hazard control.

Once you join this group, or any other construction related group on LinkedIn, you can pose safety related questions, join in discussions with your peers, and even post or read industry specific information and news items. As an example of the useful items you will find in this group, there is a link to the OSHA handbook (top right to download pdf, after you click on the link). There is also links to the video series of Caterpillar’s Safety Basics. The Safety Training Group on LinkedIn has also started a subgroup called Social Networking 101 to help people within the industry learn from each other.

If you have not yet joined LinkedIn, we suggest you take a moment to do so. Become part of this online community and benefit from networking and learning opportunities.

LEED credential relevance

Published October 27, 2009 Norsteel Buildings News , Pre-Fabricated Building News , going green Leave a Comment
Tags: , ,

The Green Building Certification Institute, Washington, D.C., has launched a credentialing maintenance program for LEED Accredited Professionals and Green Associates, ensuring that LEED professional credentials will remain relevant and meaningful in a rapidly evolving marketplace.

“Since 2001, the LEED AP credential has been recognized as a mark of significant achievement, acknowledging that a candidate passed a rigorous test that assessed their knowledge of green building fundamentals, as well as knowledge of practice in a chosen specialty,” said Peter Templeton, president, GBCI. “But knowledge doesn’t stand still, and credential maintenance underscores a professional’s commitment to staying at the leading edge of green building science and practice.”

A number of activities qualify to earn LEED credential holders credit toward their credentialing maintenance. Those activities include continuing education, as well as the practical application of LEED on projects and active participation in the green building community. A CMP Guide is available at www.gbci.org that outlines CMP-eligible activities and the requirements for maintaining both the LEED AP and LEED Green Associate credentials.

Later this year, GBCI will launch an online tool for registered CMP users to easily and seamlessly submit and track maintenance activities.

For more information: www.gbci.org

Source:  http://www.metalarchitecture.com/Default.aspx?PublicationID=3

AAMA Survey And Task Force Update

Published October 27, 2009 Norsteel Buildings News , Pre-Fabricated Building News , going green Leave a Comment
Tags: , ,

According to a Green Building Survey, Schaumburg, Ill., from the American Architectural Manufacturers Association, has found that 77 percent of respondents reported a product-based green certification program for residential and commercial fenestration would benefit the product selection process for their companies.   AAMA will use the survey responses as additional input to shape a green fenestration certification program the association is developing.

“Architects, builders and contractors will look to AAMA-certified products and verified components to meet their green projects’ performance requirements for safety, energy efficiency and durability,” said Rich Walker, AAMA president and CEO.

For the remainder of 2009, AAMA will continue conducting the survey and evolve questions to inquire about the American Reinvestment and Recovery Act and how the stimulus package is impacting energy efficient construction and renovation in the industry.

AAMA’s BIM (Building Information Modeling) task group recently met for the first time in Minneapolis to discuss how and why the technology is being used. The task group is attempting to identify important attributes of fenestration products to incorporate into BIM tools, making it easier for specifiers to utilize these building products in their projects.

“BIM is already gaining traction in the Midwest, as the Wisconsin Department of Administration Division of State Facilities has completed the task of preparing the BIM Guidelines and Standards for implementation in July. These guidelines are required on all construction [new and addition/alteration] with total project funding of $5 million or greater.

This is just one example of how BIM is becoming more accepted by building officials and is expected to spread nationwide,” Walker said.

For more information on this article, please visit: http://www.metalarchitecture.com/Default.aspx?PublicationID=3

 

Next Page »

a

Blog Stats

  • 17,693 hits
Home | Contact | Gallery | News and Views | No-Hassle Quote | Blog