News bits

A/E/C professionals looking for more information on efficient and environmentally friendly methods for cooling, heating and powering buildings should check out this new Web site sponsored by the American Gas Cooling Center. Case studies and information on new technologies and strategies such as cogeneration and trigeneration, which combine cooling, heating and power to recover waste heat, is provided.

www.buildingenergy.org

Software enables designers to create sample walls with brick and concrete block in four sizes and 200 colors, and with 40 mortar colors. Designs produced with Masonry Designer can be imported into 2-D and 3-D computer-aided design (CAD) programs, and can be exported into common image formats for viewing.

www.acmebrick.com

Computer program allows engineers to easily calculate the frequency and amplitude resulting from transient vibration caused by human activity on a steel-joist concrete floor. The software can quickly create "what-if" scenarios, taking into consideration variations in slab thickness, concrete strength, joist size, joist spacing, floor decking, live and dead loads and span lengths.

www.steeljoist.org

Digital weather service provides forecast and current weather information specifically designed for construction firms. Firms can have customized graphic, text and live video content automatically delivered to Internet or intranet Web sites.

www.accuweather.com

Associated General Contractors of America (AGC) has integrated its subcontracts (600 series) and management documents (500/800 series) into its contract documents software, DocuBuilder. Version 1.1 contains all of AGC's 60 standardized forms.

www.agc.org