Stantec illustrates the benefits of prefab multi-trade racking.

Contractors expect to spend more time on prefabrication, according to FMI study

Get ready for a surge in prefabrication activity by contractors. FMI, the consulting and investment banking firm, recently polled contractors about how much time they were spending, in craft labor hours, on prefabrication for construction projects. More than 250 contractors participated in the survey, and the average response to that question was 18%. More revealing, however, was the participants’ anticipation that craft hours dedicated to prefab would essentially double, to 34%, within the next five years.

Building Tech

In a world first, load-bearing concrete walls built with a 3D printer

A Germany-based construction engineering company says it has constructed the world’s first load-bearing concrete walls built with a 3D printer. Züblin built a new warehouse from a single 3D print for Strabag Baumaschinentechnik International in Stuttgart, Germany using a Putzmeister 3D printer.

Adaptive Reuse

Modular adaptive reuse of parking structure grants future flexibility

The shift away from excessive parking requirements aligns with a broader movement, encouraging development of more sustainable and affordable housing.

Healthcare Facilities

A modular construction solution to the mental healthcare crisis

Maria Ionescu, Senior Medical Planner, Stantec, shares a tested solution for the overburdened emergency department: Modular hub-and-spoke design.

Modular Building

Modular building is the growing trend of assembling structures from prefabricated, interchangeable components. After being constructed in a controlled environment away from the building site—such as a factory—the components are then transported to the final location and assembled on-site.

This growing collection of news, trends, case studies, white papers, and innovative projects bring you the latest in modular design and construction.

Jun 5, 2013

USGBC: Free LEED certification for projects in new markets

In an effort to accelerate sustainable development around the world, the U.S. Green Building Council is offering free LEED certification to the first projects to certify in the 112 countries where LEED has yet to take root.

Jun 3, 2013

Construction spending inches upward in April

The U.S. Census Bureau of the Department of Commerce announced today that construction spending during April 2013 was estimated at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $860.8 billion, 0.4 percent above the revised March estimate of $857.7 billion.

Rob Cassidy | May 30, 2013

The Make It Right squabble: ‘How many trees did you plant today?’

A debate has been raging in the blogosphere over the last few months about an article in The New Republic, “If You Build It, They Might Not Come,” in which staff writer Lydia DePillis took Brad Pitt’s Make It Right Foundation to task for botching its effort to revitalize the Lower Ninth Ward of New Orleans.

For a recent renovation of a stairwell and exit corridors at Ridgewood High Scho

Apr 30, 2013

Tips for designing with fire rated glass - AIA/CES course

Kate Steel of Steel Consulting Services offers tips and advice for choosing the correct code-compliant glazing product for every fire-rated application. This BD+C University class is worth 1.0 AIA LU/HSW.

Rob Cassidy | Mar 27, 2013

The next step in sustainability: Making small buildings energy efficient

The U.S. Department of Energy is in the midst of an ambitious project to develop a “roadmap” that…

The New York Modular Construction Summit will be co-hosted by the Modular Buildi

Feb 28, 2013

Novel multifamily solutions to be presented at New York Modular Construction Summit

The New York Modular Construction Summit will be co-hosted by the Modular Building Institute and Pratt Institute School of Architecture on May 16, 2013, in Brooklyn, N.Y.

This suburban Seattle Starbucks was built with shipping containers.

Feb 22, 2013

Starbucks pilot program rolls out small, modular stores

Coffee giant Starbucks is rolling out mini-stores with maximum local flavor, as part of an international pilot program.

Boxman Studios has launched a new division aimed at sustainable solutions for th

Feb 14, 2013

Boxman Studios launches shipping container buildings division

Boxman Studios has launched a new division aimed at sustainable solutions for the Built Environment. The Boxman Studios Buildings Division will focus on the adaptive use of decommissioned shipping containers as architectural elements and even complete buildings.