Confessions of a cold storage architect

Regenerative design, cognitive health, and jobsite robotics highlight the top trends from the 519 design and construction firms that participated in BD+C's 2022 Giants 400 Report.

In 2021, Gilbane Building Company and Nextera Robotics partnered in a joint venture to develop an artificial intelligence platform utilizing a fleet of autonomous mobile robots. The platform, dubbed Didge, is designed to automate construction management, maximize reliability and safety, and minimize operational costs. This was just one of myriad examples over the past 18 months of contractor giants turning to construction technology (ConTech) to gather jobsite data, manage workers and equipment, and smooth the construction process.

Founders Hall at the University of Washington Foster School of Business, the first mass timber building at Seattle campus of Univ. of Washington, was recently completed. The 84,800-sf building creates a new hub for community, entrepreneurship, and innovation, according the project’s design architect LMN Architects.

Faster delivery of buildings isn’t always associated with sustainability benefits or long-term value, but things are changing. An instructive case is in the development of steel structures that not only allow speedier erection times, but also can reduce embodied carbon and create durable, highly resilient building approaches.

The New York-based climate technology company electrifies and decarbonizes buildings—more than 1,200 of them so far.

The U.S. General Services Administration’s (GSA) Green Proving Ground program, in collaboration with the U.S. Department of Energy, has selected six innovative building technologies for evaluation in GSA’s inventory.

Drew Deatherage of Crux Solutions discusses where owners and AEC firms could do better at optimizing smart technology in building design and operations.

This course covers design considerations for parapets. The modern parapet must provide fire protection, serve as a fall-protective guard, transition and protect the roof/facade interface, conceal rooftop equipment, and contribute to the aesthetic character of the building.