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The article discusses the design and features of Arbour House, a residence in Victoria, British Columbia, designed by Patkau Architects. The house takes advantage of its site's water views and natural light, with skylights and retractable glazing allowing for a seamless connection to the surrounding landscape. The design prioritizes sociability and includes spaces for gathering with family and friends. The house also incorporates sustainable features such as passive cooling, ground-source heat pumps, and rooftop photovoltaics. The article highlights the unique design elements and materials used in the construction of the house. [Extracted from the article]

The article explores the growing interest in bio-based building materials within the architectural industry. It acknowledges the drawbacks of conventional materials and highlights the potential of bio-based alternatives to address health and environmental concerns. The article showcases various innovative bio-based materials and projects, including self-supporting bio-composite facade panels and carbon-sequestering structural blocks. It also emphasizes the use of agricultural waste materials like straw and hemp hurd, which are both environmentally friendly and renewable. The article concludes by advocating for more data, policies, and initiatives to support the wider adoption of bio-based materials in construction. Additionally, it discusses the importance of cultural sensitivity in library services, emphasizing the need for inclusive resources and services that respect diverse perspectives. The article suggests that libraries should actively seek out materials representing different cultures and provide staff training to ensure sensitivity to patrons' needs. Libraries are also seen as playing a vital role in promoting cultural understanding and fostering a sense of belonging within the community. [Extracted from the article]

Circular construction is an alternative approach to traditional building practices that aims to reduce waste and address the climate crisis. It involves reusing and recycling building materials, as well as implementing design strategies for longevity and ease of disassembly. Arup, a global engineering firm, has developed a Circular Building Toolkit to guide designers in reducing the use of virgin and nonrenewable products. London has implemented mandatory circular-construction guidelines, and projects like the retrofit of One Triton Square have successfully demonstrated the benefits of circular construction. Other organizations, such as GXN and ETH Zurich's Circular for Architecture lab, are also exploring circular construction and developing innovative solutions. Legislation and policy decisions may be necessary to further develop the marketplace for circular construction. Ultimately, circular construction has the potential to significantly reduce carbon emissions and contribute to a more sustainable built environment. [Extracted from the article]

Sher Maker is a design firm located in Chiang Mai, Thailand, that emphasizes craftsmanship and a close relationship with nature in their architectural projects. Founded by Patcharada Inplang and Thongchai Chansamak, the firm creates buildings with simple forms and pared-down materials that are immediately accessible. They prioritize using natural building materials and frequently collaborate with local fabricators and suppliers. Sher Maker's approach has been successful, with their craft-driven projects speaking for themselves and attracting clients. The firm's completed projects include the Wood & Mountain Cabin, Long Goy, Moonler, and the PTT Saraphi gas station. [Extracted from the article]

The article discusses the restoration of the Michigan Central Station in Detroit by Quinn Evans. The station, which opened in 1914, was once a symbol of Detroit's industrial prowess but fell into disrepair due to economic decline and neglect. Ford purchased the station in 2018 and hired Quinn Evans to lead the restoration project. The team faced significant challenges, including water damage, decayed materials, and missing architectural elements. Through extensive research and careful surveying, the team was able to restore and replace various components of the building, including the terrazzo flooring, Guastavino tiles, and exterior masonry. The restoration also included updates to meet contemporary performance standards. The renovated station will be open to the public and will house retail spaces, event venues, and potentially passenger tracks for Amtrak. The project is part of the larger Michigan Central Innovation District, which aims to revitalize the area with new technologies and amenities. The article acknowledges the scars of the station's past, such as graffiti and deteriorated stairwells, as reminders of Detroit's history. Overall, the restoration of the Michigan Central Station represents a significant step in the revitalization of Detroit and its architectural heritage. [Extracted from the article]

The article discusses current trends in interior design that prioritize simplicity and the use of glass and large visual installations. Glass is favored for its ability to enhance the ambiance of a space by allowing natural light to enter and creating a sense of openness. Glass partitions are also being used in office environments to promote daylighting, energy savings, and improved well-being for employees. Additionally, the article highlights the use of printed wall protection to incorporate art and visual design into architectural products, offering customization and durability. These trends aim to create visually appealing and functional spaces that enhance the overall experience of occupants. [Extracted from the article]

"It dates back to the Viking era and has remained an important aspect of Swedish architecture ever since", says Martin Stenberg Ringnér, associate design director of Henning Larsen. Reflecting on timber construction, lead design architect Filip Francati says, "Despite strides in structural development, aesthetic expression hasn't kept pace." FOCUS ON WOOD WOOD IS ubiquitous in the architectural heritage of Scandinavia, whose forests have long supplied an abundance of the building material. [Extracted from the article]

"Hermès runs a policy of responsible, structured growth", says François-Pierre Feydeau, head of Hermès's Norman hub. Though Hermès has not divulged struction cost, this, Ghotmeh says, is a building that "tries to bring beauty to a text where nobody has bothered to care beauty." DEPARTMENTS THOUGH PERHAPS best known today for its ladies' silk scarves, French luxury brand Hermès started out as a saddlemaker and still produces numerous leather goods, among them the famous Kelly purse, launched in the 1930s and given its current name after Princess Grace of Monaco was spotted hiding her pregnancy behind one in the late 1950s. [Extracted from the article]

For Shadow of a Face, the monument to abolitionist and activist Harriet Tubman (scheduled to open on March 9), suppliers and fabricators were less familiar with the issue of modern slavery in materials' supply chains. "Architects are a powerful lobby, with a history of helping to create a more equitable world", says architect and educator Harriet Harriss, also a member of Design for Freedom's working group. (Tier 1 is the direct supplier of the final product, Tier 2 is the suppliers to them, and so on through as many tiers as it takes to reach the constituent materials' points of origin.). [Extracted from the article]

Sage green H-section columns (left and far left) structure the house. Also used for pocket doors and millwork, the oak pairs well with the sage green exposed H-section columns and swinging metal doors along the eastern wall. Is the product of a transatlantic partnership forged between New York - based Ignacio G. Galán and Madrid-based husband-and-wife duo Álvaro Martín Fidalgo and Arantza Ozaeta of OF Architects. [Extracted from the article]

This article from Architectural Record explores the concept of stewardship in the context of glass products used in construction and design. It defines two categories of stewardship: Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) Stewardship and Product Stewardship. The article discusses the importance of reducing embodied carbon in the glass manufacturing process and highlights other parameters that impact ESG. It also emphasizes the role of glass in promoting health and wellness in building occupants and the increasing use of glass in modern design. Finally, the article addresses the significant carbon emissions produced by buildings and the need to consider embodied carbon in construction. [Extracted from the article]

Skin in the Game OCMA's dynamic rainscreen "brings together low- and hightech solutions", says Morphosis partner in charge Brandon Welling, referring to the artisanal craft of glazed terra-cotta and the cuttingedge digital techniques that made possible the precise design and construction of such an irregularly undulant wrapper. BUILDING TYPE STUDY 1,048 ARTS & CULTURE IN 2007, Morphosis won the competition for the new home of the Orange County Museum of Art (OCMA), in Costa Mesa, California, and, by 2008, the project was officially under way. SCA's freestanding buildings are densely packed and stylistically eclectic - ranging from the mega-scaled masonry geometries of architect Charles Lawrence's Segerstrom Hall to the glassy, wavelike facade of Cesar Pelli's concert venue, next door to OCMA. [Extracted from the article]

In the end, the HVAC basement was allowed, but the redesigns caused problems in the final days of construction, when it turned out that certain connections were missing and holes had to be drilled through the vaulted floor plates. The result of targeted demolitions in the 1940s, the site was complex: steeply sloping, it measured barely 10,000 square feet for an ambitious 40,000-square-foot program; it included historic housing that had to be incorporated into the project; and it faced a large 1950s covered reservoir whose structure was too fragile to support any extra load. BUILDING TYPE STUDY 1,048 ARTS & CULTURE LONG FAMED for its perfume, the ancient town of Grasse sits high up in the hills above Cannes, overlooking the French Riviera. [Extracted from the article]

This article, titled "Looping in Sustainability," discusses the importance of making informed materials choices in architecture that support the health of people and the planet. It emphasizes the impact of design, materials, and construction on the performance, durability, and environmental impact of buildings. The article introduces concepts and tools, such as the AIA Materials Pledge and the mindful MATERIALs Common Materials Framework, that help architects consider the total impact of their material selections. It also highlights the use of transparency documents and eco-certifications to select sustainable products and materials. The article concludes by emphasizing the opportunity and responsibility architects have to design projects that enhance life on Earth for future generations. [Extracted from the article]

This article from Architectural Record highlights several products in the paints and coatings industry. Sto Corp's wood stain collection offers a range of colors and combines the benefits of a stain and sealer in one product. Woodluxe exterior stains are designed to withstand various weather conditions and come in a wide variety of colors. James Alexander Specialty Paints offers Thrive, a collection of water-based interior paints made from plant-based binders and free from toxins and VOCs. The Emulate line of printed metal coatings replicates the appearance of natural building materials at a lower cost and with less maintenance. [Extracted from the article]

WOOD IS an ages-old construction material - but it is one that is receiving renewed attention, especially with the rise of mass timber. One tool that can help determine if a wood product originated from such a forest is certification. [Extracted from the article]

To the south, where a triple-height internal street forms the building's principal circulation spine, WilkinsonEyre has replaced underwhelmingly small entrance doors with a voluminous glass foyer. The most significant alteration is to the upper floors, where the architects saw an opportunity to relocate the main university library to the Hub by repurposing two of the building's three open-air lightwells, around which offices were previously arranged. BUILDING TYPE STUDY 1,047 COLLEGES & UNIVERSITIES WHEN LONDON South Bank University (LSBU) opened its hulking centerpiece building in 1976, a long review in an architectural journal identified numerous shortcomings, but concluded on a positive note: "It is a building which could be loved.". [Extracted from the article]

Water Efficiency An in-wall toilet system offers special water efficiency benefits in a multifamily building. In-wall systems for toilets, urinals, bidets, and washbasins are based on a concealed steel frame that attaches inside the wall and supports wall-hung plumbing fixtures. BALANCED BATHROOM DESIGN In multifamily buildings, sanitation, safety, and sustainability are important considerations for residents and operation staff, particularly in bathrooms. As such, extruded aluminum trim can contribute to LEED points for buildings seeking certification or green building status. [Extracted from the article]

CONTINUING EDUCATION THE CONSTRUCTION industry is the elephant in the room when it comes to emissions and pollution. For Boston-based architecture firm Dyer Brown, adopting a more sustainable approach to design and construction required a similar rethinking of both adaptive reuse and material sourcing. A number of firms within the AEC industry are seeking to remedy that paradigm through new sourcing protocols and material-tracking software. [Extracted from the article]

Naturally, the company plans to track Bay View's success through user feedback and - Google being Google - by collecting and analyzing data for years to come. That's the look of two office buildings (plus a smaller events structure) by Bjarke Ingels Group (BIG) and Heatherwick Studio (HS) for Google's new Bay View campus. PROJECTS IMAGINE ENORMOUS dome tents with swooping roof swags, skinned in dragon scales. [Extracted from the article]

Finally, separated by a lushly planted courtyard, the last poured-concrete structure culminates the journey that SO - IL has defined with subtle formal gestures that unite the entire assembly. Florian Idenburg of SO - IL - whom Ebers had met when she was on the board of the New Museum and he was overseeing construction of that institution's new building in Manhattan for SANAA (2007) - would help shape Amant as it grew to include more structures, even if at the time SO - IL had little built work to its credit. In the biggest gallery, in the renovated existing structure, SO-IL removed a central column and inserted six scooping skylights that cut through the 3½-foot-thick ceiling. [Extracted from the article]

An oval-shaped elevator and a second staircase connect the northern gallery to the ground floor, completing the museum loop. BUILDING TYPE STUDY 1,036 CULTURAL BUILDINGS ENRICHED WITH historic houses and old buildings turned into vibrant coffee shops and new galleries, revitalized parts of Tehran are responding to an emerging generation of artists and art seekers looking for spaces to gather, socialize, and create. The cast-in-place concrete-slab floors support a suspended vaulted-brick ceiling above the ground level. [Extracted from the article]

The article evaluates the Polygood, a sustainable architectural material made from 100 percent recycled plastic, offered by The Good Plastic Company.

Safdie's prose shares with his built work a certain disappointing resistance to the notion that lasting works of architecture might be driven as much by intellectual as material concerns. If Walls Could Speak: My Life in Architecture, by Moshe Safdie. After leaving Israel at age 14 for Montreal, where both the long winters and "somber" buildings came as a shock, Safdie enrolled in the architecture program at McGill. [Extracted from the article]

EXPERIENTIAL GRAPHIC DESIGN AS A VISITOR passes through an office-building lobby, images that are partially glimpsed in one wall - raindrops, time-lapse clouds, a school of fish - subtly respond: the rain softly falls; the fish swim alongside. Engaging building users with architecture-integrated interactive media is a key EGD strategy at the Anne T. and Robert M. Bass Biology Research Building at Stanford University. "The more integral the dialogue between architects and experience designers, the better the project serves its audience", says SEGD's Jones. [Extracted from the article]

In León, one way SO-IL reduced costs was by designing for worker- rather than machinery-intensive construction, relying on inexpensive local labor. Ironically, SO-IL had to scrap prior plans for a similarly scaled and configured courtyard building in San Francisco, because estimated construction costs were too steep. PROJECTS LIKE MANY cities in Mexico, León - about 230 miles northwest of the nation's capital - experienced aggressive, sprawling growth along its outer fringes in this century's first decade. [Extracted from the article]

Coated with silver paint dusted with a shimmery powdered mica, the exposed metal frame is a defining feature of the interior, complementing the oil-finished teak flooring and lauan-plywood walls and ceilings. A roof terrace PHOTO (COLOR): A WALL of custom shelving at the entrance is illuminated by portable steel-encased lamps designed by the architects (right). BUILDING TYPE STUDY 1,028 RECORD HOUSES HISTORICALLY, solid walls that simply shut out the surroundings were a common coping mechanism for building on tight and unpredictable sites in Japan. [Extracted from the article]

Urquiza specified local materials - such as a tropical wood for columns, beams, and louvers, and the brownish granite from the site itself for walls. BUILDING TYPE STUDY 1,028 RECORD HOUSES AS A TEENAGER, Ignacio Urquiza traveled with his father, a photographer, as he captured images of the houses, food, and culture of Mexico's Pacific coast. "I saw the house as a series of terraces", says Urquiza, emphasizing the importance of outdoor spaces. [Extracted from the article]

Phifer and his partner Stephen Dayton scrupulously studied the original plans and construction details while comparing them to other Mies buildings of the period. "Realizing a building by a deceased architect can be very problematic", says preservation architect T. Gunny Harboe, who has extensive experience working on landmarked Mies and Frank Lloyd Wright buildings. DEPARTMENTS UPON APPROACHING the recently completed "Mies van der Rohe Building" on the main campus of Indiana University (IU), one might reasonably be excused for thinking the pioneering German architect is alive and well. [Extracted from the article]

BUILDING TYPE STUDY 1,026 RENOVATION, RESTORATION, ADAPTIVE REUSE ONE UNNERVING challenge for an architect is adding onto a revered master's work. On the south end of the dining hall, LRO created a two-story structure, for the caretaker office and practice rooms, that is attached to the Böhm church. Timber girders and trusses lift the flat wood-framed roof of this hall above clerestory windows, so that it becomes an airy, light-filled pavilion on the way to Böhm's church. [Extracted from the article]

DEPARTMENTS CLOSE-UP ARCING ALONG the banks of the Dojima-gawa River near the center of Osaka, the Nakanoshima Children's Book Forest engages with the city on multiple levels. A simple reinforced-concrete structure, the 8,775-square-foot Book Forest combines a mostly solid eastern half with a large covered porch on the west. A three-story atrium wrapped with floor-to-ceiling linden-wood bookshelves and animated by a central stair and crisscrossing bridges serves as the focus of the interior spaces. [Extracted from the article]

CONTINUING EDUCATION AFTER MONTHS of being confined, Americans are slowly resuming pre-pandemic activities. But materials experts and green-building advocates question the effectiveness of many such substances and advise caution, because of possible negative consequences for humans and the environment. As a result, they have been flagged as chemicals of concern by such groups as the International Living Future Institute, which includes antimicrobials in its Living Building Challenge Red List, and the Green Science Policy Institute, which has designated the group of substances as one of six families of chemicals whose use it aims to curtail. [Extracted from the article]

BUILDING TYPE STUDY 1,017 HOSPITALITY Gusto 501 | Toronto | PARTISANS Architects Restaurants tend to work well when they're on one floor. But Gusto 501, a new Southern Italian restaurant in Toronto, turns the convention on its side. Its interior configuration enables a high level of flexibility, which will be particularly important as the restaurant ramps up operations when it reopens in the wake of the COVID-19 crisis. [Extracted from the article]

PROJECTS Musée Atelier Audemars Piguet | Le Brassus, Switzerland | Bjarke Ingels Group "ARCHITECTURE and watchmaking hold a unique place in culture", says Michael Friedman, of Swiss watchmaker Audemars Piguet. "You have the continuous history of the Audemars Piguet brand", explains Sundlin, "but we rolled it up in a double spiral", which, though the space is open, manifests itself through changes in floor and ceiling levels. 1 RECEPTION 2 LOBBY 3 HISTORIC WORKSHOP 4 EXHIBITIONS 5 NEW WORKSHOP ABOVE AND BELOW The glass-and-brass museum display cases (above) echo the materials of the architecture and its perforated brass ceilings and terrazzo floors with brass joints. [Extracted from the article]

BUILDING TYPE STUDY 1,016 RECORD HOUSES Zenteno House | Mexico City | Sebastian Mariscal Studio + Alfonso Frade A NEW HOUSE in Mexico City is defined as much by light and shadow as it is by the brick, concrete, and wood that give it form. Frade, who previously worked for Mariscal in San Diego, where the architect's practice was formerly based, collaborated with Mariscal on the design, providing local expertise and also acting as general contractor. BRIDGE AND TUNNEL Suspended above the entry vestibule, a concrete bridge (left) connects the home office to the second- and third-floor bedrooms (top, left). [Extracted from the article]

BUILDING TYPE STUDY 1,016 RECORD HOUSES Ochoquebradas House | Chile | Office of Ryue Nishizawa Chile's rugged central coast is not for the faint of heart. Tokyo-based architect Ryue Nishizawa has responded to this unforgiving backdrop with an unusual serpentine house that shows its mettle and provides shelter, but not too much. All in all, there is a lot more steel and concrete below ground than what you actually see, says Eric Meinardus, who was the builder and executive architect (as well as the builder for Aravena's house). [Extracted from the article]

The embodied-carbon accounting that design and construction firms perform is generally much simpler and is often aided by one or more of a growing body of digital estimating tools. The Seattle-based architecture firm LMN wanted to get a better handle on the cumulative effects of such projects, which are about 10 percent of their work, so they analyzed renovations to their own office building - a 17-story International Style tower designed by SOM in the late 1950s. Juan Gonzalez, sustainability manager for operations at San Jose-based Central Concrete, says his firm routinely uses CarbonCure's process with concrete mixes that have high ash and slag content. The firm's first commercial plant, in construction east of San Francisco, will produce enough aggregate to sequester up to 1 million tons of CO2 a year. [Extracted from the article]

A timber framework for the library could sit lightly on the garage's concrete columns, and by reusing 85 percent of that existing structure, material waste for the new project would be reduced by 65 percent. To heighten the sense of precision, the architects employed a 2-foot module for both the curtain wall and the structure. ARCHITECT: Skidmore, Owings & Merrill - Paul Danna, design partner; José Palacios, design director; Jed Zimmerman, managing director/project manager; Michael Mann, managing director; Masis Mesropian, senior designer; M. Zarmine Nigohos, project architect; Steve Zimmerman, senior technical designer; Roshanak Mostaghim, technical designer; David Renken, interior designer. [Extracted from the article]

Volatile organic compounds (VOCs), bisphenols and phthalates, highly fluorinated chemicals, flame retardants, antimicrobials: these are some of the problematic substances commonly found in building materials. VOCs are a prime cause of respiratory and other illnesses, and are common in plywood, particleboard, glues, fabrics, and foam insulation. They are low-VOC and formaldehyde free, contain no substances identified as chemicals of concern by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, and are LBC Compliant ("LBC Compliant", as opposed to Red List Free, means a product may contain some Red List chemicals temporarily exempted until commercially viable alternatives are available). Health certifications in progress weren't certain to be complete in time to meet the project's schedule, and the architect ended up specifying fiberglass and aluminum windows despite their higher embodied energy. [Extracted from the article]

He has also designed more sedate wood buildings, including a headquarters for the Swiss media company Tamedia in Zurich (ARCHITECTURAL RECORD, July 2014)-a glass curtain wall- enclosed box that has a meticulously detailed timber post-and-beam framed structure exposed on the interior. Hermann Blumer, founder of structural engineering firm Creation Holz and a frequent collaborator with Ban on his timber projects, points out that over the 800-foot- length of the curving gridshell, the construction tolerance is only ±% inch. 2 Explain the difference between mass timber construction and traditional heavy timber construction. [Extracted from the article]

Learning Objectives 1 Explain factors that influence how much carbon is stored in wood building products. The carbon in wood, paper, grass trimmings, and other organic matter removed from the atmosphere by photosynthesis, which will ultimately be returned to the atmosphere through burning or decay. cross-laminated timber (CLT) An engineered-wood panel consisting of layers of lumber stacked with the grain at 90-degree angles and glued together with structural adhesives. Applications include floor slabs, walls, and roofs (A, right). dowel-laminated timber (DLT) A mass-timber product made of dimensional softwood lumber stacked and friction-fit together with hardwood dowels. [Extracted from the article]

Biological materials and the processes through which they're generated represent the fruits of about 3.8 billion years of research and development. And unlike, say, concrete manufacturing (which is responsible for 4 to 8 percent of the world's CO2 emissions), this natural carbon-sequestering process is environmentally benign. Discuss the role of additive manufacturing techniques in the fabrication of biomimetic materials. [Extracted from the article]

The article discusses the strategies and programs launched by structural companies in the U.S. to help meet the country's goal of net-zero carbon emissions by 2050, particularly in reducing the embodied carbon in new building constructions to achieve zero-carbon structures. Also cited is the Structural Engineers 2050 Commitment Program launched by the Structural Engineering Institute of the American Society of Civil Engineers, with participants like PCS Structural Solutions.