The 2012 American Institute of Architects (AIA) Convention and Design Expo Takes on the Nation’s Capital

Posted May 30, 2012 By Lucas Hamilton and has 2 comments.
 
 

Lucas Hamilton

Lucas Hamilton is Manager, Building Science Applications for CertainTeed Corporation

The 2012 American Institute of Architects (AIA) Convention and Design Exposition was held in Washington, D.C this year.  The show was jam packed with exhibitors and educational programs for architects and design professionals and, according to early estimates, attracted 30 percent more attendees than last year’s event which was held in New Orleans.  Could it be the location?  Could it be an improved building environment?  It is hard to say but the show appeared to be busy.

The Saint-Gobain booth this year had a listening room component and we had experts from several of our businesses CertainTeed, ADFORS, Grenite, Norton, SAGE, Saint-Gobain Glass, Saint-Gobain Solar, Saint-Gobain Performance Plastics and SolarGard who stood ready to help architects solve their unsolvable problems.  This was a new concept which created some interesting conversations in our ‘listening rooms’ – pod-like areas to sit and hold private conversations.

I was speaking with an architect in our booth about a variety of products and systems when he spied my name tag and exclaimed, “you’re the guy who does the webinars. It’s great to actually meet you.”  Since our webinars only provide a photo of me on the title page and frankly I’ve got a face made for radio, I was surprised that he would recognize me. He provided some valuable feedback about why he thought our CertainTeed webinar series, which is part of our Continuing Education program, provided him not only with valuable credits for his continuing education credentialing, but also information that he can put into practice as an architect.  I really appreciated the feedback and it’s rewarding to know that what we are sharing with people is helping them every day.

I would say that we are beginning to see an improvement in the design community especially from markets such as education, healthcare and multi-family housing.  At least Washington, D.C looked like building projects were in abundance.

If you have thoughts about the industry or comments about our CertainTeed webinar series, I would love to hear from you.

About Lucas Hamilton

Lucas Hamilton is Manager, Building Science Applications for CertainTeed

The Road to GREENBUILD 2013 is Paved with Corporate Commitments to Sustainability

Posted May 24, 2012 By Lucas Hamilton and has 2 comments.
 
 
 

Lucas Hamilton

Lucas Hamilton is Manager, Building Science Applications for CertainTeed Corporation

I went to the Best of GREENBUILD session that was held by the Delaware Valley Green Building Council (DVGBC) as part of the Road to 2013 GREENBUILD Conference which will be hosted by Philadelphia. Philadelphia GBC members are very excited about hosting the Conference and are committed to putting on the best GREENBUILD ever. A component of this is to transform all 5 million people living in this region into good will ambassadors to the show through education and awareness. To this end the DVGBC is taking a variety of actions to challenge and engage.

As good corporate citizens, many of the DVGBC sponsoring companies and firms have made public pledges of positive actions they will accomplish between now and the show.  As an example, in addition to the multitude of sustainability programs we have as a corporation, CertainTeed and our parent company Saint-Gobain have committed to saving more than 10 thousands gallons of gasoline in our personal cars between now and the time of the 2013 GREENBUILD show. This will be accomplished through a combination of “work smart” scheduling and carpooling to our facilities. The Philadelphia Chapter is planning to show these commitments of the sponsoring companies at the 2012 Convention in San Francisco to promote the 2013 event.

I smile a little on the inside because it is also such a “Philly” thing to do. Please try to remember that when we threw snow balls at Santa Claus during half-time of that Eagles game it wasn’t because he was Santa- it was because the guy wearing the cheap Santa suit could have done a much better job of making us believe. Don’t think us cruel; we’re as hard on ourselves as we are on everyone else.

You can be certain you will be hearing much more about his event as we get closer!

About Lucas Hamilton

Lucas Hamilton is Manager, Building Science Applications for CertainTeed

Social Media Mavens at the 2012 AIA Convention & Design Exposition

Posted May 21, 2012 By Angie Dye and has no comments yet.

Twitter activity was most definitely a flutter last week at the 2012 AIA Convention & Design Exposition in Washington D.C. Using the social media-monitoring tool, UberVU, we extrapolated some interesting insight from the Twitter activity at the show. For example, a report on activity using the #AIA2012 hash tag showed that:

  • There were 5,528 tweets from May 10-21 — just prior and one day after the show.
  • 36 percent of mentions were re-tweets.
  • Nearly half of all tweets occurred on the first day of the show, May 18.
  • New York-based architect Vanesa Alicea posted the most frequently, with 141 tweets.
  • Of all of the Twitter accounts active during the show, Architectural Record magazine has the largest following, with a whopping 323,335 followers.

All in all, we enjoyed following and participating in the Twitter stream to keep a pulse on the show, however, we were most fortunate to have in-person conversations that spanned well beyond 140 characters!

New Product Snapshot from 2012 AIA Expo

Posted May 18, 2012 By Angie Dye and has no comments yet.

For the past several years, Snap magazine has organized a “Say it in a Snap” session at the AIA Expo, offering building product manufacturers a chance to talk about their newest product innovations. Products showcased this year demonstrated a broad array of form and function:

  • Sherwin Williams announced the expansion of their environmentally conscious paint products — Emerald TM zero-VOC interior paint.
  • BluWorld of Water shared a new white paper that dispels some of the microbial concerns around water features in health care settings.
  • Construction Specialties launched two new louver products that offered very distinct design aesthetics.

Architectural Record Makes Photo-sharing Easy

By Angie Dye and has 1 comment.

Whether it’s Facebook, Pinterest or Twitter, photo-sharing is most definitely in vogue. While all of these networks create a sense of community and connectedness in their own special way, Architectural Record magazine has launched a photo-sharing mobile app designed specifically for architects and designers. At the 2012 AIA Convention and Design Exposition, the Architectural Record editorial team touted the new tool, which is available, free-of-charge via iTunes.

Tags: ,

Google SketchUp Brings Design Inspirations to Life

By Angie Dye and has 1 comment.

Architects are known for having boundless imaginations when conceptualizing their designs. Traditionally, they have put pen to paper to bring their ideas to life. However, a growing trend is to use Google SketchUp — as evidenced by the bustling flow of traffic in their booth at the 2012 AIA Convention and Design Exhibition. An inituitive, easy-to-use tool, Google SketchUp is used to create quick 3-D imagery for conceptual stages of design. It also includes a repository of 3-D building objects — the Google 3D Warehouse — that expedites the design process. Building product manufacturers, including CertainTeed, are making brand-specific building objects available through the warehouse to more closely align concepts with real-world applications. Is Google SketchUp the wave of the future? We’re interested in hearing your thoughts.

Design Inspiration at 2012 AIA Expo

Posted May 17, 2012 By Angie Dye and has no comments yet.

Spend only a few minutes at 2012 AIA Expo and you’re sure to be inspired. Revolutionary product innovations such as the Dyson air multiplier or SAGE electrochromic glass are capturing the attention of many at the show. At the AIA/DC exhibit, Claire Conroy of Residential Architect magazine hosted a panel of seven Washington D.C.-based architects and their impressive breadth of recent work.  Philip Esocoff shared his strategy on leveraging height restrictions through pre-cast concrete ornamentation. Travis Price highlighted excerpts from his most recent book, “The Mythic Modern.” And, Mark McInturff spoke of the trials and tribulations of designing a roof top pool that weighs the equivalent of four Prius cars. All in all, it was an awe-inspiring day. Looking forward further exploration tomorrow…

Tags: ,

AIA 2012 Off to a Busy Start

By Angie Dye and has no comments yet.

Thus far, the AIA 2012 Convention and Design Expo seems to have an exceptionally high level of traffic and energy on the exhibit floor. Is it the convenient Washington D.C. location? Renewed optimism of a rebounding economy? An expansive display of innovative new building products? Most likely, all of the above.

At the Saint-Gobain booth (#3339) there’s a wide array of technical experts on hand to talk about solar, building science, glass technology, and more. If you are unable to join us at the show, feel free to post your unsolvable problem on our trade show page.

Stay tuned for more updates from the show…

Tags: ,

Saint-Gobain’s Expert “Throw Down” at the AIA 2012 Convention and Design Expo

Posted May 16, 2012 By Eric Nilsson and has no comments yet.
 
 
 

Eric Nilsson

Eric Nilsson is Vice President, Corporate Marketing for CertainTeed Corporation

The excitement for this year’s American Institute of Architects (AIA) Convention and Design Expo is growing for Saint-Gobain and its family of businesses! We will be heading down to the nation’s capital from May 17 – 19 to help architects and designers solve problems they are having on specific projects and introduce them to the expertise within Saint-Gobain.

You might ask yourself—who is Saint-Gobain and what do they have to do with CertainTeed?  Well, Saint-Gobain is CertainTeed’s parent company and also the largest building materials company in the world.

You already know Saint-Gobain, it may not be that obvious though—our roots start in France where 350 years ago, we made the glass that adorns the Hall of Mirrors in Versalles.  Today, we make beer bottles for Budweiser, manufactured the new roof on the Dallas Cowboys stadium and through CertainTeed, manufactured the ceiling tiles in the Denver airport and made the roof that adorns Henry Ford’s home.  This is a mere, and I mean mere glimpse into this massive company, but, also a glimpse into the possibilities.

That’s why Saint-Gobain is bringing all of its businesses to the AIA show this week, and not just to show off products.  Saint-Gobain features the largest and smartest collection of building scientists and technical experts in North America from its trusted North American companies:  CertainTeed, ADFORS, Grenite, Norton, SAGE, Saint-Gobain Glass, Saint-Gobain Solar, Saint-Gobain Performance Plastics and SolarGard to help architects “solve the unsolvable problem.” We urge design professionals to bring your unsolvable problems to our booth and try to stump out experts!

This year, we’re talking moisture, indoor environmental quality, aesthetics, thermal efficiency and solar and our experts are ready to talk.  If you can’t make the show, check us out virtually Trade Show page that will share show updates through Twitter so that non-attendees can feel part of the action.  Through this page you can also ask questions or present unsolvable problems that our experts can tackle. If you submit an unsolvable problem you will be entered into a prize drawing.

During AIA 2012, we will be blogging here about show events and observations from guest bloggers.  Should be fun and entertaining!

Please join the conversation at AIA from your desk by bookmarking the Trade Show page. We want to help you feel part of the AIA Convention and to help solve your design challenges.

About Eric Nilsson

Eric Nilsson is Vice President, Corporate Marketing for CertainTeed Corporation

Save It Lancaster! A Move from Gray to Green Infrastructure

Posted May 1, 2012 By Lucas Hamilton and has 3 comments.
 

Lucas Hamilton

Lucas Hamilton is Manager, Building Science Applications for CertainTeed Corporation

The protection of our water systems and the problems associated with stormwater runoff and combined sewer overflow are not going to go away.  Following my blog about the efforts gearing up in Philadelphia to control stormwater run-off, I recently became aware of an initiative taking place in the city of Lancaster, Pennsylvania in the heart of Amish country.

The city has launched a major educational initiative and website to help residents control contamination of the Chesapeake Bay. Save It Lancaster is part of Lancaster City’s Green Infrastructure Plan.  The first of its kind in Pennsylvania, Save It Lancaster serves as a model for other small cities. The focus is to move from gray infrastructure, defined as the human-made system essential in every community that includes sewer and wastewater facilities to green infrastructure which employs natural systems to manage rainwater where it falls. This allows water to soak into the ground, evaporate into the air or collect in a rain barrel or cistern thereby using natural systems (such as the ground) to essentially treat rainwater instead of more expensive gray systems. 

According to the Save It Lancaster website property owners in the City of Lancaster are responsible for approximately 750 million gallons of polluted water flowing into the Conestoga River and eventually into the Chesapeake Bay annually. The rainwater falling on the streets and buildings picks up pollutants before running into the storm drains.  Add to that, the water and sewage from homes and buildings that enter the co-mingled system and Lancaster’s wastewater treatment plant manages more than 7 billion gallons per year. This is probably similar for many small cities.

The website provides ideas for projects that can be done by residents as well as commercial property owners to let nature treat the rainwater.  The goal is to upgrade everything from buildings to sidewalks to parking lots with green technologies. The website even provides ideas based on the amount of time one can commit to making changes in their lifestyle to conserve clean water. 

Many older small cities in the United States share the same problems that are now being addressed by Lancaster. Now there is a model for how to educate and provide projects that property owners can do to make lasting, sustainable change.

About Lucas Hamilton

Lucas Hamilton is Manager, Building Science Applications for CertainTeed

Categories:
 green/sustainable

TERMS OF USE | PRIVACY POLICY
Opinions expressed in CertainTeed's blog and in any corresponding comments are the views and opinions of the original authors, and do not necessarily reflect the views of CertainTeed. All CertainTeed names, copyrights and trademarks are the property of CertainTeed or its licensors in the United States and other countries. Photos, charts, graphics and other information in CertainTeed's blog are not for commercial use.
Copyright ©2010 CertainTeed Corporation • P.O. Box 860 •  Valley Forge, PA 19482 • 800.233.8990