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Sustainable Design Construction
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Read about the many aspects of sustainable design in building construction.
Building for the Future
On May 4, 2007, a Category 5 hurricane tore through Greensburg, Kan., nearly wiping the rural town off the map. But since then, Greensburg has been rebuilding with a vengeance, aiming to become one of the greenest cities in the United States. And one family is finding peace of mind in SIPs and geodesic dome design.
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Championing Green Building
Is it easier or harder to be green in 2008? While the Beijing Olympics put eco-concsious buildings on the international stage, the FTC moves to protect consumers from misleading claims by revising its Green Guides to be clearer about how green claims about buildings can be made. Read more
Harvesting Potential
As a replacement for petroleum in spray foam insulation, soy may be starting to show its potential. But are bio-based polyols such as soy truly more environmentally friendly and economically sound? MM puts advocates and skeptics on record about the present and future of biofuel SPF
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Spray Can
What are the material characteristics of SPF? What does SPF bring to roofing systems? to interior insulation systems? Do SPF blowing agents contribute to global warming? What is the difference between 1/2-lb and 2-lb SPF? Mason Knowles reviews the research behind SPF’s sustainability claims.
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SBIC as an Energy Resource
The Sustainable Buildings Industry Council (SBIC) began as an energy organization—the Passive Solar Industries Council. Despite the name change, low-energy use remains one of their focuses for achieving a high performance building.
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The Future of Life Cycle Assessment
The American Plastics Council (APC) is doing its part for sustainable design, conducting a life cycle inventory (LCI) for many polymers and polyurethane precursors.
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Life Cycle Thinking
Only by looking at all the data, from cradle to grave, can one determine a building material’s impact over time. Life cycle inventory (LCI) data being supplied by the American Plastics Council (APC) will help make this possible.
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The Cool Roof Phenomenon
By lowering building temperature, cool roofs can help mitigate urban heat island (UHI) effect, and contribute to pollution control.
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SPF Roofing
Spray polyurethane foam in roofing and insulation applications is a highly durable, sustainable component of a building’s design. Re-roofing with SPF typically does not require tear-off, while SPF indoors creates a tight building envelope.
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Cellular Polycarbonate Glazing
Not many materials can be delicate enough to let in the sun, but suitably durable to potentially withstand hurricane debris. Cellular polycarbonate can be an excellent choice.
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Product Life Cycles, And Sustainability
Unprecedented life cycle information about many plastic products will soon be available in a publically accessible database. What does this mean for designers?
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Energy Efficiency, Sustainable Design, and XPS
Extruded polystyrene’s (XPS’s) closed-cell structure and lack of voids not only imparts durability and strength, but also helps the foam resist moisture penetration.
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GreenBuilding Information Modeling
Building information modeling (BIM) offers tremendous promise for sustainable design, as it helps harness the performance of products and concepts, allowing the comparison of green alternatives
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Material Choices and Resource Use
Specifying the right products can have a huge impact on sustainability. The steps involved in processing materials, such as extraction, processing, and transportation, can pollute air and water and use up natural resources. Using recycled or salvaged materials can help minimize waste products, while selecting local or lightweight materials can reduce the environmental impact of transportation.
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Stocking your Green Building Toolkit
Sustainable design tools can sometimes seem to be as complex as the design decisions they are supposed to solve. Fortunately, by using a simple classification system, it becomes clear how they interrelate and fit into the overall green building process
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Deeper Shades of Green
In this issue we take a holistic approach to the role of plastics in the built environment. Under the overarching theme of environmental, or ‘green,’ construction, we examine where plastic fits into a sustainable design paradigm.
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Energy Efficiency and the Impact on the Atmosphere
There are several ways the design team can help a building lower its energy consumption, allowing it to become less harmful to the environment and more economical for the owner. As with other aspects of sustainable design, plastics can play a role when employed as insulation materials.
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Other Sustainable Features
Design professionals educated in the energy-efficiency characteristics of various plastics can ensure the products they specify fit within the framework of rating systems such as LEED.
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Water Efficiency
Various water-efficiency measures (e.g. low-flow fixtures, sensors, use of non-potable water for irrigation applications) in commercial buildings and homes can greatly reduce water waste, yielding lower sewage volumes, reduced energy use, and financial benefits.
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Sustainability
How plastics contribute to green building rating system credits Sustainable, or ‘green,’ building design may be a hard concept to quantitatively define, but its general meaning is well-understood amongst professionals in the built environment. Read more
Site Development
Strategies involving the management of runoff and erosion can prevent the worsening of water quality, while the use of reflective roofing materials can mitigate the so-called ‘heat island effect’ that affects microclimates.
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The Indoor Environment
When designing a building, strategies such as ventilation effectiveness and contaminant control, or the requirement of a building flush-out prior to occupancy, can improve the resulting indoor environmental quality (IEQ).
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ICF SIP 101
In the past, specifiers viewed structural insulated panels (SIPs) and insulating concrete forms (ICFs) as competing assembly systems. However, an increasing number of projects are employing both at once, combining their best attributes to gain superior performance.
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Plastic Lumber Possibilities
Whether a composite mixture of wood and natural fibers or an entirely plastic material, ‘plastic lumber’ can provide resistance to insects, rot, and chemicals unmatched by many traditional materials.
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Balancing Performance & Sustainability
Piping, siding, window frames, roofing, insulation, wallcoverings, etc. all demonstrate plastic’s prominence in the building market, yet many professionals still do not recognize the material as a component of sustainable design.
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Sustainability Characteristics of SPF Roofing & Insulation Systems
Spray polyurethane foam in roofing and insulation applications is a highly durable, sustainable component of a building’s design. Re-roofing with SPF typically does not require tear-off, while SPF indoors creates a tight building envelope.
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