Posts in Category: Blog

Fire Protection Engineers use egress models to simulate occupants exiting a building during emergencies. The results are analyzed to determine the time required to evacuate buildings. This software allows engineers to evaluate building evacuation strategies and provides animated 3D results.    

Fire Protection Engineers use Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) modeling, such as the Fire Dynamics Simulator (FDS) to simulate smoke and heat transfer during various fire scenarios. This software allows engineers to evaluate harmful effects of fire and smoke such as high temperatures, production of carbon monoxide, and decreased visibility for building occupants.    

Determining what items are required to be brought up to current building code requirements is a challenge when designing renovations of existing structures. Looking at the life safety scope of a project, I tend to find issues in almost any existing building that would not meet current code if the building were designed today. Of course as … Continue reading “Does renovation mean everything must be brought up to code?”

In our previous article on building envelopes, we discussed how envelopes are changing more and more, becoming increasingly interesting and unique. From an engineering standpoint, the most significant aspect of the building envelope is not always the insulation factors (U-values, solar heat gain coefficients, etc.) but the infiltration. Infiltration is defined as the flow of … Continue reading “It’s in the details, it’s always in the details: Building Envelopes – Part 2”

One of the most critical components, if not the most critical component, of a building is the envelope. This may seem obvious, since the envelope protects the building interior and structural components from water, temperature, moisture, air and sound. But, often it is taken for granted and this can be a costly mistake.   Over … Continue reading “It’s in the details, it’s always in the details: Building Envelopes”