Warm-Mix Asphalt: European Practice Report

Warm-mix asphalt (WMA) is a group of technologies that allow a reduction in the temperatures at which asphalt mixes are produced and placed. These technologies tend to reduce the viscosity of the asphalt and provide for the complete coating of aggregates at lower temperatures. WMA is produced at temperatures lower than typical hot-mix asphalt (HMA). [...]

Hot-Mix Asphalt Paving: A Free Design Checklist

This free checklist issued by the Pavement Tools Consortium (PTC) lays out some basic design guidelines you need to take into consideration before designing or taking on hot mix asphalt (HMA) pavements, including: Mix Type Selection Subgrade Drainage Structural Design And more. To get this free checklist, click here. This guideline is issued by the Pavement Tools Consortium [...]

Residential Builders & Designers Guide: Durability by Design

The problem with durability is that you may not know you need it until it’s not there. Fortunately, basic design practices can ensure that homes are built to last. This handbook covers fundamental concepts of durability and presents recommended practices – including illustrated construction details and design data — for moisture management, ultraviolet (UV) protection, [...]

Ed Mazria to receive the Hanley Award for Green Building

Santa Fe architect Ed Mazria is this year’s winner of the Hanley Award for Vision and Leadership in Sustainable Housing. The award is sponsored by The Hanley Foundation, EcoHome magazine and Hanley Wood LLC, a media and information company in Washington, D.C., that serves the housing and construction industries. Mazria was selected from 18 nominees [...]

The Architecture of “Gumption”: Exhibition Review

t’s not the Hatfields and the McCoys, Yankees-Red Sox or even Palin-Letterman. Increasingly, though, emerging American architects are settling into two opposing camps. On one side are the digerati: the inventive, computer-savvy futurists creating on-screen worlds that may or may not succeed in built form. On the other are the communitarians: politically committed designers using [...]

Energy Smarts: Insulating Concrete Forms (ICFs)

This free fact sheet issued by the Utah State University Cooperative Extension guides you on what you need to know before using Insulating Concrete Forms (ICFs) in your construction projects. Learn about: The advantages of ICFs Concerns about building with ICFs Common systems Estimated costs Download this free ICF fact sheet directly from the Utah [...]

Most Frequently Cited US OSHA Standards & Violations

Serving as a cost-effective resource, this page from the United States Occupational Safety and Health Administration OSHA covers frequently cited violations and the standards for which the US OSHA assessed the highest penalties in fiscal year 2008. The page also links directly to the standards and regulations so that US Architects can minimize violations and [...]