C+S October 2022 Vol. 8 Issue 10 (web)

CONTENTS

PAGE 17

THE COVER A Performance Fit for Broadway – story on page 10

CHANNELS ENVIRONMENTAL + SUSTAINABILITY

12 The Importance of Data in Decarbonizing Cities 14 Moving Forward with Historic Preservation and Climate Resiliency STRUCTURES + BUILDINGS 15 Proving It with Fabric 17 Stunning Simplicity: Kaynemaile Architectural Mesh 19 Innovative Technology Meets Old World Craftsmanship: A Case Study 21 Updating the University of Georgia’s North Campus WATER + STORMWATER 22 How Land & Water is maintaining and enhancing material and natural structures to safeguard the future of the UK’s waterways 23 Pumped storage hydropower acts as a “water battery” that can sustainably power our communities 25 Port of Alaska Makes Major Modern Move 27 Restoring bird habitats while sustaining ours 30 Protecting Environment Wins Warehouse Project of Year from Plastics Pipe Institute 32 Green Retaining Walls Protect an Advanced Wastewater Treatment Plant from a 500-Year Flood Event BUSINESS NEWS 34 Improving Safety of Lifting Operations with Better Knowledge 35 Craft Work in the Construction Industry 36 Facilities Management in the Middle East UNPILOTED SYSTEMS 37 From Start to Finish and Beyond: Drone Deployment in the Construction Process SURVEYING 40 A Radical Approach to the Talent Shortage in Surveying

PAGE 19

departments 8 Events 40 Reader Index

Columns 5 Industry Insights: Why AEC? Christy Zweig Niehues 6 Looking Back, Moving Forward: Crescent Resiliency Luke Carothers

PAGE 27

October 2022

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Industry insights

Christy Zweig Niehues Why AEC?

The average person will spend 100,000 hours of their life working. So why choose AEC? Architects, engineers, environmental scientists, and also the marketing, accounting, and HR professionals who keep these businesses running, all likely have the intelligence, aptitude, and means to pursue a number of career paths, but chose this one. We’re a special group, those of us who work in the AEC industry, and it’s a beautiful thing to be a part of the creation of the built environment that shapes our lives. The events of the past few years have only made it more apparent that those working in the industry have a good degree of choice about where to live and work. Changes in policy brought on by the pandemic have caused many firms to embrace virtual work, and consequently opened a door to hire those who might not have previously been considered due to geographic constraints or their need for a flexible schedule. So why do those working in the industry choose the firms they work at? One of the first questions on Zweig Group’s Best Firms To Work For employee survey asks employees about what factors are most important in their work experience. Overwhelmingly, culture is a clear top pick, followed by compensation, then professional development, and finally per - formance recognition. While it’s no surprise that culture is king, every person’s decision to work somewhere is a delicate interplay of all these different factors – ones that sometimes shift over the course of their career. Providing more insight into this, Zweig Group’s newest survey, AEC Workforce of the Future, asks respondents, “Does your job now match your original career goals? If not, why not?” Fifty-eight percent of female respondents and 56 percent of male respondents stated that their current job matches their expectations. For those working in jobs that aren’t the best fit, 22 percent stated they took the job because they were afraid they would not get other offers. Smaller percentages of respondents stated that needing experience was their prime motivator, followed by an even smaller group who said they took their job just because they needed money. Culture is hard to quantify, and it is a lot more than ping-pong tables and free sodas. It comprises all the individuals working at a firm, their attitudes toward work, and hundreds of policies, procedures, and benefits that go into creating the systems that make an individual feel as though they are succeeding or able to achieve their purpose at work. Work is a lifestyle for many. Even for those working from home, work in the AEC industry is still “fun” with scores of an average of 4.2/5 (agree - ment on 1-5 scale) for employees at Zweig Group’s 2022 Best Firms To Work For Award winning firms. The AEC Workforce survey asked respondents to rate the level of importance of various factors involved in their choice of workplace. It’s clear that personal connection at work is extremely important, with the highest rating scores tied for both statements, “It is important that people at my workplace will notice my efforts” and “It is important that I have a mentor at my organization.” Looking at the environments that affect productivity, respondents rated very highly (score of 4.2/5), “I am more productive when I know other members of my team depend on me,” while “I am more productive when working by myself,” received a low score (2.9/5). Authority is important because it gives people a feeling that they have a measure of control in their lives. Authority can be a motivator to move up in an organization and gives additional purpose to work. Those feeling that their level of responsibility is high, but that they have no authority to make decisions that impact their work environment, will feel overworked, frustrated, and may experience burnout. Looking back at the Best Firms To Work For, the employee survey asks individuals to rate their agreement with the statement, “My level of authority accurately reflects my level of responsibility.” While average scores for this were high (around 4.5/5), the results examined by race and age indicate some disparity, with African Americans (3.9/5) and those in the younger age group feeling less positive about this statement than older, white employees. If you’re looking to improve recruitment or retention at your firm, look to some of the above slightly more intangible factors that are affecting your employee sentiment. Perks and benefits won’t fix a culture problem, but providing an environment where people feel that they can succeed in the way that is most important to them will. The AEC Workforce of the Future Survey is still open for participation and any scores or responses cited in this article are based on current level of participation prior to the date of publication. Click here to participate in this survey, or contact us if you’d like to send it out to all members of your organization and receive a free report.

CHRISTINA ZWEIG NIEHUES is Zweig Group’s director of research and e-commerce. She can be reached at czweig@zweiggroup.com.

October 2022

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looking back, moving forward

New Orleans is a city with a unique culture and style,painted with the revelry of celebrations and community. What makes the Crescent City truly one-of-a-kind, however, is that these characteristics have not only endured some of the worst hardships in American history, but have been bolstered as a response. The same reason that first made indig - enous people settle in the area–followed by Europeans–is the same that puts it most at risk from climate events. The city’s location on the Mississippi river, near the Gulf of Mexico, gives it a prime location for moving goods around the world. This also means that the area is vulnerable to natural disasters such as flooding and hurricanes. Having been controlled by various nations over the centuries, New Orleans’ built environment is not only old, but also stunningly diverse. Just four years after the city was founded under French control, it was made the capital of Louisiana. Shortly after that same year, most of the city was destroyed in a hurricane. In its first response to natural disaster, the founders of New Orleans established a grid system, which is one of the defining characteristics of what is now the French Quarter. Along this grid pattern, a press of wooden structures were built to accommodate the flow of trade, commerce, and people that come with being a territorial capital. Some few brick structures–such as the Old Ursuline Convent–were also constructed during this era and still exist to this day. Half a century later in 1763, New Orleans passed from French control to Spanish. While the city had already established itself as an important trade city, Spanish control opened it up to important trading routes to Cuba and Mexico. These new trading routes resulted in further growth and prosperity. However, two decades into Spanish rule in the city, much of what had been constructed was decimated by a series of fires. Despite more than 1,000 buildings being consumed by fire over a six year span, the city of New Orleans responded by building the city back in brick and producing more landmarks that continue to define the city’s architectural landscape to this day. New Orleans’ response to massive fires in 1788 and 1794 still exists in its architectural landscape through structures like the St. Louis Cathedral and the Presbytere. With the Louisiana Purchase in 1803, the city again changed hands to the United States. The already-important port town began growing rapidly, quickly becoming the United States’ wealthiest and third-largest city. New Orleans was saved from destruction during the Civil War due to its willingness to surrender, but it experienced no shortage of natural and manmade disasters during the 19th century, and, like many other Southern cities, struggled through the Reconstruction period. At the turn of the 20th century, New Orleans was a modern city with electrified streetcars and a thriving cultural center. Furthermore, advances in pump technology meant that the swampland between the riverside crescent and Lake Pontchartrain to be drained. New pump technology, coupled with levees and drainage canals, allowed new areas below sea level could be developed and expanded into. During the 20th century, four major hurricanes hit New Orleans, and, while these storms certainly caused damage, none of them catastrophically threatened this system of pumps and levees. New Orleans’ levees also narrowly avoided being topped in the Great Mississippi Flood of 1927. However, this ambitious system that facilitated New Orleans growth into a cultural and financial capital encountered conditions it could not handle when Hurricane Katrina made landfall in August 2005. The resulting storm surge breached four levees, which resulted in flooding in 80 percent of the city. This flooding trapped thousands of people in the city, resulting in more than 1,500 deaths as well as billions of dollars of damage to businesses, homes, and in- frastructure. With nowhere else to go, many people sought refuge in the Superdome, which itself suffered significant damage as a result of the storm. The days and months following the storm were some of the darkest moments in American history, with slow federal relief efforts and the subsequent flooding from Hurricane Rita adding to the traumatic devastation the city had already endured. However, standing testament to its capacity to recover, the city slowly began to rebuild. One of the defining moments of this recovery process was the restoration of the Superdome–with its reopening for the following NFL season emblematic of the city’s famous resiliency. However, the recovery process after Hurricane Katrina is ongoing as communities in the city are looking to help heal the wounds left by improving their infrastructure in a way that will prevent that kind of devastation from happening again. Efforts like the Blue and Green Corridors project are tapping into the knowledge and resilience of these com- munities. By engaging a community level involvement in resiliency planning, such projects are a valuable evolu- tion of historical trends, proving all the more important as these vibrant and unique communities face the threats of climate change.

Crescent Resiliency

Luke Carothers

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events + virtual Events

October 2022

Integro Conference October 18-20 – Essen, Germany

The INTERGEO Conference reflects the motto "Inspiration for a smarter world" in all its facets. It shows current developments in surveying: from spatial reference and positioning to 4D geodata and geospatial IoT to mobile mapping applications. Trending topics such as Building Information Modeling (BIM) and the diverse application possibilities of the Digital Twins , but also the current requirements for the Smart City and rural areas have their place in the conference. In the context of climate change , the digital acquisition of data via remote sensing satellites, UAV, TLS or other sensors offers opportunities and solutions for a more sustainable human interaction with nature. The focus is also on the technology trends of tomorrow and the importance of digital realities. https://www.intergeo.de/de/conference Chief Executive Summit for the Architecture, Engineering, COnsulting Industry October 25-27 – Scottsdale, AZ We anticipate a full schedule of events including a data presentation on the latest trends, opportunities, and challenges in the AEC industry, keynote speakers, and panel discussions with CEOs to discuss KPI performance, M&A, internal ownership transition, leadership, diversity, technology, ESG, and the "new normal." https://aec-advisors.regfox.com/2022-chief-executive-summit The AEC industry is full of opportunity. And capturing that growth and profitability demands strong project management skills. While it can be difficult for AEC firms to adapt their methods of project management, resources management and scheduling to the ever-changing needs of clients with agile project management, this is all about to change. Agile project management allows for more flexibility in both the planning process and in how projects are executed. Join Unanet’s Lucas Hayden, Director of AEC Strategy as he discusses why agile project management practices have become the future for AEC and steps you can take today to increase your Agile IQ. https://zweiggroup.com/products/why-agile-project-management-is- the-future-of-aec-unanet-sponsored-webinar This crossover event brings together users from across infrastructure sectors, creating a rich and valuable learning environment for organizations to move their location intelligence forward with GIS. Join professionals specializing in infrastructure management from several interconnected industries—water; electric and gas; district heating and cooling; pipeline; telecom; transportation; and architecture, engineering, and construction (AEC). https://www.esri.com/en-us/about/events/imgis/overview Why Agile Project Management is the Future of AEC October 27 – Virtual Esri Infrastructure Management & GIS Conference October 31-November 2 – Palm Springs, CA

UAS Summit & Expo October 4-5 – Grand Forks, ND

Following a record-breaking UAS Summit & Expo in 2021, we are ready to build off last year’s excitement in the Sili-Drone valley,” said Dayna Bastian, program coordinator for UAS Magazine and the UAS Summit & Expo. “Drone usage is increasing rapidly, and we are looking to showcase presentations reflecting a variety of sectors including counter-drone, emergency management, agriculture, military operations, government and commercial usage and operations, research

and development, and more. www.TheUASsummit.com CMAA Annual Conference October 9-11 – San Diego, Ca

CMAA's Annual Conference, CMAA2022, is CMAA's flagship event which includes a comprehensive exhibit hall, plenary and breakout sessions, and the annual Industry Recognition Awards where our annual Project Achievement Awards, Person of the Year, and other individual honors are presented. Join CMAA in San Diego for three days of education, collaboration, and celebration for CMAA2022. This year’s event, a celebration of CMAA’s 40th Anniversary, will feature unmatched educational programming, solution and technology providers, invaluable connections and networking, and recognition of the projects and people that help define the construction management industry. https://www.cmaanet.org/cmaa2022

DJI Airworks 2022 October 10-12 – Las Vegas, NV

Our industry is thriving. For the 7th consecutive year, we’re bringing together hundreds of pilots and stakeholders to shape the future of drone technology. It’s your annual opportunity to get up to speed with the latest industry developments and see firsthand how drones are

transforming the world of work. https://www.djiairworks.us/2022

Chicago Build Expo October 13-14 – Chicago, IL

Chicago Build 2022 features 2 unmissable days of content (300+ Speakers and Workshops); an Expo; Networking; Women in Construction; Meet the Buyer and a Festival of Construction. Conference topics include: Government Contracts & Policy, Sustainability, Real Estate, Architecture, BIM & Digital Construction, Health & Safety, Future Construction, and Skills Hub, as well as AIA CES Workshops. https://www.chicagobuildexpo.com/welcome

ACEC Fall Conference October 16-19 – Colorado Springs, CO

ACEC Fall Conferences occurs every fall across the United States, Caribbean and Canada. Over 1000 attendees attend educational sessions, major networking events, forums, roundtables and ACEC/PAC fundraising events. https://www.acec.org/conferences/fall-conference1/

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A Performance Fit for Broadway By Luke Carothers

The Palace Theater has sat facing Times Square since it opened in 1913. In occupying this critical space on Broadway, the Palace Theatre has become an iconic venue for theater and the performing arts. In its 109-year history, the structure has evolved to encompass a number of different uses. The space was originally used for vaudeville perfor- mances, then converted to house broadway productions, before being partially demolished and absorbed into a hotel. Now, the Palace Theatre is entering its next phase of this evolution, and is doing so with a grandeur and technical execution that is be - fitting of its theatrical history. Since construction began in 2019, the TSX Broadway project has been a symphony of moving parts. First conceived two years prior to construction, TSX Broadway is a multi-use development that, in addition to housing the iconic Palace Theatre, will also feature additional retail and entertainment space. To accommodate these new retail and entertainment features, the Pal- ace Theatre needed to be elevated 30 feet above its previous location and three floors needed to be excavated to provide additional retail space. Additionally, in maintaining the original structure’s overbuilt condition, 16 floors of the original structure are being renovated into a 669-room hotel. The TSX Broadway project is the vision of L&L Development Corpo- ration and Maefield Development. As expected, such a unique vision and project required collaboration between multiple firms to ensure its final execution. For the TXS Broadway project, Mancini Duffy, a national design firm with a 100+-year-old history and tech-forward approach headquartered in NYC, served as the Architect of Record for the development’s core, shell, and hotel. Perkins Eastman over- saw the facade design. On the preservation side, PBDW served as the Architect of Record for the theater’s design and historic preservation, and Jablonski Building Conservation also served as a consultant for historic preservation. On the engineering side, Urban Foundation En- gineering served as the Lift Engineer of Record and contractor while Langan provided consulting services for foundational engineering, and Severud served as the Structural Engineer of Record. One of the project’s major challenges was lifting the Palace Theatre to its new home, 30 feet above Times Square. The lifting of this structure was a massive undertaking requiring 34 hydraulic lifting posts to move the 7,000 ton structure. These hydraulic lifting posts pushed upward on a ring beam that surrounds the perimeter of the theater box, which encompasses roughly 40,000 square feet of space. With the structure lifted, the new lobby area, when completed, will double the usable area in this space to nearly 80,000 square feet. Moving the structure upward at a rate of a quarter inch per hour, the Palace Theatre took four months to elevate, reaching its designed height in May 2022.

Photo: L&L Holding Company

The plan for the renovation of this iconic space is to preserve the his- tory, nostalgia, and legacy of the Palace Theatre and, quite literally, elevate it into a new age of prominence in a setting that enhances the theater and performance experience for future generations to enjoy. By lifting the theater space approximately 30 feet above grade and excavating below ground-level, approximately 100,000 square feet of new, valuable usable space will be added. Given the project’s loca - tion, adding this volume of retail space adds a massive value to the project In addition to elevating the Palace Theatre structure, another major component of the project is a $50 million renovation of its entry spaces that includes refurbished ornate plaster, technology upgrades to allow 21st shows, 10,000 square feet of back-of-house space, a new lobby, a grand entrance, and a number of other upgrades to the guest experience. While the theater is being lifted and the lobby and retail podium are being constructed, work is simultaneously being done on a new hotel tower on top of the recreated podium. Adding to the complexity of the TSX Broadway is the process of elevat - ing a New York City Historic Landmark that is located on the busiest corner of the most heavily trafficked public space in the world as well as the numerous simultaneous operations. According to Bill Mandara Jr., Mancini’s CEO and Co-owner and TSX Broadway’s Architect of

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October 2022

Photo: L&L Holding Company

Record, this is by far the most complex project he has been involved in during his three decades in the industry. To navigate these challenges, Mandara and his team are working with agencies such as the Depart- ment of Buildings, the Landmarks Preservation Commission, and the Times Square Alliance. Additionally, because there is a subway stop on the property, MTA and the Department of Transportation have also been involved in the project. Despite potential communication breakdowns that often come on projects involving this many parties, Mandara notes that this hasn’t been an issue during the TSX Broadway project. Mandara points out that these agencies were eager to embrace the project and provide help when needed. On one hand, there are obvious challenges that come from working with a historic structure that includes preserving things like plaster details in the theater. On the other hand, there is another level of com- plexity added when that historic structure is inside another building. During the 1980s and 90s, parts of the Palace Theatre were demolished for the construction of the DoubleTree Suites Times Square Hotel. The Palace Theatre was reopened in 1991 within the new hotel, which was its home until the TSX Broadway development began in 2019. This posed another early challenge for the project according to Mandara. Due to zoning restrictions, the collective team opted to make the project an alteration of the existing structure rather than a complete demolition and rebuild, which allowed them to retain the structure’s original structure’s overbuilt condition. This meant that their plan had to keep at least 25 percent of the existing floor area from the original structure, which Mandara says was a primary focus from the project’s earliest iterations. Although the team opted not to demolish the entire structure, there was still plenty of debris from the sections that were removed. Mandara says that, on a normal construction project, the demolition process is relatively straightforward. However, because the project is located in one of the most heavily trafficked areas in the world, crews are per - forming demolition inside the building during the day while at night the material is being brought down to the base and removed via truck. While this requires planning to support 24-hours of work, it also avoids costly closures and shutdowns while simultaneously distancing the public from the demolition process. With the Palace Theatre space lifted into its position, work is progressing at the scheduled pace for the TSX Broadway development. From the

symphony of movement to the attention to detail to its sheer scale, there is quite a bit that makes the TSX Broadway project unique, but perhaps the most unique feature of this new project is its ability to enhance the visitor numbers and experience to the space while also preserving its cultural legacy. And–just as the backstage, hustle, sweat, and coordina- tion are transformed into a cultural product that adds to the fabric of our history–so too will the work being done on the TSX Broadway project add to that same history in a way that enhances our understanding.

LUKE CAROTHERS is the Editor for Civil + Structural Engineer Media. If you want us to cover your project or want to feature your own article, he can be reached at lcarothers@zweiggroup.com.

Photo: L&L Holding Company

October 2022 csengineermag.com

The decarbonization of our cities and existing infrastructure is one of the biggest challenges we face in terms of reaching a net zero economy by 2050. Existing buildings are a big part of the problem, with the built envi - ronment contributing around 40 percent of global carbon emissions and the fact that most of the buildings that will exist in 2050 are already built. With both private and public sectors looking at ways to reduce their carbon emissions at pace, the challenge is how to scale up interventions to meet that demand and embrace technology and digital tools to en- able decarbonization to take place at a large portfolio level. Data-driven strategies for success In many ways building new infrastructure, particularly buildings, to achieve net zero status is relatively easy, because clearly you control the construction process. What is more difficult is decarbonizing exist - ing city infrastructure that was built long before energy efficiency was a key driver. That makes building performance data so crucial in enabling a clear understanding of the presence of carbon across a large portfolio of buildings. For an organization with hundreds of buildings that can be a challenge— it won’t always be the case that they have comprehensive records or data. The data can then be used to develop your benchmark, targets and plan for interventions. The benchmark, or baselines, must be data-driven and target science-based so that cities can have a high degree of confi - dence that their plans will actually deliver net zero outcomes. By using behavioral and spatial data, among other sets, the process al- lows those involved to understand how a building is performing, which then feeds into decision making around investment and building the business case. This helps to provide sensible options, even if based on limited data sets, no matter the size of the portfolio involved; something that has never been possible. The result is a range of viable solutions, financial options and timeframes all culminating in the creation of a meaningful roadmap that can be used at any scale. I think the key message here is that data in all forms covering asset, cost and carbon, will be critical on the journey to decarbonizing the built environment. The importance of data in decarbonizing cities

How to get good data When helping organizations de-risk their journey through informed investment decision making, I strongly advocate for a focus on data- driven solutions. However, data maturity is all too often poor. Without good data, even the smartest data-driven solutions will underperform. The fact is, getting good data can be challenging, timely and costly— something we pay close attention to having developed our own Decar- bonomics TM service platform. We can source data to support the decarbonization journey and help secure funding in three key areas: building management systems and sensors, building surveys and open source benchmark data without analytics. Each of these come with varying costs and provide different levels of output accuracy. This is important as the accuracy of your out- puts, whether a benchmark or costed roadmap, can have a material impact on the viability of your investment case, business case or funding application. So, for instance, understanding your cost-per-ton of carbon saved by intervention, at both building and portfolio level, will be critical to knowing if you qualify for specific funding. In addition, if you are above a funding threshold, you can identify other intervention models to make an application stack up and likely succeed. Taking a systems-based approach Taking a systems-based approach provides the best chance of securing funding and ensures optimized delivery in the long run. This could be achieved through continuous improvement, proactively closing costly performance gaps that may threaten any long-term financing or fund - ing agreements or arrangements you have in place. Moving forward with systems-based thinking also provides greater performance opportunities, such as establishing data standards that can flow through the supply chain and support the establishment and track - ing of KPIs and other incentivized approaches.

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October 2022

Making the data work hard When looking at our own Decarbonomics TM offering, one of the key drivers has been how we can accurately benchmark an organization’s estate with very little building survey data and still deliver robust and highly precise outputs. The mission is to help clients understand when enough data is enough and to minimize upfront costs, shrink pre-delivery program durations and enable them to move to delivery as quickly and efficiently as pos - sible, without compromising long-term delivery performance. The more data you have or have access to (such as open-source bench - marks which are becoming increasingly available) the more powerful data-driven solutions will be. However, data alone is just the fuel. You still need the engine and, in this case, that engine is the intelligent analytics—algorithms, AI, and

machine learning—that we apply to the data for robust and accurate outputs that can be visualized and interrogated by a diverse mix of users, from technical delivery teams to finance leads. Ultimately, the true power of smart, data-driven solutions is how they combine the best human expertise, data and technology. No matter how many clever digital and data systems we apply to these problems, it’s people who must drive the system and guide the outputs. With the scale of the challenge ahead, we must deliver achievable and cost-effective net zero plans for today. A theoretical net zero future, based on wishful thinking around behavior changes and new technolo- gies isn’t going to help us reach our goal that’s only 28 short years away.

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Moving Forward with Historic Preservation and Climate Resiliency

benefit methods oft-used in the AEC industry. When it comes to advo - cacy and funding resources needed to adapt or protect these resources, much of the support depends upon engaging from the local community. Fnding ways to include advocates in climate resiliency planning at the community level means including historic planners, community-based organizations, and residents. This allows communities to better self- identify and prioritize these historic resources and integrate them into climate resiliency planning. There are several towns and communities on the East and Gulf Coasts that are advancing this very notion. Conferences such as the Keep- ing History Above Water Conference in Annapolis are driving these conversations forward as well as cities such as Charleston in South Carolina and Nantucket Island off the coast of Massaschussetts. How- ever, as Johnson points out, many of the communities that have thus far been able to approach climate resiliency planning from an inter- sectional perspective can often do so because they have more capacity to funding and documented historical sites. Both Johnson and Willis agree that there needs to be a push to identify and document cultural and historical resources as part of an overall effort to reduce the nega- tive impacts of climate change. In the same process, there is also a need to identify what constitutes a historic resource and what relationship these resources have to climate change mitigation efforts. The most common understanding of historical resources is that they are buildings or monuments, but Willis believes that this definition needs to be expanded further, par - ticularly in coastal regions. Willis also believes that the conversation of historic resources should include landscape elements. One of the most pertinent example of this is the Mississippi Delta where massive swaths of mangrove trees and wetland have been lost as a result of levees upstream. The loss of this natural landscape has resulted in increasingly intense hurricanes, which affect millions of people living in the region. Viewing this area, as well as countless others, as historic, multi-beneficial resources means that we can more effectively build resilient communities. As shapers of the built environment, the AEC industry should be a large part of the effort to provide a safe and equitable future for the people living in that environment. The identification and preservation of historic resources from underrepresented communities in the face of climate change is an essential step in this endeavor. By identify- ing these historical resources and including them in earlier climate resiliency planning efforts, communities can begin shifting resources to these historically underrepresented groups and taking the first steps towards building a more equitable future in which the community fab - ric, identity, and sense-of-place may endure in the face of increasing threats, or adapt meaningfully on their own terms.

By Luke Carothers

Conversations about climate resiliency planning almost always con- tain talk of the future, but there is something in the idea that better understanding our past will help us in our ongoing pursuit of equitable solutions to climate change. Across the United States, historic places are facing existential threats of climate change in the form of rising sea levels and erosion and damage from major storms to name a few. Many communities are responding with climate resiliency planning that will preserve these resources. However, as these communities continue to plan, there are opportunities to achieve both a more equitable future and protect communities and historical resources from the effects of climate change. Many communities are facing these issues–from New England to the Gulf Coast–and the decisions made around preserving these sites will directly impact the lives of the people living around them. The threat of climate change means a threat to places that hold significant impor - tance for the communities in which they exist–be it through the loss of a significant cultural area or loss of tourism revenue. Kyle Johnson, Climate Resiliency Engineering Specialist at Kleinfelder, notes that many communities, particularly coastal ones, are in varying stages when it comes to protecting historical sites. For some areas, such as New England, the tourism draw from historical places constitutes a massive percentage of the area’s visitors, putting preservation efforts at the forefront. Preservation efforts directed at places like Jamestown and other sig- nificant Eurocentric historical sites are likely to receive funding, but the process by which we determine the value of other historic sites moving forward has the potential to provide a more equitable future. Adding to this conversation is the question as to what constitutes a his - toric resource. Kate Willis, an Architectural Historian for Kleinfelder, believes that pushing a more equitable understanding of our historical assets will not only provide a more equitable understanding of our his - tory, but it will also lead to a more equitable distribution of resources for fighting climate change. Willis further points out that the places that are most climate vulnerable are also those that have been historically marginalized or excluded, citing the effects of Hur - ricane Katrina as an example. Under the current paradigm, a significant number of historic sites, particularly within rural, historically marginalized, and other disadvan- taged communities, are not being prioritized when considering their holistic value to communities. Johnson believes the first challenge in shifting this paradigm comes with reexamining the way we prioritize these assets that takes into account their place within the fabric of the community, something not easily measured within the traditional cost-

LUKE CAROTHERS is the Editor for Civil + Structural Engineer Media. If you want us to cover your project or want to feature your own article, he can be reached at lcarothers@zweiggroup.com.

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October 2022

The primary benefits of tension fabric buildings have been clear for decades: Fabric cladding doesn’t corrode, making it a great option for high-humidity facilities or corrosive material storage. In many applications, the clad- ding also allows for natural daylighting. The structures are cost-effective, and they go up fast. Some of the downfalls have also been obvious: For a long time, buildings were only offered in pre-engineered designs with standard sizes to pick from. And depending on the manufacturer and materials used, longevity wasn’t always what was hoped for. Proving It with Fabric Using proven I-beam designs, fabric buildings can be fully optimized for any facility application By Eric Donnay

using metal building software programs, there is virtually no additional lead time involved to render a complete building frame. Some manufacturers, including Legacy, have gone a step further and handle their own in-house steel fabrication. By not outsourcing this key component of a fabric building, these companies are better posi- tioned to ensure quality control, adapt to any project modifications, and eventually provide on-time delivery of the structure. Codes and User Demands The precise dimensions made possible by the rigid-frame concept make it far easier to meet code requirements while also optimizing the building design, helping to achieve all necessary considerations without investing in excess materials. For example, tension fabric structures are among the most common and cost-effective shelter choices for aircraft hangars. The code re- quirements in the aviation industry are very strict, necessitating that there is always enough vertical and horizontal clearance around the wingtips of the aircraft in relation to the roof, door frames, or sidewalls of the building. In the days of standard size fabric buildings, meeting these clearances mostly involved the manufacturer just taking the aircraft measurements and offering the smallest pre-engineered structure in their inventory that could achieve compliance. In other words, if a width of 85 feet was needed, a supplier would have to go to a 100-foot-wide option since their 80-foot offering wouldn’t suffice, which added 15 more feet than needed to the project footprint. Using rigid-frame design, engineers can provide the most optimal dimensions and avoid wasting money or space that might be needed for future considerations. Dimensions, however, are far from the only parameter that can be optimized in a fabric building.

In recent years, however, leading manufacturers have made strides to eliminate the historic weaknesses of fabric structures, while main- taining and even enhancing their strengths. Better engineering has helped solidify fabric’s place as an ideal facility solution in a wide range of industries. Rigid Frame Fabric structure projects have a long history of short lead times. For decades, the main reason for this was that these buildings mainly only came in standard size offerings, meaning that very little thought had to go into the design. Typically, a pre-engineered size was selected “off the shelf,” and the structure was quickly installed in a matter of weeks or months. The ability to provide fast turnaround with a tension fabric building hasn’t changed, but the way these structures are built has evolved for the better. The traditional fabric structure consisted of a hollow-tube, open web truss frame covered with a fabric roof. The problem was that there were far too many engineering assumptions being made when designing and assessing the integrity of a web truss frame. Disagree- ment from one engineer to the next was commonplace. The logical solution over the past decade was to move away from de- sign subjectivity and toward framing that was universally accepted and understood by everyone in the engineering community. Web trusses began to be pushed aside in favor of a rigid-frame design using struc- tural steel I-beams. Legacy Building Solutions was the first company to marry together an I-beam frame with a tension fabric membrane. In addition to being a proven method, rigid-frame engineering instantly made it possible to move beyond standard sizes and instead design every building to the exact dimensions desired. The increased strength of the frame allows for buildings to be made much taller and wider than before as well, making it perfect when long, clear spans without support beams are needed. Furthermore, because full designs are done

October 2022 csengineermag.com

For applications where hanging loads are desired for implementing fire suppression systems, catwalks, overhead cranes, mezzanines, or other significant and heavy features on the frames, those loads can be factored into the original rendering. Using finite element analysis, the size and thickness of each individual beam can be manufactured to match the building’s load factors. This precision makes it simple to strengthen the frame exactly – and only – where necessary, rather than over-engineering an entire structure at a higher cost. I-beam design is also tailor-made to combat external loads from forces of nature like wind and snow. Engineers can slope the roof and shape the sidewalls as necessary to withstand heavy snow loads, not to men- tion add ice breakers, gutters or other external roof features. For areas frequented by hurricane activity, buildings can be designed with wind ratings up to 240 miles per hour. Internal Use Factors It’s common for the structural steel frame of a fabric structure to remain exposed and visible within the building interior. Applications such as wastewater treatment, composting, fertilizer housing, and salt storage all create the added challenge of needing to protect the building frame from the damaging effects of corrosion. When web truss was the industry standard, it wasn’t even possible to always know if the frame had been compromised. The hollow-tube frames could corrode from the inside out for a long time out of sight, potentially weakening the structure behind the scenes. I-beam structures don’t experience that issue, of course, but are still vulnerable without proper treatment. Users have traditionally utilized hot-dip galvanizing to treat the steel. However, recognizing that the galvanized zinc is only intended to delay corrosion and not stop it, some companies have turned to epoxy paint as an enhanced corrosion protection measure. Epoxy coating creates a true barrier between the steel and any corrosive elements present, allowing for many more years of longevity for the building frame. Unlike a metal roof, fabric cladding itself is not susceptible to corro- sion, but it still must contend with weather and other influences over time. Polyvinyl chloride (PVC) fabric has been the preferred choice

for durable roofing and sidewalls. In recent years, some PVC offer - ings have been upgraded with additional coating layers, better UV in- hibitors, and cold cracking resistance down to -40 degrees Celsius. The expected longevity of the newer PVC is almost twice that of fabrics previously available. For applications like warehouse storage, fabric’s translucency allows users to take advantage of the natural daylight that permeates the roof, cutting down on the number of artificial lights needed inside. Fabric also moderates how outdoor temperature extremes feel inside the building, providing a cooler environment in the summer and warmer conditions in the winter. Rigid-frame fabric buildings are more airtight than comparable metal buildings, and the interior environment can be further controlled through the use of insulation and fabric liners. Insulated fabric struc- tures provide an ideal atmosphere for athletic and recreational facili- ties, where the fabric provides a soft reflective quality that lightens up the building and dampens echoes, contributing to a perfect ambience for sports and spectating. Optimal Delivery The process of installing a fabric building is also far more efficient than conventional brick-and-mortar construction. Aside from using materi- als that can be erected faster, some fabric structure suppliers can further expedite the process by handling every aspect of a project in-house. By employing their own design engineers, manufacturing I-beams and fabric panels in on-site facilities, and using their own professional installation crews – rather than relying on outside vendors for any of those steps – these companies can better stay on schedule, while also ensuring quality control for every component they touch. Today’s fabric building engineering, in combination with improved materials and processes, has allowed for the development of facilities that are cost-effective, custom-designed to the exact needs of the ap - plication, and of a much higher quality and longevity than the tension fabric structures of the past.

ERIC DONNAY is General Manager, Legacy Building Solutions

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October 2022

Stunning Simplicity: Kaynemaile Architectural Mesh By Luke Carothers

From its earliest conceptions, right up through the modern age, chain- mail has always afforded humans some level of protection. From pro- tecting knights on the battlefield to divers swimming with sharks, the basic pattern of interwoven metal links provides a strength unmatched in many other materials. However, as Civil+Structural Engineer Mag- azine covered late last year, chainmail has a new modern usage, one that doesn’t involve protecting the user from puncturing wounds. New Zealand-based company Kaynemaile has developed a material made from lightweight polycarbonate that is being used to protect buildings rather than bodies. Although Kaynemaile has numerous applications, its highest potential application is in architecture. Kaynemaile presents several advantages over traditional materials when it’s used as an architectural material. A great example of these advantages is Kaynemaile’s recent project in Santa Clara, California where the Sobrato Organization’s Lawson Lane campus has been recently completed. As a part of this major Silicon Valley office development, Kaynemaile Architectural Mesh was used to create the facade for the parking garage. Working with architects Arc Tec and installers B.T. Mancini, the team at Kaynemaile utilized their new range of three-dimensional, kinetic screens. This new system was a natural progression of the Kaynemaile mate- rial. Aaron Te One, General Manager of Kaynemaile’s Architectural Division, cites their previous kinetic work with the world renowned artist Ned Kahn as the starting point for this evolution. These projects were designed to capture the kinetic aspects of the materials waving in the breeze, unrestrained at the bottom. However, recognizing that some projects require the materials to be restrained at both ends, Te One and his team began developing a system that could still utilize those kinetic aspects while providing an additional use in the market. Through development, Te One’s team understood that cables would be applicable for their purposes. They found that cables would still allow for kinetic fluid movement while also providing a much more restrained application. This new system is paradigm-shifting from the perspective of both installation and usage. One of the key benefits of this new system is the speed at which it can be installed. For the Santa Clara project, these Kaynemaile Architectural Mesh panels span the height of the building with the only connections at the top and bottom. In addition, when compared to other materials that require rigid frames and connection systems, Kaynemaile’s system is more efficient with each screen hav - ing a self-supporting lightweight internal frame connected to vertical stainless steel cables. Te One notes the simplicity of installing this new system. The process starts with installing a “skeleton frame” before

Lawson Lane Campus, Santa Clara, CA, USA. Photo: Lucas Fladzinski Photography

fixing the upper portion of the mesh to the building. Once the mesh is installed, it rolls down and through the skeleton frame, making for

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