Complementing the National Aquarium’s many aquatic displays, the Tropical Rainforest and Australia: Wild Extremes exhibits are popular with visitors. These large, mechanically controlled, humidified spaces are enclosed with curtain wall and...
Dulaney Towers is a fourteen-story condominium building constructed around 1974. Owners complained of chronic leaks during rainstorms. SGH investigated the causes of leakage and designed repairs for the masonry-clad tower.
The University of the District of Columbia wanted to renovate the Theater of the Arts building and address ongoing leakage at the same time. The theater building adjoins and lies partially beneath three overlapping elevated plazas with integral...
The Providence Public Library includes the original 1900 renaissance masonry building and the 1953 neoclassical Empire Street Addition. SGH investigated the condition of the building enclosures, prioritized repair recommendations, and identified...
The World Trade Center in downtown Norfolk, Virginia is a nine-story office building overlooking the Elizabeth River. Constructed in the 1980s, the building is clad with insulated metal spandrel panels set in an aluminum-framed ribbon window...
Constructed in 2009, the Tioga Office Complex is the administrative hub for Hess Corporation’s Bakken Oil Field operations. After occupying the complex, Hess personnel observed water leakage in the office building and dining facility. SGH...
Constructed in 1929, historic Krieger Hall sits on the Keyser Quadrangle at Johns Hopkins University (JHU). It connects to Ames Hall through a vestibule and colonnade walkway to the west and adjoins an elevated plaza over the library to the east...
Arlington County Public Schools needed to accommodate increasing enrollment. They undertook constructing a new school to meet these demands and added the challenge of making this building the first zero-energy school in the Mid-Atlantic. To help...
Constructed in the 1870s, the Beacon Street Line carries water under the MBTA Green Line tracks in the busy Brookline neighborhood. Massachusetts Water Resources Authority (MWRA) identified a leak in the 48-in. dia. cast iron pipe below the train...
Hyatt Lodge at McDonald’s Campus added a new entrance vestibule in 2012, enclosing the original open-air, concrete-framed structure with a new exposed galvanized steel canopy structure featuring fixed glazing, sliding glass doors, and glass...
Abstract: Our practice in forensic engineering often includes investigating the causes of reported problems, documenting the extent and types of problems found, developing repair solutions, implementing a pilot (mockup) repair program, and...
Abstract: One of the most common complaints about buildings is water leakage through the building envelope. A well-planned investigation can efficiently uncover the root causes of water leaks, a critical step in designing effective repairs. ...
Abstract: Exterior masonry wall construction evolved over the centuries from thick mass masonry walls to modern veneer systems with backup walls and cavities for drainage. Many early cavity wall systems of the 1960s and 1970s were designed with...
Abstract: This paper outlines problems with the current practice of designing and constructing stucco framed buildings. The where and why stucco wall assembly failures occur with today's standard stucco trim products is explained and...
Building wall systems would work great, if it weren’t for all the holes we put in them. One of the leading examples of these holes is caused by the packaged terminal air conditioner (PTAC), most common in hotels and multifamily...
One of the primary goals of a building envelope leak investigation is to trace sources of leaks. National testing standards certify newly installed fenestration products for compliance with specified performance criteria. While these standards...
Abstract: No facility manager wants to encounter water intrusion and damage. When it occurs, it can result in buckets of uncertainty, expense, and frustration. The correction process can be complicated by business interruption, the competing...
Abstract: Upgrades of United States energy codes recently attracted attention to the finicky "continuity" details between air and water barriers in facade construction. A typical construction detail on a new project that contains rain-...
Abstract:Brick veneer and solid brick masonry exterior walls may look the same, but from a water management standpoint these two systems function quite differently. Veneer walls rely on backup waterproofing and flashings to preclude building...
Abstract: When a building leaks, the design, workmanship and material of the building envelope are all suspect. The exterior walls, roofing, windows, doors, balcony decks and below-grade...