Construction projects, like anything else in life, are subject to change. Design blunders, unanticipated revisions to building codes, an owner-driven switch in material selection — all of these events can lead to changes that add a few dollars or create a significant addition to a project’s scope and cost. Read more.
The value of building permits issued in Nova Scotia increased by 77.3per cent in April, reversing from the 44.2 per cent gain decline in May. Both residential (54.5 per cent) and non-residential (149.9 per cent) permit values increased. Compared with May 2015, NS building permits are up 26.0 per cent, with increases in both residential and non-residential permit values. Although monthly results for building permits are highly volatile, there has been a downward trend in residential permits since early in 2015. Read more.
Halifax’s building boom has a way of getting in your face, whether you actively avoid the sidewalk closures, or not. Cranes are towering, drills be drillin’, and neighbourhoods are being modified and developed. Whether it’s all the result ofdensifying urban plans or an artificially-propped up real estate market remains to be seen. In any event, it’s giving the peninsula a facelift. Here are some details on what’s to come.
The construction site outside the train station in one of Tokyo’s central night life and shopping districts had the typical workers in hard hats and fluorescent vests. And, not so typical, two pink-and-white Hello Kitty figures hanging off the barriers that keep pedestrians from stumbling into a hole in the road. Such figures, along with more than 30 varieties including elephants, giraffes, deer and dolphins, crop up on road barriers all over Japan, an effort to entertain passers-by who might otherwise regard construction sites as nuisances. Read more
The World Green Building Council has announced its “Advancing Net Zero” initiative, which sets the goal of 100% net-zero buildings by 2050. A cornerstone of the WGBC net-zero program is to have all new buildings and major renovations be designed for net-zero energy use by 2030. Read more
The building has a “very large” heating load, in that the vehicle bay has to maintain high indoor temperatures for the ambulances while continuously ventilating the space. KMA had a choice in terms of whether to design a conventional building with a conventional building envelope and standard heating system or to design an “energy-forward building” with on-site solar heating integrated directly into the facade. Read more
The world’s first electric highway was opened in Gävle, central Sweden. Read more
Fort McMurray fire chief Darby Allen says houses in the northern Alberta city should be built much further away from the dense boreal forest that surrounds them and be made out of materials that prevent fire from spreading as easily — from the kind of shingles used to a home’s siding. Read more
The Building Trades of Alberta (BTA) is spearheading the creation of a fund in partnership with their provincial counterparts across Canada to assist with the rebuilding of critical infrastructure and other public services impacted by the wildfires in Fort McMurray. Read more
A City of Toronto staff recommendation to disqualify suppliers who are in ongoing litigation with the city from bidding on projects is being described by several industry stakeholders as a “heavy hammer.” Read more