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 Institute Unveils New Journal; Read It Today
The National Institute of Building Sciences rolled out a new periodical this month—the Journal of the National Institute of Building Sciences (JNIBS). JNIBS consolidates four pre-existing journals of the Institute: the Journal of Building Enclosure Design (JBED), Journal of Building Information Modeling (JBIM), Journal of Hazard Mitigation and Risk Assessment (JHAZ) and Journal of Advanced and High-Performance Materials (JMAT). It will be available as an interactive online digital periodical, with searchable content and links to advertisers, reference materials and bonus photos, as well as in print form. Read the release. Sign up for a free subscription. Advertisers interested in getting more information, download a media kit.
Nominations Due July 19
The National Institute of Building Sciences is still accepting nominations for candidates to its Board of Directors, and submissions for potential Member Award and Honor Award recipients. However, there are only a few weeks left before the deadline. All forms are due in by 5:00 p.m. ET, July 19. Don’t wait until the last minute. Nominate candidates now. Download the Board nomination form, Member Award form, Honor Award form.
2012 Annual Report Now Available Online
 Each year, the National Institute of Building Sciences prepares an Annual Report to highlight the Institute’s activities for the President, Congress and the Institute membership. The 2012 Annual Report to the President of the United States is now available online. On the eve of its 40th Anniversary, the Institute continues to introduce new programs and projects; serve as an expert resource to numerous agencies, institutions and organizations; and bring the diverse members of the building community together to advance building science. This Annual Report provides an overview of what the Institute’s dedicated members, volunteers and staff have accomplished in 2012. We are grateful to those who played a role in our accomplishments. View the Annual Report.
Building Innovation 2014 Coming in January:
Grab Your Sponsorship and Exhibitor Space Now!
Over 50 sponsorships and 22 exhibit spaces are up for grabs in support of Building Innovation 2014: The National Institute of Building Sciences Conference & Expo. The Institute’s second annual event provides affordable opportunities to show your support for your industry and build awareness of your organization’s positive contributions to the building community. Sponsorships starting at only $350 are available.
During the week of January 6-10, 2014, the Institute will once again bring together a broad spectrum of industry professionals in Washington, D.C., to explore Advancing Life-Cycle Performance and kick-off a year-long celebration of the Institute’s 40th Anniversary. Take this affordable opportunity to gain exposure for your organization’s products, services, technologies and programs. Find out more. Download the event prospectus. Visit the Conference website.
Getting the Word Out
 Nancy McNabb of the National Institute of Standards and Technology, and chair of the Consultative Council’s Codes and Standards Adoption and Enforcement Topical Committee, talks about the importance of getting the new report, “Moving Forward: Findings and Recommendations from the Consultative Council,” distributed to a wide audience. The National Institute of Building Sciences Consultative Council, Coordinating Council and Board of Directors all held meetings last month in Washington, D.C. View the Moving Forward report.
Seismic Design Short Course: Register by July 15 and Save
Stay up to date on the latest building practices in designing for earthquakes. Improve your seismic design skills and learn about the current Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) National Earthquake Hazard Reduction Program (NEHRP) Recommended Seismic Provisions when you attend "Earthquake Engineering Techniques: From the NEHRP Provisions to Building Seismic Design.” This short course organized by the Building Seismic Safety Council (BSSC) and co-sponsored by the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) Structural Engineering Institute (SEI) will be held Friday, August 16, in Reston, Va.
Worth 7.0 Professional Development Units (PDUs), this course will include an introduction to the NEHRP Provisions, ASCE 7 and earthquake engineering; earthquake ground motions; structural analysis; structural steel; reinforced concrete; composite structures; nonstructural components; and nonbuilding structures. See the list of instructors. Register before July 15 and save $100.
MMC Report Cited at Congressional Hearing
The Multihazard Mitigation Council report, “Natural Hazard Mitigation Saves: An Independent Study to Assess the Future Savings from Mitigation Activities,” was referenced several times during a recent Subcommittee hearing on Capitol Hill. On June 5, the U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Sciences, Space and Technology Subcommittees on Research and Technology held a joint hearing to examine the current role of research and development in mitigating the damaging effects of windstorms across the nation, and the methods of transferring those research results into practice for stakeholders, including building code developers, builders and property owners. The MMC report finding—a dollar spent on hazard mitigation provides $4 in future benefits—was cited by both witnesses and subcommittee members.
During the hearing, the subcommittee and witnesses also reviewed the activities of the National Windstorm Impact Reduction Program (NWIRP), a multi-agency program consisting of the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and the National Science Foundation (NSF). Originally established in 2004 by the National Windstorm Impact Reduction Act of 2004 (P.L. 108-360), the NWIRP program was authorized for only three years. New legislation has been introduced to reauthorize the program. Read the Committee press release. View the testimony.
PUC Reviews Ballots
The Building Seismic Safety Council (BSSC) Provisions Update Committee (PUC) met June 4-5 in California to review the third round of PUC ballots and the first round of BSSC membership organization ballots on proposals to update the National Earthquake Hazards Reduction Program’s (NEHRP) 2009 NEHRP Recommended Seismic Provisions for New Buildings and Other Structures. Consisting of some of the nation’s top seismic design experts, the PUC is responsible for overseeing the process to develop the 2014 NEHRP Recommended Seismic Provisions. See what was discussed.
VA Report Promotes Use of IT for Lifecycle FM
Earlier in fiscal year 2013, the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Office of Construction and Facilities Management (CFM) engaged the National Institute of Building Sciences to develop an enterprise-wide facilities management information technology strategic plan to support performance and sustainability over the lifecycle of VA facilities. In June, the Institute team of subject matter experts completed the initial fact-finding phase of the study. Strategic Recommendations (Phase 2) and an Action Plan (Phase 3) to implement those recommendations will follow. Read more about the report.
Understand the Process:
Take an NBIMS-US™ Ballot Submission Webinar
The National Institute of Building Sciences buildingSMART alliance™ is hosting a series of webinars on how to submit a ballot item for inclusion in the National BIM Standard – United States™ (NBIMS-US™) Version 3 (V3). The purpose of these web presentations, which will last approximately 30-45 minutes each, is to provide an overview of the Balloting Module, go over the process for posting a ballot submission, explain how to track the status of ballot submissions and review how to comment on ballot submissions.
The NBIMS-US™ V3 Balloting Module web presentations, which are scheduled for the Fridays of July 5, 19 and 26 at 2:00 pm ET, offer attendees enough time to get an overview of the process and still have time to prepare their ballots before the August 19 deadline. Read the announcement. Sign up now. Space is limited. Breaking the Seven Million Mark…Twice
Bob Payn, WBDG Whole Building Design Guide® webmaster and the Institute’s director of information technology, reviews the WBDG website report during the WBDG Board of Directors meeting, held last week at the National Institute of Building Sciences. The report, which includes the number of visitors and downloads made each month, among other statistics, showed that WBDG exceeded 7 million pdf downloads twice since January and averaged 6.8 million downloads through May. WBDG, one of the largest, most comprehensive online resources of construction-related information in the world, is free and open to the public. Take a look.
NCS Revision Cycle Open
Submit Ballots Early for Quick Task Team Review and Feedback
The revision cycle to update the nation’s leading computer-aided design (CAD) standard is now open. The Steering Committee for the United States National CAD Standard® (NCS) is accepting ballots until July 14, 2013. Any user who owns NCS V5 and is a member of the NCS Project Committee can propose changes and participate in the NCS V6 development process. NCS users who submit ballots quickly could potentially receive Task Team feedback before the submission period closes. Early feedback is beneficial for several reasons. See why.
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