|
Opening Keynote Calls Building Industry to Meet Nation’s Resilience Challenges Head On
 “This group has a huge role to play in making sure the United States achieves resilience,” said Judge Alice C. Hill (Retired), Special Assistant to the President and Senior Director for Resilience Policy on the White House National Security Council, during her keynote speech as she addressed an audience of building industry professionals Wednesday, January 13, Building Innovation 2016. “The decisions you make now have an impact for a very long time. I urge you to think about incorporating resilience every single day. When it comes to climate change, there is such a thing as being too late.”
The National Institute of Building Sciences kicked off the first day of educational programs Wednesday, January 13, at Building Innovation 2016: The Institute’s Fourth Annual Conference and Expo with a breakfast keynoted by Judge Alice C. Hill (Retired), Special Assistant to the President and Senior Director for Resilience Policy on the White House National Security Council.
During her presentation, Judge Hill talked about the importance of retrofitting existing buildings, updating the nation’s infrastructure and adopting and enforcing the latest building codes, as well as the need to address the impact of climate change. Hill asked the audience how many of them were designing their projects with 50-year lifespans to be resilient; urged them to advise owners to incorporate resilience into their buildings; and emphasized the need to build it right the first time so that communities don’t have to build back post-disaster. Read the full release.
Stay tuned for the February newsletter for a complete Conference recap.
Consultative Council Recommendations Build on 2014 Priorities
2015 Report Featured at Building Innovation 2016
The National Institute of Building Sciences Consultative Council released its 2015 report, Moving Forward: Findings and Recommendations from the Consultative Council, Thursday, January 14, during its Annual Meeting, held as part of Building Innovation 2016.
Every year, the Consultative Council prepares, as outlined in the Institute’s enabling legislation, a report of findings and recommendations to the President of the United States and the U.S. Congress that is included in the Institute’s Annual Report. The 2015 report builds on the major themes previously identified in the 2014 Moving Forward Report: resilience and a changing climate; aligning government and business to achieve a cost-effective, high-performance built environment; and the buildings-related workforce and productivity.
Some of the topics covered in the new report include: addressing drought and water use concerns; code development, adoption and enforcement; resilience and green-building rating systems; streamlining regulatory processes for buildings and infrastructure; utilizing standards to support interoperability and lower transactional barriers; innovative solutions to pressing finance and performance needs; implementing whole-building and performance-focused strategies; and cybersecurity of buildings and critical infrastructure. Download the 2015 Moving Forward Report.
Get Published in the August 2016 JNIBS Issue
The editors of the Journal of the National Institute of Building Sciences (JNIBS) are beginning the process of compiling articles for the August 2016 edition. The August issue will offer a special focus on building enclosure design (BED). Additional feature stories will spotlight public-private partnerships, the WBDG Whole Building Design Guide® and more. Abstracts are due February 15. Submittals for the October 2016 and December 2016 issues also are welcome. Submit an abstract. Interested in advertising? View the 2016 JNIBS Media Kit.
NIBS, RICS Project Seeks Ways to Expand Use of P3s, Promote High Performance
Initial Report Released at Building Innovation 2016
As federal agencies deal with ongoing budget challenges, especially for capital projects, and aging assets facing significant maintenance backlogs, they are seeking new mechanisms to make sure they can continue carrying out their missions. Coupled with these funding constraints, agencies are under increased pressure to improve performance around energy and water use. Recognizing these challenges, the National Institute of Building Sciences (NIBS) and the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) are jointly examining how public-private partnerships (P3s) are employed in the United States and trying to identify opportunities to expand their use.
The first step in this NIBS-RICS joint effort was a roundtable held in Washington, D.C., in October 2015. The session included a mix of participants from the public and private sectors and academia. On Wednesday, January 13, 2016, NIBS released a summary report of the roundtable findings at Building Innovation 2016, during its Industry Leadership and Advocacy Symposium. Read the NIBS/RICS joint news release. View the Roundtable Summary Report. 
New CFIRE Report Presents Ways to Finance Energy Projects
As renewable-energy sources and sustainable building technologies grow, the functionality, financial performance and resilience of the built environment in the United States is increasingly linked to the energy sector. On Tuesday, January 12, during Building Innovation 2016, the Institute’s Council on Finance, Insurance and Real Estate (CFIRE) released a new report: Financing Energy-Efficiency and Renewable-Energy Projects.
This report examines the current and potential roles of three key equity investing structures in capitalizing the sustainable and energy-efficient development and retrofit of investment-grade commercial buildings and renewable-energy production. The report evaluates the effectiveness of these vehicles—Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs), Master Limited Partnerships (MLPs) and Yieldcos—in accessing the public capital markets and recommends needed legislative and regulatory changes. View the Financing Energy-Efficiency and Renewable-Energy Projects report.
Institute Takes Recommendations from Hearing to Tackle Building Industry Productivity
This past fall, the National Institute of Building Sciences held a Representative Hearing on Productivity and the Workforce. The U.S. building industry is under increasing pressure to deliver high-performance buildings to meet the needs of owners, occupants and the government. Owners and contractors are looking for opportunities to improve certainty in schedule, performance and cost while managing risks. At the same time, there is an increasing concern from multiple segments of the industry on the availability of a skilled workforce, as well as the productivity of the buildings workforce today and into the future. Efforts are underway on a variety of fronts to address productivity challenges, including the expansion of off-site construction techniques; development of enhanced tools and processes such as building information modeling (BIM); enhancing mid- to long-term forecasts of workforce needs; and attracting new, technology-savvy entrants to the workforce through development of science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) education programs.
Based on oral and written testimony provided by 18 representatives from a broad group of industry organizations during the hearing, the Institute developed an infographic, titled “Tackling Productivity in the Building Industry,” to identify the major themes that will help the industry address the productivity challenges. Read the news release. View the infographic.
STEM Education Program Exceeds Initial Fundraising Goals
The National Institute of Building Sciences, through its Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) Education Program, kicked off a fundraising effort Tuesday, January 12, during Building Innovation 2016, to engage the building community to support the future generation of building professionals.
Within 10 minutes of the call to action, industry professionals surpassed the STEM Program’s initial goal of $5,000. The funding will support development of the Mars City Facility Operations (Ops) Challenge, as well as the STEM Program’s participation at the USA Science & Engineering Festival, to be held April 16-17, 2016, in Washington, D.C. The Institute is hosting the Festival’s Building Science Pavilion and is looking to increase the industry’s involvement in the event. Read the release. For more information about donating to STEM and participating in the Festival, visit www.nibs.org/STEM.
BSSC Second Annual Colloquium Covers the Latest on NEHRP Provisions, Project 17
Registration Now Open
Join the members of the National Institute of Building Sciences Building Seismic Safety Council (BSSC) when they host the second annual BSSC Colloquium on “Seismic Design Update 2016: An Interactive Exploration of the 2020 NEHRP Provisions and Project 17 Issues,” Tuesday, March 8, 2016, at the Embassy Suites San Francisco Airport–Waterfront in Burlingame, California. Earn continuing education units (CEUs) while learning the latest about what is intended for the National Earthquake Hazards Reduction Program (NEHRP) 2020 NEHRP Recommended Provisions for New Buildings and Other Structures, and for Project 17, Development of Next-Generation Seismic Design Maps.
The BSSC Colloquium also will offer architects and engineers a streamlined opportunity to grasp the changes in the 2015 Provisions, why they occurred and how they will affect design and construction going forward, as well as the latest developments in Project 17. The March 8 Colloquium will be preceded by the BSSC Annual Meeting in the morning and followed by a PUC meeting on March 9, and a Project 17 Committee meeting on March 10. See the full agenda and list of distinguished speakers. Registration is $150 for Institute members and $175 for non-members. Register now.
SBIC Recognizes 2015 Beyond Green™ Award Winners
The Honor Award, the top prize in the High-Performance Buildings Category, went to the United National Headquarters in New York, New York for its sustainable renovation project. Mike Thoresen, PE (right), of Syska Hennessey Group, accepted the award. The Award of Merit in Category A: High-Performance Buildings went to the Center for Sustainable Landscapes at the Phipps Conservatory and Botanical Gardens in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Jason Wirick, Director of Facilities and Sustainability, (center) accepted the award. The Award of Merit in Category C: High-Performance Initiatives went to the Efficient Homes Initiative of the Northwest Energy Efficiency Alliance (NEEA) and its utility partners. Neil Grigsby (left), Sr. Program Manager for the Efficient Homes Pilot Video Campaign, accepted the award.
The National Institute of Building Sciences Sustainable Buildings Industry Council (SBIC) recognized the 2015 Beyond Green™ High-Performance Building and Community Awards winners at the Beyond Green™ Awards Luncheon, sponsored by the Illuminating Engineering Society and held Thursday, January 14, during Building Innovation 2016.
The Honor Award, the top prize in the High-Performance Buildings Category, went to the United National Headquarters in New York, New York for its sustainable renovation project. The 2015 Beyond Green™ Award Jury also recognized two recipients to receive Merit Awards. The Award of Merit in Category A: High-Performance Buildings went to the Center for Sustainable Landscapes at the Phipps Conservatory and Botanical Gardens in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The Award of Merit in Category C: High-Performance Initiatives went to the Efficient Homes Initiative of the Northwest Energy Efficiency Alliance (NEEA) and its utility partners. Learn more about the award winners.
Sign up Now for April Cybersecurity Workshops
Learn the Techniques to Better Protect Building Control System
The National Institute of Building Sciences is sponsoring introductory and advanced cybersecurity workshops, as well as one focused specifically on improving cybersecurity of Department of Defense (DoD) facilities, to be held quarterly in 2016, beginning in April.
The Introduction to Cybersecuring Building Control Systems Workshop on Tuesday, April 12 and the Advanced Cybersecuring Building Control Systems Workshop on Wednesday, April 13 are geared to help architects, engineers, contractors, owners, facility managers, maintenance engineers, physical security specialists, information assurance professionals—essentially anyone involved with implementing cybersecurity in the facility life cycle—to learn the best practice techniques to better protect their facilities. To support DoD facilities-related personnel to better prepare against cyber threats, the Cybersecuring DoD Control Systems Workshop on Thursday, April 14, is geared to help professionals involved with implementing cybersecurity in the facility life cycle to learn the best practice techniques to better protect DoD facilities. All cybersecuring workshops are taught by Michael Chipley of The PMC Group LLC, and will take place from 8:00 am to 5:00 pm at the Institute's headquarters in Washington, D.C. Can't make the April dates? The workshops will be held quarterly in 2016. See all the upcoming dates.
|
