Tag: thermal bridging

Ever hear that dry crackle or feel the effect of static electricity as you remove your coat or sweater in the middle of winter? Maybe have dry itchy skin, cracked lips, or even nose bleeds? Why is it that we associate these things with cold weather like we associate holidays and fruitcake? In one word, humidity.

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Sainte-Germaine-Cousin is a project for the community. Located in Quebec, the church of Ste-Germaine-Cousin has come a long way, overcoming an asbestos closure in 2005.

Today, the revitalized church building stands central with a new addition, a curvy, s- shaped structure, of affordable housing with 126 affordable (PAPA type) units and intermediate housing for seniors.

Asbestos within Ste-Germaine Cousin Church presented a considerable financial challenge. After the closure of the church building, it was 7 years later in which construction began with asbestos removal and groundwork for the new addition. However, perseverance has proven successful, providing an exceptional building of great heritage value.

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Schock Isokorb® structural thermal break’s primary function is improving energy efficiency, yet equally important to building performance is building safety. As the Vancouver construction market continues to strive for new heights in building performance, Schock Isokorb® thermal break installations increase.

A recent installation of structural thermal breaks in Surrey at 3 Civic Plaza  initiated an evaluation of the Division 3 Part B of BC Building Code 2012  by fire code experts GHL Consultants LTD.

The results of the report  by GHL Consultants confirm that Schock Isokorb® structural thermal breaks will meet the BC building code requirements. … read more

On St. Patrick’s Day, we visit Ireland to share the Garden Still House, one of the most modern distilleries in the world.

Irish Distiller, Pernod Ricard produces well know beverages such as Jameson Irish Whiskey, Malibu, Jacob’s Creek, Brancott Estate and Mumm. Yet they reached production capacity at 33 million liters of pure alcohol per year. With an increase in international demand, an investment of $135 million for a production plant was planned to double capacity.

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Condominiums and apartment buildings can be designed with corner, wrap around balconies to provide dramatic views. These corner balconies are most commonly cantilevered concrete balconies which are a slab extension from the building’s interior slab surface.

Corner balconies provide heightened aesthetics designs as well as ensure optimal sun exposure on the balcony. This is especially important when your balcony faces east, to allow a corner section on the south to provide additional sun exposure during the day. In dormitories, balconies are often used as loggia walkways around the building as an evacuation scenario for a fast and secure escape.

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Can you believe 9 out of 10 projects which submit for building permits in New York City fail to meet the baseline energy code?

Seems difficult to imagine, considering the code requirements have not even changed recently.

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Normally cantilevered slabs and edges are considered extensions of the floor or roof levels of a structure. Often times however, conditions require a connection along vertical walls or areas where interiors floors are omitted because of stairways or mechanical shafts. These areas have the same potential problems with thermal bridging since there is an interruption in the continuous insulation layer.

For this Design Break, we explore details of a project in which Isokorb® thermal breaks were used in just such conditions, 15 Leonard Street located in the Tribeca neighborhood of New York City.

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The National Museum of African American History and Culture (NMAAHC), on the National Mall in Washington DC, broke ground early 2012. With a schedule to open in Fall 2015, the museum continues to progress towards becoming a flagship venue for ceremonies and performances, as well as a exhibition space for African American history and culture.

The NMAAHC was designed as a joint venture of Freelon Adjaye Bond and SmithGroup. Architect, David Adjaye was recently featured in an article in CNN,   noted as a “starchitect” for his international designs and awards. He is also known for his work at Sugar Hill in Harlem, the Nobel Peace Center in Oslo and Denver’s Museum of Contemporary Art.

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Steel is the most popular framing material for non-residential buildings in the US. As the AISC’s slogan goes, “There is always a solution in steel.”  It is sustainable and readily available, strong in both compression and tension, and allows acceleration of project schedules making it a cost effective construction option.

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Installation of Isokorb® continues at 199 Mott Street, by Alfa Development.

The 199 Mott St. condo building is being labeled, “The Green Collection” due to the energy efficient initiatives which are being installed in the structure.

Located in the Nolita area of New York, between Kenmare and Spring Street, construction continues to progress on the “steampunk aesthetic” development. Kutnicki Bernstein Architects designed the boutique, eight story building, which will include a ground-level retail area, 11 residential units and a rooftop terrace.

The owners, Alfa Development, are raising the bar on luxury condo construction by implementing design knowledge and well-known strategies to maximize energy efficiency, thermal comfort and indoor air quality.

Alfa began with Chelsea Green by taking responsibility to build to higher energy efficient standards in their luxury condo suites, which sold 90% of their units off the floor plan.

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Steel beams which penetrate the exterior wall (and break the continuous insulation layer) represent a detrimental thermal bridge in the building envelope. This situation often occurs in the structural details when a continuous steel canopy or balcony beam cantilevers out from the interior structure.

This penetration to the continuous insulation (CI) layer, is being further considered and addressed in energy building codes such as the ASHRAE 189.1 and 90.1 and the International Green Construction Code (IGCC), which guides codes and standards for both baseline and high-performance green buildings.

Since steel is a highly conductive material (k=50W/mK) / (R-0.003 per inch), a thermal break solution is necessary to reduce energy loss, prevent condensation on the surface, and avoid damaging results to the building. … read more

Renzo Piano’s expansion to the Kimbell Art Museum is near completion. The Opening Day for the Piano pavilion will take place on November 27th, 2013.

The expansion includes a 300-foot-long, 22-foot-high building composed of two parallel wings. Eric Lee, Director at the Kimbell Art Museum, presents an early look at the Piano pavilion.  Test your thermal bridge knowledge: See if you can find the where the Isokorb® structural thermal breaks would be included in the building:

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Schöck-efficient…That’s what we were called from our partner in Australia, when working on a recent project. You think Schöck is only providing high performance, quality products? There’s more than that. Providing our innovative building products always includes high quality service as a part of the package.

We want to make your project efficient, and we want to see you satisfied! There are many building envelope details where solutions to thermal bridging are possible with our standard Isokorb^® product range. Yet other times, various applications require a custom thermal break solution to be designed. Schöck accepts these challenges with your building envelope and we want to find the right solution for your structural connection. That’s were our technical support team is in demand. They are the ones getting in contact with you to clarify the technical details, ensuring all information is considered, weighing up the possibilities and providing a technical proposal for your project.

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During last month’s American Institute of Architects (AIA) tradeshow, a noteworthy study was released, which compares the thermal performance and whole energy impact of concrete balconies. The research was completed by Morrison Hershfield, a leader in building physics, who also completed the ASHRAE  1365-RP, Thermal Performance of Building Envelope Details.

 Morrison Hershfield had the opportunity to determine the impact of Isokorb® structural thermal breaks compared to conventional balconies and balconies with intermittent insulation. … read more

Last week, we attended and exhibited at the 2013 AIA National Convention and Expo in Denver, Colorado.  The Mile High city, located 5,280 feet above sea level is a vibrant metropolis, full of excitement in the streets, culture and art, sunny skies, and an assortment of locally crafted beer.

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Even though structural thermal breaks were developed for cold weather conditions, design firms in Texas and the Southwest have been eager to learn about this technology. During the first five months of 2013, APCS (independent representative of Schöck) has presented the course on Structural Thermal Breaks 9 times, for medium and large architectural and engineering firms in Texas and Arizona. Many of these firms design commercial and institutional projects nation-wide, as well as for international. These firms have opened their doors to APCS and Schöck to learn more about the causes and effects of thermal bridges, and how to minimize these effects.  Architects, Civil, Structural, and Mechanical engineers have been interested in the scope of thermal bridge consequences such as excessive energy losses, cold slabs, condensation, and even mold occurrences.

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As part of the Building, Ecology, Science and Technology (B.E.S.T.) Lecture Series, Mark Lawton, Vice President and Senior Building Science Specialist at Morrison Hershfield presented “Myths and Realities of Thermal Bridging” at the University of Toronto, John H. Daniels Faculty of Architecture, Landscape, and on February 28, 2013.

In this lecture, Mark speaks about his latest ASHRAE sponsored research project entitled “Thermal Performance of Building Envelope Details for Mid- and High-Rise Buildings” (1365-RP). It is worth your time.

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We are excited about the recent annoucement of LIDO, a  21-level residential tower in False Creek, Vancouver, Canada  to include Isokorb^® thermal breaks in their balcony/slab connections.

The LIDO project by Bosa Properties, who is known for their legendary attention to detail, is setting a new benchmark in sustainable luxury.

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On February 13th and 14th Schöck had the great opportunity to present the company and Isokorb structural thermal breaks, at BuildEX 2013 to the construction community in Vancouver, British Columbia.

We experienced great interest at our booth, and found out that most people are aware of the problems and effects of thermal bridging. But not of the solution – Schöck Isokorb^® for concrete and steel applications.

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At the 2013 BuildingEnergy Conference in Boston on March 5th, the Northeast Sustainable Energy Association (NESEA) is hosting a workshop entitled Structural Detailing for Energy Efficient Building Envelopes. Russ Miller-Johnson and I will be co-facilitating.

This will be a three-hour, hands-on opportunity to learn strategies to mitigate thermal bridging of structural elements in buildings. We’ll also give participants a chance to bring their favorite (or worst) details of thermal bridging to the workshop, to get help with developing a way to modify the detail to reduce thermal bridging, or to bring a detail showing their favorite solution to a thermal bridging problem that they have developed.

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Schӧck Isokorb® has made a (thermal) breakthrough in New York City:  Isokorb ® has been successfully installed in the first thermally broken balcony in the big Apple. Schӧck USA recently received NYC DOB approvals for the Isokorb® module and now a flag has been planted in Manhattan.

In early 2012, we had the first steel thermal break connection at Fulton Street Transit station. And while Isokorb® has been installed globally, with over 10 million thermal break units, over a span of more than 20 years, a concrete thermal break project in New York City is an accomplishment in which we are proud!

The first concrete thermal break in NYC is at the Chelsea Green Development. Located at 151 West 21st Street, the project is expecting to be LEED Version 3 Gold‐certified, and is designed by Architect Stephen B. Jacobs Group and structural engineering by WSP Cantor Seinuk.

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Everyone wants to know The Real Cost of an Energy Efficient Building Envelope. Now you can learn more by joining the panel of experts in Vancouver, BC at BuildEX, for a session to explore the various costs associated with implementing an energy efficient building envelope.

Research results will be present on energy modeling assessments of thermal bridging, examining the impact on annual energy consumption, cost implications, and thermal comfort. In addition, recent project installations with thermal break technology will be presented and analyzed.

Course Title:

The Real Cost of an Energy Efficient Building Envelope  (W11)

Course Schedule:

Wednesday, Feb. 13th  10:30am – 12:00pm … read more

The business has been extremely rewarding this past year. The sales of ComBAR® climbed drastically and achieved 3 times the sales volume of 2011. We have also noticed that GFRP is now a common building material and is being specified in a great number of bridge and tunnel structures, especially in Ontario. But also the United States has been an interesting market in 2012. Besides, we have seen a great interest in the future use of GFRP in New Brunswick, Manitoba and British Columbia.

In 2012, we also had an amazing and successful introduction of our Thermal Break Element, the Schöck Isokorb®. Isokorb® has being installed in over 10 different buildings across Canada!  We are now starting to convince architects, engineers and primarily developers and owners about the unique advantages of the Isokorb® to minimize energy consumption, improve the quality of living space and subsequently protect the environment in which we all live and in which our children and their children will live in the future.

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Construct Canada is one of Canada’s largest building design and construction shows. Held in Toronto, Canada in conjunction with Home Builder, Concrete Canada and DesignTrends, the show hosts over 1000 exhibits, and more than 24,000 visitors.

I attended the show this year to present to over 70 architects, builders, contractors, engineers, specifiers and facility managers.  The room was packed with attendees interested in learning more about thermal break solutions for building envelope.  The presentation was ideal for the audience, covering concepts for reducing energy loss, and avoiding moisture issues associated with thermal bridging.

Many questions were asked during the interactive session. One attendee asked, “Why change the way we build, Why now?”

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It was this July while in Baden-Baden for the Schöck 50th party that I got to meet (among many others) our fellow colleagues from Schöck Ltd. UK.  Simon Howland and several others from the office happened to be on a production tour with me. While lagging towards the back of the pack, we got to talking.  I was describing how we are just underway in the US and our efforts to educate about the problems of thermal bridges. They understood, having been in the same situation. Now they are 6 years in the making, with steady project flow, gaining market share and an acceptance by the building community that structural thermal breaks really are necessary to make a proper building envelope.

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