On Friday, the St. Louis Business Journal featured the partnership of three St. Louis companies - The Lawrence Group, SG Blocks and Alberici - to develop extremely sturdy homes and residential developments from recycled shipping containers.

According to Lawrence Group principal Dan Rosenthal, quoted in the article, the finished homes are stronger than conventional construction because they resist “lateral loads” — those seen in hurricanes and earthquakes — and because steel is basically welded to steel.” The homes also are energy efficient. “When the appropriate coatings are installed, we have an envelope that reflects about 95 percent of outside radiation, resists the loss of interior heat, provides an excellent air infiltration barrier and does not allow water to migrate in. Because of the superior roof structure, it is easier to incorporate ‘green’ roof systems,” Rosenthal said in the article.

The article is available online to St. Louis Business Journal subscribers.

Source: St. Louis Business Journal

The principals of St. Louis-based The Lawrence Group architectural firm and SG Blocks plan to recycle used metal cargo shipping containers into sturdy, attractive homes and housing developments. The recycled shipping containers are much stronger than traditional construction in a hurricane or tornado and are very energy efficient. Read more in the April 20 issue of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. And check out photos of the process at www.synergy-pr.com.

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Source: St. Louis Post-Dispatch

While many public agencies and architectural firms are gearing up for green design and LEED certification, developers and owners are slower to embrace the trend.

The Womble Carlyle Construction Blog addresses “Why more people don’t build green” in an April 13 post.

Here are the highlights:

• more expensive
• takes more time to build
• few incentives for developers
• low public demand
• absence of research on the impacts and benefits
• confusion over building standards

Here in St. Louis, The Lawrence Group Architects has successfully renovated The Security Building as a green historic building and is in the process of applying for LEED certification. This year, the Lawrence Group is increasing its number of LEED accredited staff to 40, five times the previous number.

The Lawrence Group occupies several floors of the building and is leasing the rest. As far as we know, the Security Building is the only LEED-designed space available for lease in St. Louis. Kudos to The Lawrence Group for making this project a success!

Better architecture and energy savings in buildings could do more to fight global warming than all curbs on greenhouse gases agreed to under the UN’s Kyoto Protocol, according to a new report from the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) Sustainable Construction and Building Initiative (SBCI).

The built environment accounts for 30% to 40 % of global energy use, and the right mix of technologies, behavioural change and government regulation could make a huge impact on reducing carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions.

The report estimates that by 2010, more than one-fifth of present energy consumption could be saved by applying more ambitious standards to new and existing buildings.

Since 80% of a building’s energy consumption occurs after it’s built, building design and systems are extremely important. Some solutions include sun shading, natural ventilation, improved insulation, recycled building materials, intelligent lighting and ventilation systems, low temperature heating and cooling systems, energy saving appliances, and energy pricing and financial incentives.

Some countries are considering a phase-out or ban of incandescent light bulbs, which would save 470 million tons of CO2 - more than half the reductions called for by the Kyoto Treaty.

The House passed a $124-billion supplemental spending package today on a narrow 218-212 vote. Most of the funds are earmarked for the U.S. Military in Iraq but the measure also contains several billion dollars for defense and non-military construction programs.

The construction-related funding would include $1.8 billion for military projects, mostly in Iraq and Afghanistan; $3.1 billion for the defense base closure program; $1.3 billion for levees and other flood-control work around New Orleans; and $283 million for Veterans Affairs construction.

The White House has warned that President Bush would veto the bill, mainly because of language requiring the U.S. to start withdrawing troops next year if political and military benchmarks are achieved before then. The House vote fell far short of the two-thirds majority needed to override a veto.

Reference: ENR News Alert

Prices for gypsum wallboard are finally succumbing to the weak housing market according to the upcoming issue of Engineering News Record. ENR’s 20-city average price for 1/2-inch wallboard declined 2.3% this month, dropping the year-to-year price increase to 5%. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, wallboard year-to-year price increases declined from 14% last October to just 3% in January.

Reference: ENR