Tag: construction materials

September 29, 2023

For the opening of CAB 5, the 5th edition of the Chicago Architecture Biennial, Skidmore, Owings & Merrill (SOM) presented an eco-friendly alternative to traditional concrete. Named the “Bio-Block Spiral,” the installation is at The Mews in Fulton Market in […]

July 10, 2023

In recent years, the spotlight on sustainable, eco-friendly, and low-carbon materials has intensified across the architecture industry. Amid this interest, a renaissance of hemp architecture is gradually gaining momentum on a global scale. Hemp-based materials have emerged as a favorable […]

July 7, 2023

The cost of popular construction materials has been hard to nail down since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. About 82.5% of construction materials have experienced a significant cost increase since 2020, with an average jump of 19%, according construction […]

May 8, 2023

If we were to design an ideal building material, it would look like bamboo. At least, that’s what Neil Thomas, director of the London-based structural engineering firm Atelier One, claims. Its tubular shape, vascular bundles, fast growth rate, and ease […]

March 1, 2023

If GCP says something is sustainable, they have the data to back it up, including HPDs, Declare labels, and EPDs. Without independent verification, they won’t say anything is “green or sustainable.” “I dislike those terms and we won’t participate in […]

February 8, 2023

During his State of the Union address US President Joe Biden issued guidance to ensure construction materials in federal infrastructure projects are made in the US. “Tonight, I’m also announcing new standards to require all construction materials used in federal […]

January 23, 2023

Plunging prices for diesel fuel, lumber, and steel slowed inflation for materials and services used in construction in December in the US, but relief may be short-lived, according to an analysis by the Associated General Contractors of America of government […]

January 10, 2023

Sodium chloride, most commonly known as salt, is everywhere. Ancient in its uses and abundant in nature, it preserves local ecosystems, de-ices roads, is vital in a variety of industrial processes, and is likely sitting on your kitchen table as […]

January 3, 2023

Inflation could severely weaken the impact of funding from the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, experts say. High prices for construction materials and other project inputs are already sapping jurisdictions’ additional buying power from the federal legislation, according to analysis […]

December 7, 2022

The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act has started to provide significant funding for new and rehab infrastructure projects. A provision in the IIJA is the Build America, Buy America Act, which impacts all federally funded infrastructure projects in the United […]

November 30, 2022

Contractors and construction materials suppliers are calling on the U.S. Senate to pass an emergency bill that cleared the House of Representatives on Nov. 30 that would impose a tentative agreement reached by freight rail companies and labor unions brokered […]

August 25, 2022

Steep inflation over the past few months has exacerbated what was already a volatile market for construction materials, further complicating specialty contractors’ efforts to successfully navigate a post-pandemic environment where many markets remain active, albeit with resources in short supply. […]

August 22, 2022

The recently enacted Inflation Reduction Act contains highway-related provisions that aim to give a boost to infrastructure projects in disadvantaged communities and for the use of low-carbon construction materials on federal highway projects. The larger of the two provisions provides […]

August 5, 2022

It is expected that by 2050, the rapid depletion of raw materials will leave the world without enough sand and steel to build concrete. On the other hand, the cost of building continues to soar, with an increase between 5% […]

July 15, 2022

The report comes on the heels of a broader analysis from Jay Pendergrass, director of supply chain at No. 11 contractor Gilbane, who noted declines in steel, copper and lumber going into the second half of 2022. Taken together, the […]

June 14, 2022

In the current scenario of a climate crisis, thinking about an architectural project without defining ecological guidelines has become practically unacceptable. One of the main emitters of carbon dioxide and other pollutants, the construction sector is increasingly looking for new […]

May 26, 2022

The U.S. Dept. of Transportation has granted a temporary waiver for complying with the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act’s new Buy America requirement for construction materials. But the 180-day waiver period is shorter than state transportation departments had sought, and […]

April 7, 2022

Researchers from Monash University have discovered a new design motif derived from the rigid external covering of invertebrates that may help create more damage tolerant materials for future building and construction. In a paper published in Nature Communications, Professor Wenhui […]

February 15, 2022

The Biden administration is moving to put U.S. government purchasing power behind construction materials with lower embodied carbon emissions and pollutants, with the White House launching a “Buy Clean Task Force” on Feb. 15. as part of a slate of […]

February 7, 2022

Cold Formed Steel (CFS), also known as light gauge steel (LGS), construction is a practical, code approved solution to many of the limitations that builders face today when using traditional construction materials. Here are five key reasons why CFS construction […]