Past Special Events

June 29th, Thursday
Guest Speaker: Ken Lowney - President of Lowney Architecture

Modular Architecture: Thinking Inside the Box for Great Design

Modular construction is economical, makes efficient use of labor, reduces waste, and offers the quality control associated with prefabrication. As such, it solves many of the challenges facing project teams today.

Some architects worry about the creative limits of this appraoch. In fact, there is a great deal of flexibility in modular design using light-frame wood construction -- if architects understand the nuances of these projects.

In this session, modular experts from Lowney Architecture will use completed multifamily and hospitality projects to demonstrate how to successfully design and construct complex modular buildings in urban environments. Join us to discover how to achieve great design by thinking "inside the box."

March 29th, 2023  
Guest Speaker: Steve Easley - Building Science Expert 

Water Management Best Practices for Walls with Exterior Insulation

New energy efficient construction requirements and codes are moving towards requiring exterior insulation. This can create conditions where wall systems have much slower drying potential and reduced capacity for inward and outward drying. The result is a greater potential for expensive moisture related wall defects and failures. Steve Easley will explain best practices for water management and how to use rain screen systems that provide simple, cost effective solutions to prevent water related damage and how to reduce costly defects. Steve uses pictures from his forensic experience to examine field failures of a variety of cladding systems.

December 8th, 2022
Guest Speaker: Ajla Aksamija

Thermal Behavior and Moisture Transport in High-Performance Facades: Design Considerations

This 1-hour presentation will cover methods for designing high-performance facades, specifically focusing on thermal behavior and moisture transport in various exterior wall assemblies.

The session will introduce building science principles that govern facades’ thermal behavior and vapor diffusion, and it will discuss thermal comfort parameters and measurements for understanding occupants’ comfort. It will also introduce methods and simulation tools that can be used to analyze heat transfer and combined air and moisture resistance in facade assemblies.

September 22th, 2022
Guest Speaker: Fawn Chang

Forecasting Exterior Trends: The Architect's Role in Restoring Global Health

Architecture sits at the intersection of human and environment and subconsciously drives human behavior. Done well, design uplifts and encourages health and well-being. Defaulted, leads to dystopia, dissociation, disease, crime and global unrest. Using leading edge research this thought-provoking presentation identifies the significant global trends going forward.