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Full-Text Articles in Environmental Design
Umass Dartmouth Science And Engineering (Seng) Building Systems Upgrades Project, Jillian Cornelius
Umass Dartmouth Science And Engineering (Seng) Building Systems Upgrades Project, Jillian Cornelius
UMassBRUT Community
Although UMass Dartmouth's Science and Engineering Building has long been viewed as an architectural treasure, its aging interior and structure have presented some challenges to users nearly 50 years after it opened. This talk examines Ellenzweig's extensive retrofitting of the UMass Dartmouth SENG building for accessibility, a new envelope, updated MEP, and fire-safety measures. After looking at the design phase and interactions with the Mass Historic Commission, the talk ends with an examination of the replacement of windows in the building.
Brutalist Structures – Polychlorinated Biphenyls, Theresa Wolejko
Brutalist Structures – Polychlorinated Biphenyls, Theresa Wolejko
UMassBRUT Community
Until they were banned by the Federal Government in 1978, Polychlorinated Biphenyls or PCBs, were used extensively as sealants in Brutalist structures across the United States. As a result, these hazardous chemical compounds still reside in concrete buildings and present a danger to those looking to clean or renovate Brutalist structures. This talk explains the problems the University of Massachusetts Amherst has faced in dealing with PCBs over the last couple of decades and recommends some best practices for owners, designers, builders working on midcentury buildings which are suspected to contain these dangerous chemicals.
Concrete Deterioration And Diagnosis, Matthew B. Bronski
Concrete Deterioration And Diagnosis, Matthew B. Bronski
UMassBRUT Community
Built primarily in the 1960’s, mid-century modernist concrete buildings are now at the age when we regard many as historic or architecturally significant (and thus as deserving of careful restoration and stewardship), but also at an age where many now exhibit significant deterioration. In this presentation, Matthew Bronski describes the most common maladies and deterioration mechanisms that can befall exposed concrete facades, outlines investigative and diagnostic approaches, and discuss the pros and cons of different rehabilitation treatment options, and the importance of tailoring the treatment to the malady.
Concrete Diagnostics & Assessment, Michael Schuller
Concrete Diagnostics & Assessment, Michael Schuller
UMassBRUT Community
The process of repairing Brutalist architecture begins with diagnosis and assessment of the material conditions of these buildings. This talk focuses on the processes that engineers undertake in order to document and access historic concrete before conservators and designers can form a plan to save such buildings. The speaker gives insight into the diagnostic techniques, such a visual assessment, nondestructive evaluation, sounding, moisture and metal detection, and chemical analysis.
Concrete Conservation Strategies And Repair, Paul Gaudette
Concrete Conservation Strategies And Repair, Paul Gaudette
UMassBRUT Community
Drawing on the speaker's many years in the field, this talk gives a comprehensive overview of concrete conservation. Beginning with the goals and approaches to conserving concrete, the talk then covers common protection systems, petrographic and chemical studies, and the design of mixes used in repairs. In order to demonstrate these techniques, two case studies are examined, including a Brutalist building and building with architectural precast. The talk ends with some recommendations on how to best approach cleaning and conservation of historic concrete buildings.
Approaches To Renewing Brutalist-Era Lab Buildings, Jean Caroon
Approaches To Renewing Brutalist-Era Lab Buildings, Jean Caroon
UMassBRUT Community
Given the immense amount of embodied carbon that mid-century Brutalist structures represent, we must redirect our focus from demolishing these concrete structures to renovating them to fit our needs in the 21st century. Higher education laboratory buildings from the 1960s and 1970s are a particularly challenging type of facility. This talk describes the work that Boston architecture firm Goody Clancy has recently undertaken in renovating over 1 million square feet of lab building space. The talk not only covers specific retrofits and envelope improvements to science buildings, such as the Gant Science Complex at the University of Connecticut in Storrs, …