GAB Report library
Products
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Introducing a Green Replacement for Plywood
Can the construction industry help divert plastics from the world-wide waste stream? Could a green replacement for plywood be one of the ways to help solve the problem? During my attendance at Ecobuild 2010 in London earlier this year, I came upon a smartly designed exhibitor booth. I was drawn to its interactive displays, see-through…
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New Directions for Living Roofs and Walls
The evolving technology of green roofs has been leading to the use of greater diversity in their designs. After years of implementing green roof designs, the industry has seen a steady move towards more diversity in both elements of construction and plant materials. What is most fascinating of the improvement in green roof design is…
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How Green Is Your Building’s Wood?
How can architects, developers and builders know for sure that lumber for building their projects comes from sustainably managed forests? Sustainability is defined internationally as: meeting the needs of the present generation without compromising that ability for future generations. Translated to forestry, sustainability strives to balance the interdependent and sometimes competing interests of the environmental,…
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City of Ann Arbor Pilots LED Street Lights and Reduces Costs
LED (light emitting diode) is a solid-state semiconductor device that converts electrical energy directly into light. Its development started in the 1960s and has been typically utilized as indicator lights in numerous electronic products, signage and flash light applications. Just in the last few years as its technology advanced, LEDs are now used in real…
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Ecobuild 2010: Learning From Our European Counterparts in Green Building
I’ve been reflecting on my whirlwind tour at Ecobuild 2010, a conference and tradeshow focusing on sustainable design, construction, and the built environment, as I sit at London Heathrow airport awaiting my delayed flight. During my two and a half days traversing London Underground’s network of tubes (a.k.a. subway lines), attending numerous educational sessions, and…
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Jam-Packed Session at West Coast Green 09: Alex Wilson’s Talk on The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly: a Look at Green & Not-So-Green Building Products
I have subscribed to the Environmental Building News for the last 15 years and it is my favorite subscription that I read religiously. I appreciate it for presenting good, solid research and am a huge fan of Mr. Alex Wilson, the Executive Editor of Environmental Building News and the GreenSpec® Directory, and the Founder and…
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West Coast Green 09: Innovations, Ideas, and Opportunities Shared
It was a crisp, fall morning with the sun shimmering on the San Francisco Bay—what a way to start off my first of three days at West Coast Green on October 1, 2009. As I walked through the exhibit hall to reach the keynote session, I could feel the buzz of excitement as exhibitors were…
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Can Robotic Manufacturing Help Us Build in a Greener Way?
Walking through many a jobsite, I have always felt at home with the smell of wood dust, the whirring noise of circular saws, and welding sparks flashing in the distance. These features are results of materials being cut and/or fabricated on site, and often times lead to unnecessary waste, whether it is due to un-intention…
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Ingenious Two-in-One Radiant Panel Structural Subfloor
To work on a project in Antarctica—how awesome would that be? A team of engineers was charged with the task of upgrading the heating system in the U.S. Antarctic Program Building #155. They decided that radiant floor heating was the correct solution, but they required a system that would provide reliable warmth, be efficient with…
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Award Winning Two-in-One Solar Roofing System Launched at PCBC 2009
The PCBC 2009 featured 400+ exhibitors but only Custom-Bilt Metals won the Cool Product Competition in the “Saves Energy” category with their FusionSolar system. I had the opportunity to discuss the product with two of the owners, Joe and Steve Chiovare. The What: Custom-Bilt Metals, a manufacturer of metal roofing and rain gutter products, has…