RCI-IIBEC Foundation Supports Research on Adhered Masonry March 08, 2021 By Rick Gardner The RCI-IIBEC Foundation has approved funding for research and testing of adhered masonry in collaboration with the Thin Masonry Consortium. The research project will be working with Portland State University seismic research lab to produce an independent third party structural engineer’s report for various wall assemblies which will quantify allowable adhered-masonry heights […] Read More
ORNL and FEMP Build Smart Walls November 01, 2020 Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) and the Department of Energy’s Federal Emergency Management Program (FEMP) have partnered to create a prototype wall named “EMPOWER.” This “smart” wall is 3-D printed using a manufacturing system called SkyBAAM, which prints concrete. SkyBAAM constructs walls without the use of a gantry system, and it reportedly can be set […] Read More
RCI Foundation Supports Research on Thermal Bridging via Roof Fasteners July 10, 2019 By Rick Gardner The RCI Foundation has approved funding for a study, titled “Laboratory Testing of Roof Assemblies for Comparison with Simulated Models: Thermal Performance Assessment of Thermal Bridges due to Roof Fasteners” at Virginia Tech. The team, consisting of Dr. Elizabeth Grant and Dr. Georg Reichard, along with their students, as well as industry […] Read More
Termite Mounds Hide Secrets to Sustainable Buildings of the Future December 01, 2018 The South Dakota School of Mines & Technology has been awarded $475,000 from the National Science Foundation to study how termites construct mounds with the idea that humans might one day adapt the energy-efficient homebuilding techniques of the insects. The award is a follow-up to a previous grant by NSF of $300,000. Mines faculty researchers […] Read More
