Category: Hot Topic

    • DIY HVAC Maintenance: What’s Safe and What to Avoid! Guest post by Ray Flynn

      DIY HVAC Maintenance: What’s Safe and What to Avoid! Guest post by Ray Flynn

      Being a homeowner is a wonderful investment that brings many fulfilling rewards. Of course, it also brings many (often unexpected) costs. From plumbing to electrical issues, there are hundreds of home repairs that could break the bank. Unfortunately, HVAC repairs could be one of them. HVAC repair technicians charge up to $80 per hour, and…

    • Why Prepare a Local Pre-Disaster Recovery Plan? (Guest post by Natalie French)

      Recovery is the most complicated, lengthier, expensive and least appreciated phase of emergency management. Some recoveries can take years, and communities will never be able to go back to normal levels.  In fact, it is not realistic to create a false image that things will go back to “normal”.   Long-term recovery also has a toll…

    • Architects as day-to-day activists, not just design stars:

      Few architects will reach stardom in their carrier or their life. The ones that do have typically been blessed by a unique commission that allowed them to truly and freely feature their skills resulting in a spectacular structure. Frequently these structures are of a public or high profile private nature, such as museums, signature buildings…

    • Architects versus developers (an architects perspective):

      Ideas versus money. That is about the simplest way to distinguish the two and also the easiest way to understand why these two groups need each other. While overlap is of course possible, it is not likely. Developers frequently look at a potential project and create a general concept based on location and possible use…

    • Planners versus architects (an architects perspective):

      When looking closer into the world of design, one will find a distinction between planners and architects. While Architects may act and function as planners, the reverse is generally not true. Urban planners are trained to focus on a larger picture and incorporate varying functions of a place. These functions may include buildings and other…

    • The Role(s) of the Architects – what we really do

      The Role(s) of the Architects – what we really do

        Let’s keep the role and influence of the individual architect a little reasonable and in perspective here. There are so many varying aspects of architecture employment. Few actually design, especially design all the time. Most are executing some sort construction documents or other legal text relevant to the building at hand, research materials or…