The primary requirement written into architectural practice acts for most U.S. states is that architects are licensed only for the purpose of protecting the public health, safety, and welfare (HSW).  In Illinois where I am a licensed architect, these..

Last business day before Christmas, I received two email messages about a project that will be issued for construction the first week of January. The architect's office always closes for Christmas week. So I called to find out if replies were needed,..

I opened the door to enter the office building lobby. The sound was loud and unmistakable - an electrical transformer humming away, loudly. Following the sound I found the room about 20 feet away with the door propped open to help ventilate the..

Combustible construction can provide perfect paths through concealed spaces to allow fires to spread quickly and undetected. Fireblocking and draftstopping combine to minimize these perfect paths to help protect the property and the occupants. Learn..

The International Building Code (IBC) Section 1009.4.4 requires stair risers and tread widths to be uniform height and width within a tolerance of 3/8 inch throughout the entire flight of stairs. Why is this important? The reason became instantly..

During a state code review, the following comment was issued advising the agency (Owner) of a potential difficulty if the architect designed to the code required minimum.

Today the International Code Council announced that free electronic copies of the International Energy Conservation Code (IECC) are available thanks to funding provided the by the US Government through through the Building Technologies Program and the..