January 18, 2008
  Fabric Roof and Canopy Enhance Wayfinding and Comfort at Florida Hospital
The Florida Hospital Waterman, north of Orlando in Tavares, Fla., is the first hospital in the country to incorporate tent-like fabric canopy structures into its design. The $129 million project features two steel-cable-supported fabric canopies, one of which doubles as a lobby roof. The tension fabric canopy and roof provide wayfinding for predominately elderly patients as the tensile architecture defines entrances and spaces inside and outside the hospital. The canopy roof covers a glass lobby atrium that unites a new hospital tower with an existing three-story medical office, providing the atrium lobby with natural light and a sense of comfort. Irving, Tex.-based RTKL Associates, Inc. worked with Buffalo-based Birdair, a contractor of tensile architecture, on the Florida Hospital Waterman project.

Architect-led Habitat Team Builds Five Houses in Seven Days
Blitz-build style creates hope in Bogalusa, La.
Mark Eric Benner, AIA, recently led an all-volunteer building team to Bogalusa, La. to construct five homes for Habitat for Humanity. Relying on the efficiencies enabled by BIM, Solid Rock Carpenters was able to erect the five needed homes in only seven days.

2008 Continuing Education Awards for Excellence Announced
The AIA Continuing Education System, the Institute’s continuing education provider, has announced the winners of its 2008 Awards for Excellence. The four winning organizations are Seattle-based Mithun Architects + Designers + Planners; San Francisco-based Pacific Gas and Electric Company Pacific Energy Center; Carmel, Ind.,-based Ingersoll Rand Security Technologies; and San Antonio-based Ron Blank & Associates Inc. The mission of the AIA/CES Providers program is to inspire and guide providers of continuing educational programs to deliver high-quality lifelong learning activities for architects.

AIA CES Invites Firms to a Continuing Ed Strategies Symposium
Join them in Charleston, S.C., March 5–7
The AIA Continuing Education System staff invites full-time employees of architecture or A/E firms to attend the CES Firm Symposium: Adaptable Strategies for Professional Development March 5–7 in Charleston, S.C. Designed for the established leaders of today’s top A/E firms, this intensive, interactive symposium will focus on the strategic integration of professional development into the business practice of the firm. Discussions will focus on award-winning practices. Integral to the experience will be the interaction of the participants—professionals facing many of the same challenges as you deal with daily—providing inspiration and focus in a noncompetitive atmosphere.

 

Copyright 2008 The American Institute of Architects. All rights reserved. Home Page
home
news headlines
practice
business
design
Welcome to the Practice Zone
This is the home of the weekly Best Practices column, news of tips and tools that you can use in your day-to-day practice and case studies illustrating “how-tos” and “lessons learned” for all stages of practice. The Practice Zone also features reports of research in architecture and related fields.