Concrete moisture mitigation to help floors

Concrete floor slabs contain excess moisture that can damage many types of floor finishes. To address this problem, manufacturers have developed products aimed at mitigating the moisture in concrete. However, not all these products are suited to their intended purpose.
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Seeing through glass cracks

Cracking was observed in the exterior curtain wall glass on an early-1970s mid-rise building in the Midwest. As originally constructed, the curtain wall included single-glazed 5.5-mm (7/32-in.) thick bronze-tinted glass at all floors—except the uppermost level, which featured single-glazed 9.5-mm (3/8-in.) thick clear polished plate glass.
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Updating MasterFormat

The MasterFormat 2014 Update includes hundreds of revisions from the previous 2012 update. Among the key revisions were changes to agreements contained in Division 00–Procurement and Contracting Requirements to account for evolving contract delivery processes in the construction industry as a whole.
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The psychology of professionalism

Most people associate professional construction or engineering jobs with tangible objects such as wood, steel, concrete, and brick. However, there is also another important aspect of professional construction management or engineering that is sometimes overlooked, even by experienced building and design professionals.
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Predicting façade failures

Building façades are often constructed with materials of variable strength that are constantly exposed to weather and attached with hundreds or thousands of concealed connections that cannot be easily inspected or maintained.
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Using CSI formats effectively

The role of formats in modern construction documentation is central to CSI’s vision and purpose; they enable the structured presentation and organization of construction project information. CSI has developed many formats for the design and construction industry.
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Poems for product reps

I’m thinking about producing a line of cards for architects and specifiers to send to product representatives. We could establish “Recognize Your Golden Reps Day” on the calendar, and take a day to appreciate those who make a design professional’s job easier.
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