Past Meetings

Chapter 15 of the IBC and the Oregon Specialty Structural Code addresses the code requirements for the design and construction of roof assemblies. Ranging from slope requirements to requirements regarding specific roofing types, including thermoset, thermoplastic and SBS roofing materials, this section of the code is not frequently discussed or referenced during the course of project design and delivery. Mr. Kouba will address these requirements as well as looking at both the requirements and methods for compliance for meeting wind loads and edge securement. Mr. Kouba will clarify what Class A, B and C roofs are and what the criteria are for UL or FM listed roof assemblies. In addition, specific aspects of the code that address the requirements regarding vegetated roof gardens will be discussed.

John Kouba is the Director of Technical Services at Malarkey Roofing, a position he has held since 1998. Prior to that, Mr. Kouba was the Technical Services Manager at US Intec from 1993-1998. He is involved in many committees and organizations focused on the technical aspects of roofing design and construction, including CSI, SPRI, ARMA, and RCI as well as being the Co-Chair of the ASTM D8.03 subcommittee. Mr. Kouba is one of the authors of the Residential Asphalt Roofing Manual Design.

This presentation will discuss the basic attributes of different roofing systems and the key considerations to choosing a roofing system.

Bruce Ryan, Vice President, has been a consultant for Professional Roof Consultants, Inc. since March of 1996. Primary responsibilities, aside from Corporate Management, include investigation and design of roof replacement projects, roof inspection projects, roof evaluations, and roof management projects, as well as systems administration.

Mr. Ryan provides Professional Roof Consultants, Inc. with experience associated with the roofing industry, including a past partnership with a roofing company located on the east coast. His expertise originates from his in-depth knowledge of how roof systems are properly specified and installed, attention to detail, and how and where roof problems originate.

Multi-family buildings are commonly ventilated using corridor pressurization based ventilation systems. This presentation will use a recent Pacific Northwest based case study to examine why this type of system is often inefficient and ineffective, and will demonstrate why alternative systems should be considered. Key concepts which will be discussed include the interaction of the ventilation system with building enclosure airtightness, occupants, and natural pressure differences created by stack effect.

Lorne Ricketts is a building science engineer (EIT) specializing in research and investigation work. His experience consists of a wide range of projects including: building enclosure condition assessments, forensic investigations, building monitoring, field review, building modeling, and laboratory and field testing services.

Lorne’s Master’s research at the University of Waterloo focused on airflow in high-rise multi-unit residential buildings and included extensive testing and monitoring of a case study building. As a result, his work has developed the industry’s understanding of airflow in and around buildings and how it affects both energy consumption and indoor air quality.

Lorne’s practical experience combined with his theoretical training and proficiency with state-of-the-art thermal and hygrothermal (heat, air, and moisture) software modeling tools has enabled him to evaluate a wide variety of enclosure systems. This analytical work is used as the basis for recommendations regarding air barriers, vapor barriers, insulation levels, thermal bridging, and window selection.

Lorne has a B.A.Sc. in Civil Engineering from the University of British Columbia, BC, and an M.A.Sc. in Civil Engineering at the University of Waterloo, ON.

Integrated building facades have the potential to play a significant role in the support of aggressive building performance goals but validation is critical to assure that the potential is actually realized. This presentation will address the role of integrated facades in significantly reducing energy use while supporting high levels of occupant satisfaction. For transparent facade assemblies, the primary factors affecting performance are the management of solar heat gain, optimizing daylighting while managing glare, visual connections, and thermal transmittance. The presentation will summarize a range of validation methods including material testing, test bed studies of assemblies, and verification of specific simulation methods. The focus of the presentation will be on a case study of the post-occupancy evaluation of a completed federal office building—EGWW. Validation of post-occupancy performance provides important feedback for further commissioning to fine tune building controls and other systems, and also provides a valuable feedback for improving future work by the design team and other professionals.

Cross laminated timber (CLT) is an engineered wood building system designed to complement light- and heavy-timber framing options. Now available to North American building designers, it offers the structural simplicity needed for cost-effective projects, as well as benefits such as fast installation, reduced waste, improved thermal performance and design versatility. This presentation will introduce CLT through a series of project examples while considering some of the more challenging aspects of CLT building design—such as fire and life safety, lateral and seismic design, acoustic performance and building envelope. Topics will also include the manufacturing and specification of CLT, building code considerations and available resources such as the US CLT Handbook.

As the Northwest Regional Director for the U.S. WoodWorks program, Ethan’s directive is providing project assistance, education, and resources for developers, architects, engineers, and contractors for code-compliant design, engineering, and construction of non-residential and multi-family wood buildings. Ethan is a licensed engineer and joined WoodWorks when the pilot program went nationwide in 2011. Prior to that Ethan had his own engineering firm for eight years and is a Civil and Environmental Engineering graduate of Cornell University specializing in structures.

WoodWorks is a non-profit organization established and led by the Wood Products Council and funded by the Softwood Lumber Board, USDA Forest Service, Forestry Innovation Investment and Natural Resources Canada and is closely affiliated with the American Wood Council and other partner organizations, whose resources it utilizes in the resolution of technical issues and the identification of appropriate wood solutions.

This course will discuss the challenges of current lows-slope roofing applications and further explore the properties of insulation types and performance characteristics under different operating temperatures. Participants will learn of an alternative insulation selection strategy using a hybrid approach combining both polyisocyanurate and mineral wool. Dimensional stability and constructability of the hybrid system will be explored in addition to the implications of roofing color and energy transfer through the insulation assembly.

Ariel Levy has focused his career on the design and investigation of building enclosures. His experience ranges geographically from the east to the west coasts and includes buildings of all types: new to old, residential to high-rise commercial. Ariel is a Managing Principal with RDH and overseas the operations in its Portland and San Francisco Bay area offices.

A panel discussion that reviews the challenges and opportunities of the Enclosure Development Process. This discussion will include the perspective of the Architect, Contractor, and Owner regarding the successful and “challenged” processes for going through iterations of modifying the Enclosure. Specifically the panel will discuss examples of successful value engineering processes; a review of why we do not always get what we want, and also cases where the envelope wins; what to avoid early in the process (starting with systems that the budget will not support); what to avoid late in the process (losing sight of why early decisions were made); key decisions to make and commit to; how to analyze trade-offs to support the Owner's goals; what have we learned; and what do we still need to learn.

Paul Kisling: Paul Kisling has more than 35 years of design and construction experience. His past work includes residential/mixed use, commercial office, retail, industrial, and institutional projects. Paul returned to Mackenzie as Director of Architecture in early 2013 after spending nearly a decade working in development including projects delivered through public-private partnerships and design-build. During his previous tenure with the firm, he served as senior project architect for a range of complex projects, including projects such as the 2100 SW River Parkway Building (former Pacific Gas Transmission building) and Clackamas County Public Services Building. From 2003-2006 he managed the Elizabeth Lofts condominium construction for Carroll Aspen Elizabeth LLC. From 2006-2013 he worked as a senior project manager for Gerding Edlen Development, where he oversaw significant projects including The John Ross and CYAN/pdx high rise multi-family projects and PCC’s Willow Creek Campus. Paul has considerable experience working within a fast-track design-build framework, both representing the owner and as a member of the design team.

Sean Scott: Sean is an Architect that is requested to consult, present nationally, research, and instruct on topics enclosure topics. Currently Sean works for Ankrom Moisan Architects focusing on building enclosures, QA/QC. Sean works within the University of Oregon as a Professor of High Performance Building Enclosures. In his spare time, Sean is progressing with his book “Envelope Tools” which is written by the industry, for the industry with input from every participant type in the industry. Sean has published envelope articles within Environmental Building News, Trim-Tab, and other publications. Prior to joining his current engagement, Sean had spent 18 years working with mixed-use high-rise, educational, institutional, multi-family, commercial, and governmental buildings. Some of this work in London, England, (as well as Ghana, West Africa) has led to his career focus. Furthering this effort he has been participating with the evolution of The Living Building Challenge. He has a professional Bachelor’s degree and Master’s degree both in Architecture from the University of Oregon.

Martin Houston Martin Houston, AIA, is the Quality Director for Walsh Construction Co. in Portland, Oregon. He has a B.Arch. degree from the University of Cincinnati, holds a California architect’s license, is a LEED Accredited Professional, and is a certified Building Science Thermographer. With WCC since 2006, Martin’s focus includes ensuring overall building quality while concentrating on high performance envelopes and emerging technologies for building envelope commissioning and diagnosis. As the Quality Director for WALSH, he is responsible for the implementation of Quality Assurance and Quality Control procedures. In the preconstruction phase of a project, Marty reviews the drawings and specifications in progress and advises the project team on quality and constructability issues. During construction, Marty oversees envelope coordination activities and conducts construction reviews with the craftsmen responsible for execution to ensure a high quality project.

Mike Shadley Mike currently works as a Construction Manager at American Assets Trust and was previously the Owner of TS Construction Management.

The commissioning of a building enclosure is dependent upon the assumption that the construction manager and his contractors have a proactive first level enclosure process fully implemented in order to provide the opportunity for BECx to function and succeed.

William Nash, P.E., is a Senior Project Manager with WDP & Associates, in the firm's Manassas, Virginia office. Mr. Nash offers over 35 years of professional experience in the construction industry which includes field engineering, project management with both divisional and corporate responsibilities, and technical services. His management expertise in facilities and building envelope projects includes a variety of technical disciplines ranging from preconstruction building envelope coordination to construction inspections and forensic investigations. Mr. Nash is certified as a Licensed Field Auditor by the Air Barrier Association of America (ABAA) and is a Level 1 Certified Infrared Thermographer in accordance with the American Society for Non Destructive Testing SNT-TC-1A. He is a member of numerous industry organizations, including the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE), American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM), Building Envelope and Thermal Energy Council (BETEC), Construction Specifications Institute (CSI), International Concrete Repair Institute (ICRI), Roof Consultants Institute (RCI), and The Masonry Society (TMS). In addition to his industry participation on the national level, Mr. Nash is heavily involved with various national standards committees for ACI, ASCE, ASTM, and National Institute of Building Science/BETEC. He is a licensed civil engineer in Virginia, Missouri, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, and Texas.