The Lawrence Berkley National Laboratory estimates that between 5% and 30% of a building’s energy use is wasted due to faults and errors in operations. That’s where Monitoring-Based Commissioning (MBCx) comes in.
 

When you’re an engineering firm, sometimes it helps to be headquartered in a building where you’re working on projects for other tenants.
 

When a data center in the Midwest was undergoing expansion, it was critical that the piping system be powerful.
 

It’s easy to forget about pipe systems when considering the needs of a building. But an optimum pipe system design is critical to any infrastructure’s operation and longevity.
 

The news is out that 151 North Franklin in Chicago, developed by The John Buck Company, became the first high-rise building in the United States to earn the WELL v1 Core & Shell Gold certification. But how did it happen?
 

Why don’t sprinkler systems work as intended? Human activity (or lack of it) often is behind a malfunctioning sprinkler system.
 

With the advent of the Internet of things (IoT), artificial intelligence and robotics, the threat to cybersecurity has entered a new stage in which risks to privacy, integrity and availability are amplified.
 

With the demand for data centers growing in the Asia-Pacific region, it’s important for firms to get into the market quickly. But what challenges need to be overcome when speed-to-market is a factor?
 

Great news for buildings using ENERGY STAR to benchmark and earn recognition for energy performance: Recently, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) completed its months-long review of its current ENERGY STAR scoring model for office spaces, which was implemented in August 2018 and which caused scores in office buildings to drop, particularly in cold climates.
 

During any worthwhile endeavor, roadblocks will arise. The same is true when creating smart buildings – but the roadblocks are always worth surmounting.
 

As the next generation becomes parents, what they want from the work environment changes greatly – ping-pong tables matter far less than a flexible schedule.
 

Talk about a rewarding night that was brimming with can-do attitudes.
 

It’s always good to connect face-to-face with fellow plumbing engineers.
 

As the continent containing the most skyscrapers above 150 meters, each new high-rise in Asia must compete within a landscape of tall, supertall and megatall buildings – each of which demands more efficient performance benchmarks than the last.
 

Preventing all critical events may be out of our control, but certain strategies can help firms avoid or rapidly respond to unexpected disruptions.
 

At one point in the 20th century, modern skyscrapers were impossible, because power systems on the ground could only efficiently reach 30-40 stories high. Today, transformers rest at numerous points vertically in skyscrapers throughout the world, configured as stacked 30-40 story high-rises to form segmented tall buildings as vertical cities.
 

For future engineers thinking about career opportunities, a question often arises: Which accreditation should I pursue?
 

Monitoring-based commissioning has emerged as a promising solution to uncover and track energy savings opportunities.
 

With the recent news about Hurricane Dorian’s path of destruction in the Bahamas and along the North Carolina coast, it’s a good time for denizens of the commercial real estate industry to remember the impact weather can have.
 

Over the past decade, data center infrastructures have evolved, welcoming hyperscalers and cloud companies. As this transition has accelerated in recent years alongside technology, are the ideas of building intelligently and efficiently keeping pace?
 

Serious college students love to keep learning even during a vacation – and ESD is always happy to serve as a guide to buoy their knowledge.
 

When an alma mater wants you to be significantly involved in the school long after you’ve graduated, that’s an honor.
 

ESD’s High Performance Building projects have encompassed some of the best known buildings in the world, from the Akhmat Tower in Russia to the Zurich North America Headquarters outside of Chicago.
 

ESD has seen solid growth in its mission critical work – a fact noted by a national publication.
 

Steve Fink has joined ESD in the role of Practice Leader – Financial Services.
 

ESD is moving up in the world of mechanical, electrical, plumbing and fire protection engineering.
 

Earning accreditations involves a lot of hard work. In ESD’s Energy+Eco group, three team members have recently added to their expertise by procuring new ones.
 

For many years, ESD – an international leader in the engineering design of high-performance buildings, mission critical facilities and workplaces – has worked on projects in New York City. This month, we opened an office there to serve a growing number of clients on the East Coast.
 

Carlos Rivera, the longest-tenured employee in ESD history, is retiring after 49 years on the job on Wednesday, July 3.
 

Data centers have been increasingly important to Illinois, providing thousands of jobs and supplying crucial storage space for scores of companies. Chicago, in fact, ranks third in the country for data center capacity, according to the Chicago Tribune.