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Beardsley Architects + Engineers was the site of a seminar on Accessible Design featuring keynote speaker and accessibility expert Dominic Marinelli. The focus of the event was to educate Architects, Code Officials and Health Care Professionals and gain firsthand knowledge of accessibility changes from an expert who is a major contributor to the writing of […]

Ever wonder why the door in a 2 hour partition is 1-1/2 hour rated?  The reason is that the code assumes there will be a “lower fuel load” for a door than for a wall.  That means that there will not be any flammable furniture or building contents placed immediately in front of a door.  […]

April 1-7 is National Asbestos Awareness week to “raise public awareness about the prevalence of asbestos-related diseases and the dangers of asbestos exposure,” per Senate Resolution 125. But what is asbestos and what should you do if you suspect your building contains this extremely harmful material? Asbestos is a naturally occurring fibrous mineral which has been utilized […]

March Madness is in full swing and we here in Central New York are serious about basketball. Even at the High School level, March basketball can be intense. I was lucky enough to coach a local Varsity basketball team this season, and as an engineer as well as a coach, I have an interesting perspective […]

There has been a recent change to UFC 3-600-01 that could affect Fire Ratings if you are using the latest March 2013 version. Per UFC 1-200, fire ratings are per IBC Chapter 7 and UFC 3-600-01.  If there are any conflicts between the two, the UFC takes precedence. Previously, buildings such as Barracks and Hangars were […]

Change of occupancy and the life safety issues that can be created by it is an area that is not well understood by building owners and to some extent design professionals.  There is a Chapter 9 in the Existing Building Code of the State of New York dealing with this topic. The idea that there is […]