EAST LONGMEADOW, Mass. – Excel Dryer, Inc., today announced that three of their hand dryers, the original, patented, high-speed, energy-efficient XLERATOR® Hand Dryer, the XLERATOReco® Hand Dryer and the ThinAir® Hand Dryer, were evaluated, and their environmental claims, substantiated with the publication of the hand dryer industry’s first Environmental Product Declarations (EPDs). An Environmental Product Declaration is a standardized way of quantifying the environmental impact of a product by studying the raw materials and energy consumption during its production, use and disposal. For buyers and specifiers, the EPDs are a disclosure tool that helps purchasers better understand a product’s sustainable qualities and environmental repercussions so they can make more informed product selections.

To create an EPD, there must first exist Product Category Rules (PCR) which create testing guidelines and reporting methods through industry consensus, thereby permitting buyers and specifiers to compare products, apples-to-apples. The corresponding EPDs provide insight on the environmental impact of products from cradle-to-grave.

Last year, UL Environment (a business division of Underwriters’ Laboratories), published the hand dryer PCR, a first for the industry and the first global standard for any industry. Excel Dryer was asked to chair the committee to create the PCR, working in collaboration with UL and other leading hand dryer manufacturers, to achieve the necessary industry consensus.

For a product to gain EPD certification, it must be studied cradle-to-grave by way of a Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) conducted by a credible third-party following ISO 14040 standards. Excel Dryer again called upon world-renowned Quantis International, with whom they previously worked, for their latest LCA.

Excel Dryer continually leads the industry with firsts including inventing the original patented, XLERATOR Hand Dryer that created the high-speed, energy-efficient hand dryer category and set a new standard for performance, reliability and customer satisfaction. Excel Dryer was the first hand dryer manufacturer to become a member of the United States Green Building Council (USGBC) and to commission an independent, third-party Life Cycle Assessment of high-speed, energy-efficient hand dryers versus conventional hand dryers and paper towels. Excel hand dryers are the first and only to achieve Made In USA® certification. The publication of EPDs continues Excel Dryer’s lists of celebrated accomplishments and ushers the hand dryer industry into a new age of transparency.

BOSSIER CITY, La., March 26, 2018 - Multiple problems, including an aging structure and a failing asphalt roof, led Bibb County (Ga.) Schools to recover the roof of historic Alexander II Magnet School with the 138T symmetrical standing seam metal roof from McElroy Metal.

The original building that housed the Alexander II Magnet School in Macon, Ga., was completed in 1902. Several significant additions through the years have brought the entire facility up to 41,650 square feet. In June 2000, Alexander II was named to the list of 11 Most Endangered Historic places by the National Trust for Historic Preservation. “During an assessment, we discovered that the asphalt shingles were installed with no ventilation and heavy insulation,” says Jody Usry of Edifice Consulting in Byron, Ga., “It was designed for metal so with no ventilation, the shingles were burning up. And there was so much expansion and contraction that the nails were backing out in spots. It was decided that the best thing to do was retrofit with metal.”

The 138T standing seam system is a quick and efficient method for installing metal roofing directly over asphalt shingles, without an underlayment and without a tear-off. The system is designed around the patented clip paired with the company’s 138T symmetrical standing seam panel. Measuring 1-3/8 inches tall, the 138T is a two-piece mechanically seamed metal roofing system. Combine this 3/4-inch airspace with vented eave and ridge material and you get a total uninterrupted air flow between the two roofs. Known as “above sheathing ventilation,” or ASV, this idea uses airspace to help reduce heat transfer. Testing at Oak Ridge National Laboratories (Tennessee) demonstrated how a free-flowing airspace between a metal roof and shingles can reduce heat transfer by 30 to 50 percent. Reducing heat transfer greatly reduces cooling costs, a savings for the building owner. During the winter months in colder climates, insulating airspace will also reduce the chance of ice buildup caused by heat transfer up through the roof. “There are a lot of trees around the school and the roof is subject to falling branches or trees,” Usry says. “Installing a symmetrical panel allows for the removal and replacement of individual panels that sustain any kind of damage, including falling branches. Obviously, it’s advantageous to the school to not have to tear off an entire roof for a couple of damaged panels.”

Usry says there were flat roofing areas with an internal gutter that were recovered with new decking and sloped to allow water to flow to an external gutter. All internal gutters were replaced. “Internal gutters are a detail that offers a high probability of being a problem,” Usry says.

Modified bitumen was applied over existing modified bitumen at low slope areas after thermal scans were done to identify wet insulation. Pittman Waller Roofing of Macon, Ga., installed the modified bitumen as well as 27,500 square feet of the 138T 24-gauge panels in PVDF Ash Gray. The panels were formed at the McElroy Metal manufacturing facility in Peachtree City, Ga. Because some spots of the decking were sagging, the roofers had to “shim” the roofing with 18-gauge framing. “There were two areas in the roofing that were sagging about seven inches,” says John Pearson, president at Pittman Waller. “We shimmed it and you can’t even tell now.”

Pearson says this project was the first for his crews with the 138T symmetrical metal roofing panels, but the installation went very well. “With the caps, there’s more pieces, but once they got rolling, it was fine,” he says. “It was pretty simple to work with.” Managing logistics were instrumental to the success of the project. The project started in January 2017 and completed the following July, so school was in session during most of the project. The safety of students, teachers and parents was a priority. And with the eaves 25-30 feet high, Pittman Waller crews required the use of two scissor lifts, a manlift and a couple of boom trucks. “We made sure everything was safe,” Pearson says. “We had barricades along the eaves and everyone was wearing personal fall protection. The students and teachers were really good about avoiding areas where we were working, so it went smoothly.”

(Brandon, FL – March 26, 2018) Proflex, an industry pioneer in sound control, vapor barriers and crack suppression, has partnered with BIMsmith®, a leading Building Information Modeling (BIM) platform, to provide building professionals with innovative tools for on-the-fly product configurations in the cloud.

The partnership makes Proflex the first manufacturer of its kind to have products on the BIMsmith Forge platform, a powerful web-based tool where professionals can assemble complete flooring systems layer by layer in the cloud. Architects and designers can combine Proflex products with other manufacturer-specific products in their configurations, then export the configurations to use in their design projects. Each configuration provides users with all the relevant specifications, cut sheets, and other data for each layer, saving considerable time and effort.

“We are very excited to have our products featured and available on BIMsmith,” stated Tim Abbott, Chief Operating Officer at Proflex. “BIMsmith makes it easier for architects and designers to configure complete assemblies using our products and that is a very significant advantage for Proflex.”

“The addition of Proflex products to BIMsmith adds a new depth of customization for building professionals looking to design flooring assemblies,” said Benjamin Glunz, CEO of BIMsmith and former architect. “We are thrilled to offer the Proflex line of sound and vapor barriers on the BIMsmith platform.”

EPDs and Why They Matter

EPD certification is important for any manufacturer because they demonstrate a company’s commitment to sustainability and product performance. Published by UL Environment, a business division of Underwriters’ Laboratories, EPDs for our three signature products signify a groundbreaking development for Excel Dryer as a manufacturer as well as for our industry as a whole. This achievement has effectively ushered in a new era of transparency among hand dryer manufacturers.

On the road to EPDs, Excel Dryer played a key role in leading the hand dryer industry toward a mandatory prerequisite: the creation of Product Category Rules (PCR). These standardize evaluation guidelines and reporting, allowing the specifying community and buyers to conduct a more “apples-to-apples” product comparison and ultimately make a more informed decision.

Asked to chair the committee to develop the PCR, Excel Dryer worked in collaboration with UL and other leading hand dryer manufacturers, to achieve the necessary industry consensus. Last year, UL Environment published the hand dryer PCR, a first for the industry and the first global standard for any industry.

To gain EPD certification, a manufacturer’s products must be studied cradle-to-grave by way of a Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) conducted by a credible third-party, following ISO 14040 standards. Excel Dryer again called upon world-renowned Quantis International, with whom we’d previously worked, for our latest LCA.

“Excel Dryer has long-expressed a commitment to environmental sustainability and our credible, third-party testing results quantify and substantiate their claims,” said Jon Dettling, U.S. director at Quantis International. “We, at Quantis, are honored to have been chosen to play a part in the historic creation of the first hand dryer Environmental Product Declarations.”

Sustaining Industry Leadership

With the publication of EPDs for our products, Excel Dryer has established new standards of transparency and sustainability. From a broader perspective, the EPDs ensure that we will continue to set the tone among leading hand dryer manufacturers.

Photos to 3D Model, web view VR and Bluebeam integration are among updates in Service Pack 3 of Vectorworks 2018

Columbia, MD (March 22, 2018)—Global design and BIM software developer Vectorworks, Inc. is helping designers harness the power of the cloud with the release of its new reality capture feature, Photos to 3D Model, as well as its virtual reality feature, web view VR. The two technologies, along with the Bluebeam integration announced earlier this week, are available with the latest update to Vectorworks Cloud Services in addition to the third Service Pack (SP3) for the Vectorworks 2018 product line.

Create 3D Models in a Snap from your Mobile Device The Photos to 3D Model feature is a new reality capture innovation that allows designers to create 3D models without having to measure or re-create existing 3D geometry or pay for expensive laser scanners to re-create existing conditions before modeling. Simply snap some photos on a mobile device and use the Vectorworks Nomad app to send that data directly to Vectorworks Cloud Services to process the 3D model.

Communicate Designs in Groundbreaking Ways The latest update to web view Virtual Reality (VR) provides the ability to toggle shadows off and on and to control shadow direction in the web view. The ability to interactively section or isolate parts of the model allows designers more flexibility and precision to communicate their designs in groundbreaking ways. Plus, for those with access to higher-end VR gear, the web view feature now also offers support for HTC Vive, Oculus Rift and Google Daydream, upping the ability to use web views on five different types of headgear.

“At Vectorworks, we look forward to continued innovations and improvements in solutions that will incorporate reality into the design process,” said Steve Johnson, vice president of product development at Vectorworks, Inc. “We think designers will love our new Photos to 3D Model and web view VR capabilities, as they can now easily capture and share data using cutting-edge technology that’s already in their pockets.”

Other improvements in SP3 include the Cloud Services and Bluebeam Studio Integration, truss section data for Global Truss and Prolyte, a modified user interface (UI) design for Vectorworks Nomad and other fixes.

This Service Pack is available as a downloadable updater for all U.S. English-based versions of Vectorworks 2018. To install, click "Read More" or select “Check for Updates” from the Vectorworks menu (Mac) or Help menu (Windows). To find out more about this release, read the tech bulletin. Contact tech@vectorworks.net with any technical questions.

Vectorworks is the first BIM software to integrate with Bluebeam Studio for real-time markups and review

Columbia, MD (March 19, 2018)—Global design and BIM software developer Vectorworks, Inc. and Bluebeam, Inc., a leading developer of innovative technology solutions for the architectural, engineering and construction (AEC) industries, announced today a new integration between Vectorworks Cloud Services and Bluebeam Studio that supports a modern, online review and approval process for digital construction drawings and 3D models. Vectorworks is the first BIM software company to connect its cloud services via the Bluebeam Studio API, allowing project team members to host real-time, online markups and review sessions.

The new integration creates a streamlined, cloud-based process for designers, architects, contractors and owners to collaborate on PDF drawings and models. Vectorworks users can publish drawing sets as data-rich 2D PDFs or models as 3D PDFs to Vectorworks Cloud Services, where they can launch a Bluebeam Studio Session and then invite participants to compare, mark up and collaborate in real time using the tools in Bluebeam Revu. Marked-up PDFs can then be saved back to Vectorworks Cloud Services for easy storage and file management.

“In a traditional drawing review process, PDF files are typically exchanged by email, then printed and manually marked up,” said Daniel Monaghan, VP of marketing at Vectorworks. “By moving to a cloud-based review workflow, collaboration among project team members becomes easier and helps avoid mistakes, and ultimately allows projects to run more smoothly by reducing review time and costs. By making it easy to share and review files digitally, we’re helping to connect design and construction workflows in ways no other BIM program can offer.”

Vectorworks has optimized its PDF publishing to better support Bluebeam’s workflow. For example, Vectorworks can batch publish PDF drawing sets, map layers or classes to PDF layers and maintain Vectorworks hyperlinks in exported PDFs. Most recently, Vectorworks Architect’s space object was updated so room data defined in Vectorworks can be mapped to native spaces in Bluebeam Revu, saving time in the review and estimating process.

“Bluebeam is excited to have Vectorworks bring this integration between Vectorworks Cloud Services and Bluebeam Studio to the industry," said Bluebeam Chief Technical Officer Don Jacob. "Platform integrations like the one announced today, based on open standards such as PDF, create powerful workflows for project teams and are a big step forward in creating seamless exchanges between design and construction solutions.”

To learn more about the integration of Bluebeam Studio and Vectorworks Cloud Services, click "Read More" below. This new integration is available at no charge to all Vectorworks Service Select maintenance program members. A Bluebeam Studio Prime subscription is required to enable the integration with Bluebeam Studio.

Hampshire, IL – Waterproof reinforced concrete structures and protect against chemical attack with CEM-KOTE FLEX ST, W. R. MEADOWS’ flexible cementitious waterproofing option. CEM-KOTE FLEX ST is a two-component, breathable, fiber-reinforced cementitious coating consisting of a dry and liquid component. Designed for positive and negative waterproofing, CEM-KOTE FLEX ST is effective in both new construction and restoration projects. It can easily be applied by brush or sprayed to suit the application.

Ideal for waterproofing potable water or wastewater treatment facilities, CEM-KOTE FLEX ST offers excellent adhesion and crack-bridging and is an approved ANS/NSF 61 barrier material. This permeable membrane allows substrate moisture to escape. CEM-KOTE FLEX ST is also recommended for use on tunnels.

“Features such as hydrostatic head resistance, flexibility, crack-bridging capabilities, and vapor permeability allow CEM-KOTE FLEX ST to provide waterproofing protection for both positive- and negative-side installations. It has a proven track record for over 30 years around the world,” said Russ Snow, building science specialist at W. R. MEADOWS.

Further information about CEM-KOTE FLEX ST can be found at www.wrmeadows.com/cem-kote-flex-st-flexible-cementitious-waterproofing/. Our CEM-KOTE FLEX ST product flyer provides a convenient reference of its important features and benefits that can be requested at wrmeadows.com/literature-request-form.

LEWISVILLE, Texas, March 15, 2018– The Kansas City MLB Urban Youth Academy is expected to serve the community for generations. The City of Kansas City, Major League Baseball and the Kansas City Royals partnered to turn an old park into an indoor training facility, four state-of-the-art outdoor diamonds and more. Insulated metal panels from Metl-Span encase the indoor facility with a durable wall panel in an attractive array of colors.

“The insulated metal panels worked best for helping maintain a consistent temperature and reducing heating and cooling costs,” says Kedra Burcham, project engineer for JE Dunn Construction of Kansas City. “The Royals like the look of the metal panels and the city requested to add some stone accents for a consistent look with the surrounding neighborhood. The great thing about the insulated metal panels is they are a one-step process. Once the panels are in place, that’s the wall, insulation and all.”

Colorado Springs, Colo., March 13, 2018 – S-5! has announced a partnership with North American distributor Unistrut, where Unistrut Ohio will offer the complete line of S-5! zero-penetration clamps and snow retention systems. S-5! manufactures clamps for attaching ancillary items to standing seam metal roofs.

“We are happy to be the newest member of the S-5! distribution family,” says Toby Rosenthal, manager of business development at Unistrut Ohio. “S-5! provides best-in-class distributor support and that’s gone a long way toward helping us with a successful start with their products.”

NKBA Design Competition

Get ready for this year's professional design competition! The NKBA is looking for the best in the nation, and that might just be you.

This year, the competition opens on April 2, 2018,and includes two new categories: concept kitchen and concept bath. Additionally, some of the existing categories have changed.

This year, the Large Kitchen and Large Bath categories are: Large Luxury Kitchen, Large Luxury Bath, Large Budget-Friendly Kitchen and Large Budget-Friendly Bath. It's a great opportunity to gain industry recognition as well as cash in on prizes totaling $62,000!

To make things even easier, NKBA is also introducing new, digital submissions and payments. That's right—no more snail mail! Designers will be able to simply submit and pay for entries online.

The competition is open between April 2nd and July 2nd, but don't wait until the last minute to send in your competition packet. Entries submitted between April 2nd and May 31st are eligible for early bird pricing.

This means the first entry is free, and all other submissions are $75. After May 31st, standard pricing of $100 per entry goes into effect. There are absolutely no extensions past the July 2nd deadline.

For more information, please click on the Read More button below.

Excel Dryer’s original, patented, high-speed, energy-efficient XLERATOR® Hand Dryer can be found in iconic facilities from coast to coast. Case in point: Gillette Stadium, home of the five-time Super Bowl Champion New England Patriots. The 70,000-capacity stadium plays host to top entertainment and sporting events, and now counts among its offerings the leading brand in hand-drying solutions.

As state-of-the-art as Gillette Stadium’s facilities were, its restrooms were one area that offered room for improvement. Originally equipped with paper towel dispensers, the stadium used an average of 6,264,000 paper towels per year at a cost of more than $50,000 for paper, maintenance and waste removal. But that all changed in September 2009, when Excel Dryer and The Kraft Group announced a partnership to install more than 125 XLERATOR Hand Dryers.

The XLERATOR dries hands fast while using 80% less energy than conventional hand dryers. It is the only Made in USA Certified® hand dryer on the market and helps facilities qualify for several LEED® v4 Credits, Green Globes and other certifications to achieve corporate and government sustainability goals.

The installation was a natural fit for Gillette Stadium, given XLERATOR’s proven environmental benefits and the stadium’s reputation as a leader in conservation. The stadium saved 95% versus paper towels while eliminating their maintenance and waste, reduced the facility’s carbon footprint by 70% and improved its restroom hygiene.

To learn more about how Excel Dryer's AEC Daily-Endorsed high-efficiency hand dryers can save help save time, money and the environment, visit AEC Daily’s continuing education course featuring Excel Dryer hand dryers, or go to exceldryer.com.