Home Builder Developer - Interior Renovation and Design

A Fort Lauderdale company is growing fast nationally and overseas with an unusual approach to energy-saving lighting systems for parking lots and warehouses.

Future Energy Solutions offers customers upgrades to more energy-efficient lights with no upfront investment and long-term contracts.

Last year, to handle growing business, the firm tripled the size of its headquarters and hired more than 40 people across the United States and in London. This year, it plans to double employment to top 150 people worldwide, CEO Daniel Gold said.

That includes jobs at a new office in Australia that serves as its Asia-Pacific headquarters.

Begun in 2009 as a fixture-maker, the firm's unique concept developed from "failure, not success," Gold said.

He had watched his father-in-law pitch energy-efficient lighting to businesses and get few takers. Many executives said they loved the idea of slashing their company's electric bills but didn't want to invest money upfront and wondered what lights would be best anyway.

So Gold came up with this: His company basically lends the customer a new lighting system for 15 years at no upfront cost. It designs, installs, owns and operates the system. And the customer agrees to pay an annual fee for 15 years, with that cash coming out of their energy savings.

Savings often run 50 percent to 75 percent on electricity bills and on system maintenance, he said.

Gas stations, shopping malls, schools and hospitals are among the takers. And Gold now strives to work with operators with multiple locales, so that his company can grow together with its customers.

The Florida Automobile Dealers Association has seen such good results in parking lots for some members that it recently gave an endorsement to Gold's Future Energy Solutions, its only endorsement in the lighting industry and one of only a handful for all businesses, president Ted Smith said.

Go here to see the original:
Future Energy Solutions expects to double employment

Audio Archive: Fernando Menis Architects
In association with the Irish Concrete Society Fernando Menis Architects: Architect, Associate Professor of the Polytechnic University of Valencia and Presid...

By: Architectural Association of Ireland

Read more:
Audio Archive: Fernando Menis Architects - Video

Mistakes Architects Make: Part 2

By: CSIConstruction .

Read the original here:
Mistakes Architects Make: Part 2 - Video

Pier Solar and the great Architects #31 - Der Kfig
Nix mehr verpassen: http://goo.gl/iYz3bn Playlist: http://goo.gl/mZJVbh -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------...

By: ByteMe

Read more:
Pier Solar and the great Architects #31 - Der Kfig - Video

Randal Collier-Ford - Void
From the Experimental Industrial Dark Ambient music album The Architects by Randal Collier-Ford on Cryo Chamber: https://cryochamber.bandcamp.com/album/the-architects The Architects consists...

By: Cryo Chamber

Read the original:
Randal Collier-Ford - Void - Video

According to a Harris Poll conducted last year, architecture is one of the highest-regarded professions in the United States, with a net prestige rating of 62. (Just for the record, real estate brokers are at the bottom of the barrel with a score of 27.) But thinking well of an architect and understanding what an architect does all day are two different things.

Nobody's more aware of the difference than the American Institute of Architects. And in response to the paucity of public knowledge about the profession, the AIA decided to do something it's never done in its 157 years: advertise.

The AIA is airing a 30-second spot created by the Purpose Institute (a unit of GSD&M in Austin), starting this past weekend through April 20. It's part of a three-year marketing effort that will reach across traditional and social media, but the TV buy (against programs including "Face the Nation," "Meet the Press" and the PGA's Pebble Beach tournament) is the highly visible kickoff.

"Architects appear in TV programs and movies, and it's clear that the public admires architects, but there's little comprehension of the real value they bring to contemporary culture and society," AIA president Robert Ivy told Adweek. "The time is right to change the perception."

Adweek responsive video player used on /video.

Or, in many cases, simply createthe perception. And in architecture, that's far easier said than done. The classic image of the architect bent over his drafting table (or, these days, his AutoCAD program) represents only one part of a varied profession that involves everything from land use planning to historic restoration to construction economics. But since it wasn't practical to get all of that into a half-minute spot, the Purpose Institute chose a theme that anyone who's walked through a city can relate to: "Look Up."

"When you think of architects, you think of tall buildings," said Purpose Institute president and co-founder Judy Trabulsi."So we thought, 'Hey, everyone, look up.'"

Using a graphic interplay between new and historic structures and shots of the natural landscape, the spot casts architects not just as engineers and draftsmen, but as multi-disciplinary problem solvers who integrate the built world with the natural one. "It makes [the profession of architecture] more approachable," Trabulsi added. "It humanizes the architect."

The "Look Up" theme is also a subtle but evident tap on the shoulder for countless Americans who troop down the sidewalk with their eyes trained on their smart phones. Ivy believes the architecture professionand humans in generalwould be better served by looking at the environments they live in every so often. "Look up from your handhelds," he said. "Who made the streets around you? Who made the city? Virtually every piece of the built environment was all made by architects, and usually for the better."

Ivy denies that the campaignwhich includes print ads and will move to social media by the summerhas anything to do with the financial difficulties the profession has suffered since the country's 2008 financial meltdown, which hit the building trades especially hard. (A 2010 presentation by the AIA charted the loss of 60,000 payroll position in U.S. architecture firms, though the industry has been in a slow recovery over the past two years.)

Read more:
Tired of Toiling in Obscurity, Architects Start Advertising Their Profession on TV

The mega-shopping centre that will change the face of retail in the Lower Mainland is steadily taking shape at the Tsawwassen First Nation.

Located at the northwest corner of Highway 17 and 52nd Street, Ivanho Cambridges Tsawwassen Mills will include 1.2 million square feet of retail, while the adjacent Tsawwassen Commons, a Property Development Group project also under construction, will have 550,000-square-feet of outdoor retail.

Both are scheduled to open in May of next year.

A spokesperson for Tsawwassen Mills said in the next few months construction will include structural steel work continuing from the east side of the building to the west side, installation of exterior walls, installation of the roof, which will include energy-efficient skylights, and installation of underground utilities.

Tsawwassen Mills is expected to have 16 anchor stores, a mix of premium fashion brands and factory outlets as well as a 1,100-seat food court. The mall is modeled on the successful CrossIron Mills in Calgary and Vaughan Mills in Greater Toronto. The first Bass Pro Shops in B.C. is the only confirmed tenant thus far, but a Tsawwassen Mills spokesperson said more tenant announcements are expected in the coming months.

Tsawwassen Commons will include a blend of national, regional and independent retailers, big-box outlets, restaurants and financial services. PDG Investments is managing the leasing of its project with FORM Retail Advisors, a Vancouver-based retail broker.

Tsawwassen Commons only announced tenants thus far are Walmart and Rona, however the project is already 50 per cent pre-leased, with 78 per cent of the retail area under letter of intent or offers to lease, according to GVest Private Equity LP, which has come on board as a 50 per cent shareholder in the project.

When completed, Tsawwassen Mills and Tsawwassen Commons will combine to be the second-largest shopping centre complex in B.C., slightly smaller in leaseable retail space than Metropolis Metrotown in Burnaby.

Meanwhile, work continues on Highway 17 to widen the highway from east of 56th Street to Tsawwassen Drive. Upgrades are also being made at the 52nd Street and 56th Street intersections.

As the roadwork continues, Delta is seeing what, if anything, can be done to alleviate noise concerns by residents across the highway in Imperial Village. Delta council recently discussed a petition asking for a berm to help block out the noise.

Continued here:
Tsawwassen First Nations malls taking shape for 2016 opening

Thursday, February 12, 2015, 12:10pm

By Steve Adams

Banker & Tradesman Staff

A valid subscription is required to read the article or use the tool you've selected. Already a subscriber? Please enter your information below to log in.

Don't have a subscription yet? You're missing out. Subscribing to Banker & Tradesman gives you unlimited access to all of our award winning content and data tools. Interested in subscribing?Click here now to signupfor a new account, oractivate your web accountif you are a new print subscriber.

Our subscribers have access to the most current, comprehensive real estate and credit records available for the state of Massachusetts. We are the only body that collects all transaction data from every city and town in the state - and we deliver that vital information via our Records & Research section as fast as we can.

By becoming a subscriber, you will have access to all of our credit and real estate records dating back ten years, searchable by address, name and transaction date. This is valuable intelligence that you can use every week to make decisions and grow your business. Become a subscriber today!

Subscribe to Banker & Tradesman

Go here to read the rest:
Assembly Row Close To Signing Second Tech Tenant

For nearly a decade the dream was nothing more than a ghostly expanse of dirt lots. Empty roads, sidewalks and a lonely clock tower were the only testament to the city's grand vision of a vibrant downtown area.

It was an ambition that struggled to take flight.

Officials' hopes of an urban center bringing new energy to this city of 160,000 Broward County's second largest were derailed over the years by reluctant developers, a housing slump and a stalled economy.

But now the City Center dream has returned.

Groundbreaking is scheduled next month on a $58 million civic center, the centerpiece of the city's resurrected ambitions. There will also be entertainment venues, office and retail space, restaurants, a hotel and other amenities on 80 city-owned acres near the intersection of Pines Boulevard and Palm Avenue.

"It's taken much longer than I wanted, much longer, but I am happy to say that we are at a point right now where everything is going forward," said Mayor Frank Ortis.

The City Center plan dates to the late 1990s. But work was limited. Roads, sidewalks and a clock tower, along with a seating area and series of fountains, were built on the site in 2006.

Then the recession came and stalled further construction. Thirty five acres of undeveloped land still sit shovel ready.

The civic center will contain a 3,500 seat auditorium and conference space suited for trade shows or conventions. City Hall will also relocate to the civic center, which Stiles Construction has been hired to build. The Broward County Commission approved Tuesday a $462,000 grant for the civic center.

The groundbreaking signals a significant step for the City Center. While about 450 apartment units have already been built and housing construction continues on the site, this is the first imminent construction of a commercial space.

More:
After years of struggle, Pines City Center ready to rise

Tampa, FL (PRWEB) February 13, 2015

Faour Glass Technologies (Faour Glass), a leading fabricator of custom architectural glass and glazing systems for the high-end residential and commercial markets, was awarded a patent (Patent Number: US 8,915,032) on December 23, 2014, for its innovative hurricane window design that performs with no framing members.

The Slimpact Frameless Window System by Faour Glass is designed and approved for large missile impact-resistance, meeting the highest standards in hurricane performance. The product line includes Slimpact Max for the High Velocity Hurricane Zone. Slimpact is the only glazing system of its kind that offers a frameless impact-resistant option for architects, designers and owners.

We are thrilled to receive a patent on our Slimpact design, says Angelo Rivera, vice president and general manager of Faour Glass. We believe that our unique frameless system will offer our clients a high-performance window that meets the most severe impact requirement while providing expansive, Unobstructive views.

Faour Glass will showcase its Slimpact product line for commercial and residential applications at the 2015 American Institute of Architects (AIA) National Convention in Atlanta. Stop by and visit Faour Glass at booth number xx and see the beauty of Slimpact first hand. For more information on the Slimpact product line visit http://www.slimpactview.com or call 813.884.3297.

# # #

About Faour Glass Technologies An innovator in stunning, high-performance residential and commercial glazing since 1975, Faour Glass Technologies offers complete integrationfrom engineering to fabrication to installationproviding some of the most unique custom glass solutions in the world. The company recently introduced the first frameless window system that meets large missile requirements for the High-Velocity Hurricane Zone in Florida.

Faour Glass Technologys corporate headquarters is located in Tampa, Florida. For additional information on the companys products and services, visit http://www.faourglass.com or call 813.884.3297.

Go here to read the rest:
Faour Glass Technologies Awarded U.S. Patent for Innovative Hurricane Window Design