Hammer Time: How Students, Faculty, Local Businesses and Holyoke’s Community Development Corporation Are Teaming Up to Fight the Housing Crisis

Hammer Time: How Students, Faculty, Local Businesses and Holyoke’s Community Development Corporation Are Teaming Up to Fight the Housing Crisis

They call it “Paper House”: a modular, 500-square-foot, high-performance, net zero, low carbon house designed and built by the students in UMass DesignBuild, a joint effort between the Building and Construction Technology Program and Department of Architecture at UMass Amherst and the Five College Architectural Studies program. DesignBuild is in its second year, and it seeks to address major problems, both in the educational world, and in the broader world at large. “A builder might go through their whole education and never see the work involved in designing a house,” says Carl Fiocchi, a lecturer and professional master’s program coordinator in the Building and Construction Technology Program. “The reverse is true for architects, too, who might never get any experience actually building their designs.” The DesignBuild class seeks to bridge this gap between the builders and designers with a two-semester sequence. In the spring semester, students are given a set of design parameters—the house’s overall footprint, budget, materials, etc.—and with those in place, design the...
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Summer 2022 Sustainable Building (Online and UWW) Courses are Now Available

Summer 2022 Sustainable Building (Online and UWW) Courses are Now Available

Our Summer 2022 online and UWW professional-education courses and programs are now available and you can start registering for those. See below for a listing of our courses, which start either May 19 or July 11. New this year is also a three-week credited "City-Lab" summer pre-college program for High School students in Newton, MA (in-person). You can learn more about this exciting opportunity here. You can always find our current UWW courses and enroll at this link (search for BCT or ECO under “Subject”): Find Courses and Enroll Courses Construction Estimating (BCT 314) - Any successful building construction project relies on accurate and consistent cost estimates. This course provides students with the skills and background to perform construction estimating, bidding, and cost management. Lectures will cover quantity take-off from construction documents and estimate costs for material, labor, equipment, overhead, and profit. Students are required to prepare and submit a formal bid which details an estimate for a building construction project. Furthermore, students will also...
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BCT Summer and Fall Continuing Education Courses and Events at Mount Ida Campus in Newton Announced

BCT Summer and Fall Continuing Education Courses and Events at Mount Ida Campus in Newton Announced

BCT is again offering continuing education courses and professional-focused events at UMass Amherst's new Mount Ida Campus in Newton, MA. Extend your knowledge and expand your professional horizon with BCT’s continuing education courses. Join us for convenient after-work in-person courses or learn online at your own pace. Continuing Education Courses and Academic Programs Our upcoming courses (at Mount Ida, online, or in Amherst) are: Sustainable Building and LEED Certification (Summer 2019) Online | BCT 414 (undergraduate) Instructor: Ho-Sung Kim | 3 credits | Course details | Register Sustainable Building and LEED Certification (Summer 2019) Online | ECO 697DL (graduate) Instructor: Ho-Sung Kim | 3 credits | Course details | Register Introduction to Building Energy Modeling (Fall 2019) Mount Ida Campus | BCT 597BE Instructor: Peter Levy | 3 credits | In-Person | Course details | Register Legal Aspects of Architecture, Engineering, and the Construction Process (Fall 2019) Mount Ida Campus | BCT 597N Instructor: Steve O’Neill, Esq. | 3 credits | Hybrid (In-Person + Online) | Course details | Register Legal Aspects of Architecture, Engineering, and the Construction Process (Fall 2019) Amherst Campus | BCT 597N Instructor: Steve O’Neill, Esq. | 3 credits | Hybrid (In-Person + Online)...
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Peter Levy speaks about the role of energy modeling in building design and construction

Peter Levy speaks about the role of energy modeling in building design and construction

Peter Levy (MS, BEMP, LEED AP, CPHC), who is now co-owner of The Green Engineer Inc., a building energy consulting firm, is an alumnus of BCT's undergrad major as well as our Master's program. He spoke in his presentation about the value of building energy and daylight modeling and highlighted where those fit best into the building planning process. Interested in this topic? Peter will be teaching "Introduction to Building Energy Modeling" as a continuing education course at UMass Amherst's Mount Ida campus starting Fall 2019. More information... Synopsis An overview of the role that energy modeling plays in the design of buildings; including discussions about how energy models are used to inform design, pursue LEED (and other) certifications, procure utility incentives, and demonstrate code compliance. Additionally, how daylight modeling is used to optimize daylight opportunities, mitigate glare problems, and pursue LEED certification. https://youtu.be/54E_30owU1M Links Presentation Slides The Green Engineer ...
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Ezra Small speaks about UMass Amherst’s sustainability efforts

Ezra Small speaks about UMass Amherst’s sustainability efforts

The first lecture of our spring BCT seminar series was given by Ezra Small, who holds the title of Campus Sustainability Manager at the University of Massachusetts in Amherst. In his engaged presentation, Ezra outlined the various efforts that UMass is undertaking to improve food supply, reduce waste, promote green building and reduce energy consumption, and support climate- and carbon-goals of the university and the state. Synopsis Mr. Small’s role within Facilities & Campus Services includes implementing sustainable systems to reduce the campus environmental footprint in energy, transportation, and waste. Notable accomplishments include establishing the Sustainability, Innovation & Engagement Fund, installing the largest solar project on a college campus in New England, winning the Massachusetts Leading by Example Award for outstanding environmental and energy leadership, helping the campus win the Second Nature Climate Leadership Award, and most recently launching ValleyBike, the largest electric assist bike share program in the Americas. Links Presentation Slides Sustainable UMass Presentation Slides https://youtu.be/IiwIIfEpLdc...
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