Features

How BOCA, ICBO, and SBCCI Became ICC
Carroll Lee Pruitt, AIA, NCARB, CSI
The recent formation of the International Code Council (ICC) was not an overnight occurrence but rather the work of many people and organizations over the span of many years.

Code Search Methodology and Process
Rowland J. Mitchell, AIA/CSI
There are some basic recommendations about codes that remain timeless.

Urban Heat Island
William Waterston, AIA, RCI, CSI, CDT
The urban heat island paragraph (Section 303) of the Chicago Energy Conservation Code, revised by the building committee and approved by the city council, became effective April 1, 2003.

Keep Your Eyes on the Job
Michael F. Malinowski, AIA
Intuitively, we realize that every construction project needs someone to observe its progress, keep it on track, and ensure success.

Better Relationships for Better Code and Design Results
Louis B. Smith, Jr. AIA
As architects we like to push the limits, so it is not unusual to find that we frequently run up against code officials who deny or reject a set of documents on assorted technical grounds for code violations. The solution is not always to respond by revising the design to be more conventional. Sometimes the answer is to create a different relationship with the code officials.

Resources

Hidden Standards: What You Don?t Know Can Bite You
William B. Tracy, AIA
Architects employ published standards as tools for specifying building materials and methods. Their clients also make agreements with others that incorporate published standards. Architects must know certain of those standards because ignorance of them can come back to bite them.

Braced Wall Lines Tip From the 2003 International Residential Code
Carroll Lee Pruitt, AIA
Perhaps one of the most overlooked provisions in the building code in one- and two-family residential construction is that of braced wall lines for wood frame walls.

To Those Skeptics
Palmer Hafdahl, AIA
Once Palmer Hafdahl treated the codes and their administration through city bureaucracy as a threat to his design freedom and the lowest common denominator serving as a safety net, far below the work of architects. Now he looks to our public sanctions as a cooperative partner in creating the stable, methodical evolution required to achieve a higher environmental standard.

Code Classes
Chris Decareau, AIA
Pay for your junior staff to take code classes offered by many community colleges.

Keeping Pace with Building Codes
Laura M. Cooney, AIA
Like most things we encounter in the design industry, human nature dictates that we draw on our individual knowledge and experience when it comes to the application of codes and standards.

Building Codes and the Authority Having Jurisdiction
Lisa Stacholy, NCARB, AIA
Every time you begin design work on a new project, it's always a good idea to verify the current codes of the jurisdiction.

Energy Codes
David C. Hughes, AIA
Most practitioners in the North and Northeast are required to deal with energy issues daily. In many jurisdictions it is mandated as part of the building code--but not in all.

Your Code Book May Contain Substantial Errors
Karen Harris, AIA
Code books can have errors too, but there are ways to make sure you have the most up-to-date information.

International Building Code 2000
Bill Beutel, AIA
Some firms have found that it works well to have one staff member attend a workshop then brief the rest of the staff, especially when there have been significant changes to the code. It cuts costs, saves on time spent away from the office, and keeps presentation skills honed.