Archives: News and Awards

Hospitals and healthcare providers with large facilities attract a lot of attention for stunning architecture and building design, leading-edge sustainable building codes, and often tout improved patient outcomes and lower maintenance costs as part of their building projects. But smaller healthcare facilities, like ambulatory surgical centers and specialists with specialized equipment in neuroscience, cardiovascular health, … Read more

Your office, gym, school, or favorite museum might have a “WELL Certified” sticker or logo on the door. That means your building meets a set of peer-reviewed standards backed by the latest science and our understanding of health and wellness inside buildings.  Anyone with accreditation from an external group knows accreditation standards evolve, and WELL … Read more

Sustainable buildings may be a better marketing strategy than new recreational facilities Colleges and universities across Indiana and the U.S. recruiting new students are facing new challenges. Campus leaders must contend with heightened fears of disease and illness in close quarters, dorms, classrooms, and a declining enrollment base. Nationally, college enrollment has been sliding in … Read more

Air filtration in a building serves two primary purposes: Historically air filtration worked to keep ducts and equipment operating smoothly, sort of like oil in your car designed to keep engine parts running smoothly.  But COVID-19 and the associated infectious airborne pathogens have flipped these two functions in importance for most building owners. Viruses and … Read more

Should we use roof-mounted or ground-mounted panels? Whether you’re looking into solar panels for your home’s roof or a commercial or industrial facility, there are five main factors to decide if your building or land is a good candidate for solar power: sunlight exposure, roof orientation, roof condition, available space, and local regulations. For homeowners, … Read more

A recent survey conducted by the Chronicle of Higher Education shows the top three concerns among students and university leaders are mental health, diversity, and campus safety (PDF), in that order. “The survey asked all respondents to identify two major concerns outside the classroom. Overwhelmingly, 66 percent identified student mental health as the top issue. … Read more

Every room has some element of “room noise.” Some of it comes from an HVAC hum, chatter from a hallway or another room, background music, or loud noise pollution like cars and train horns. All of this ambient noise impacts our concentration and reduces cognitive performance and other mental tasks. Sometimes the effect is more … Read more

Tackle unique challenges across all your building systems before it’s too late in your construction or renovation project  Before we go further, let’s recognize we are a mechanical, electrical, and plumbing engineering firm. No doubt we’re going to suggest you hire us because of our decades of experience and talented engineering staff. But there are … Read more

Fort Wayne’s 7-story Pearl features a sustainable, energy-sipping temperate parking garage, event hall, and more Planning for The Pearl, a new luxury apartment and mixed-use retail building along Main Street in Fort Wayne, started a few years ago. In initial planning meetings between Surack Enterprises, which owns and operates the building, and R.E. Dimond and … Read more

9 questions to ask your engineering consultant We get asked a handful of typical questions anytime we start to work on a project. Over the last 25 years, we’ve been asked a handful of deeper questions that have proven helpful for both our clients and our engineers. These deeper questions have resulted in a smoother … Read more