Crumbling Campuses

The latest issue of the Chronicle of Higher Education has a sobering article on the exacerbating effects of recessionary pressures on maintenance budgets at North American Colleges and Universities. Take a look at http://goo.gl/yp3JC.

Let's say you live in a $200,000 house. Are you setting aside $4,000 to $8,000 per year to address the inevitable expenses?  My guess is not. You just struggle with tapping into savings when the roof has to be replaced.

Now, put yourself into the shoes of the local College president who has to look after  hundreds of 'houses', all with a replacement cost of 6, 7, 8 or even 9 figures.  To further extend the analogy, imagine that you have no 'savings'.  Decades of underspending are approaching catastrophic on some campuses.

It used to be that some amount of Capital Renewal with new construction, renovation and replacement was offsetting the accumulating deferrals, but recent budgets have curtailed those expenditures as well. What does the future hold? I hope it's not the educational version of a bridge falling down, but my fear is that's what it will take to force some readjustment.

Are you Virtually Working?

The latest version of this blog's big brother has just hit the streets. Looking at how we do business these days is quite fascinating. If you have plans to collaborate without being there, you're far from alone. Businesses large and small have been trending in this direction for decades.

Click on over to http://noleftturn.biz/architecture/NotesFromTheRoad.html to see my musings on the subject.  Then come back to leave cogent comments. I'd like to hear about your experiences.

The Trouble With Building Science

This month's issue of Fine Homebuilding includes a very thought provoking article that should be mandatory reading for all the Deans and Directors of Schools of Architecture in North America. Author Kevin Ireton presents a compelling case for the need to improve our collective understanding of the sciences which determine how structures work. See http://www.finehomebuilding.com/design/articles/the-trouble-with-building-science.aspx

The issue in which this article appears happens to be the 2012 awards issue, where the editors choice for the best homes of this year are lauded. They're all very impressive. They also all have highly refined technology in their bones - materials and construction techniques which test many entrenched practices.

Mr. Ireton suggests that we need to take responsibility for self-education. True enough I suppose; but wouldn't it be nice if the School curricula were ahead of the curve. Agitate. Maybe we can make it happen.