Sustainability Matters - Blog

Announcements

Delos™ and Glumac form Strategic Alliance to Integrate Health and Well-Being into the Built Environment

New York, New York (February 15, 2017) – Delos™, a wellness real estate and technology firm, today announces a strategic alliance with Glumac, a full-service consulting and engineering firm, to accelerate the transformation of indoor environments into spaces that promote human health and wellness. The new relationship will leverage Glumac’s extensive network of sustainable building services […]

Concepts

Healthy Building Design and the WELL Building Standard

“Green building” became a buzzword in the A/E/C industry about 15 years ago, and since then design conversations have mainly focused on performance. Improvements to occupant wellness was simply assumed as a side benefit. After all, a healthy planet can better support the health of growing populations. Sounds like a win-win. But as we prioritized […]

Expertise

Great Projects

Balancing Energy Efficiency and Aesthetics at Wilshire Grand

The façade of a building defines both its mark in a landscape and its footprint on the environment. And that’s definitely apparent with the new Wilshire Grand in downtown Los Angeles. Designed by AC Martin, Wilshire Grand Tower is a wholly unique entry into the LA skyline, and has reshaped what a high-rise can look […]

Expertise

Integrated Design Solutions to Improve Energy Efficiency

Today’s technologies allow architects and owners to “dream big,” to design and construct more sophisticated facilities that provide unique and interesting experiences for the user. Architects are now collaborating more with their consultants and with contractors early in the design phase, and owners are providing “Big Rooms” for the entire team to meet and collaborate […]

Expertise

StraightTalk 2016: The Future of Healthcare Delivery

Since its launch in 2010, more than 20 million people have signed up for the Affordable Care Act. More than six million were previously uninsured. These numbers bear out a change in approache to the fundamentals of healthcare delivery, and the need for a shift in what’s required of a healthcare facility. At Glumac, we […]

Concepts

G Force One Takes Flight:
Glumac Uses Drone with Thermographic Camera to Evaluate Building Facades

Our in-house drone pilot recently flew over the Edith Green-Wendell Wyatt Federal Building in Portland, Oregon. Click below for footage of that flight and to see G-Force One in action!   For more information on G Force One, and to schedule a flight in your area, please email us at [email protected].

In the Community

Portland Team Rappels 16 Stories to Raise Awareness for Women in STEM

Filed under incredible acts of bravery: some of Glumac’s Portland staff rappelled down 16 stories of the 200 SW Market St building on August 20! As a part of the Rappel for Her Challenge, some of our brightest and bravest participated to fundraise for Girls Inc. PNW, and organization that helps young girls explore fields […]

Expertise

New Updates to Washington State Energy Code Bring Sustainable Building Design to the Forefront

Changes are coming to the Washington State Energy Code. Written to maintain the state’s status as one of the nation’s leaders in sustainable building design, several aggressive updates have been made to the 2015 code, including requirements for dedicated outdoor air systems, and a series of sustainable design prerequisites project teams must choose from. A […]

Great Projects

The Sammamish Community and Aquatic Center Makes a Splash

In the spring of 2016, the Community and Aquatic Center in Sammamish, Washington, opened to large crowds of active adults and playful children. Created in collaboration with the YMCA, it’s a facility that realizes  Sammamish’s goal of creating sustainable facilities for its growing population. Along with architects Barker Rinker Seacat, the City of Sammamish, contractors Porter […]

Great Projects

CSUN Students Pursue Living Building Challenge With New Sustainability Center

California State University at Northridge (CSUN) is located in Southern California’s San Fernando Valley and, like the rest of the state, is not immune to the challenges facing water conservation and access to clean, renewable sources of energy. And with leadership at the university backing a student-driven push for greater levels of on-campus sustainability, the […]

Expertise

Five Major Water Waste Culprits and the Importance of Commissioning

Even when optimized, landscape irrigation is a significant source of water use within an urban community. However, water usage and costs can escalate when systems and equipment are broken or not controlled properly. Here are a few common waste water culprits we find time and again during site-walks. Addressing them with a commissioning team can […]

Expertise

The Year of Water Conservation

Water is becoming a precious resource, particularly in the Western United States, where many of our clients live and work. In 2016, we are invigorating our focus on water conservation in the built environment, and further establishing ourselves as industry leaders in this area. With El Niño forecasting rain to drought-stricken states, we see this as a […]

Expertise

Working by Daylight:
How Circadian Lighting Increases Productivity

By now, we all know that low access to daylight can be detrimental to our health. Eye strain, exhaustion, and weakening mental health are all issues that share a root cause in poor access to light. But what if the implications of access to daylight went beyond wellness and energy savings, and we could prove it […]

Expertise

A New Energy Modeling Standard from ASHRAE Open for Public Review

ASHRAE is nearing the final stages of publishing its own energy modeling standard. Energy efficiency and sustainability are playing an increasing role in design decisions. As such, defining a minimum standard of care for energy simulation is becoming crucial. The ASHRAE standard – open for public comment until May 9, 2016 – is the result […]

In the Community

Grow it Yourself: Five Steps for Starting an Office Garden

For Earth Day 2016, Glumac Sacramento’s Green Team decided to do something that would have both an immediate and lasting impact on our office, employees, and the Earth. So we decided to plant a garden filled with some of our favorite fruits, vegetables, and herbs. To get started, staff donated what they could to keep […]

Concepts

A/E/C Women in Leadership

  When we first started in the A/E/C industry, it was exciting to be a part of the amazing and innovative work involved in creating sustainable buildings. However, from as far back as middle school, being one of a small handful of females in STEM-related courses was the norm. And today, a point of ongoing […]

Concepts

Buildings Need Clean Water Too:
Overcoming the Challenge of Process Water Conservation

Water conservation has become one of today’s most urgent challenges to sustainable design.  As the world becomes more aware and engaged in sustainability at a lifestyle and cultural level, the social and economic benefits of investing in water conservation are becoming more globally apparent and compelling. Solutions like low-flow plumbing fixtures can decrease a facility’s water […]

Expertise

Modular Data Center Design Helps Oracle Achieve Sustainability Goals

With 2014 revenues at $38 billion and more than 130,000 employees company-wide, Oracle has plans. Big plans. These included reaching their internal IT growth targets for 2014 with a forward-looking plan to support IT growth needs for the next several years. Accordingly, Oracle moved forward with the build-out of the UCF Phase 2 Data Center […]

In the Community

Nontraditional Employment for Women

Glumac’s Christine Culver, an electrical engineer and lighting designer based in our Sacramento office, spoke and served as a guest mentor at a Nontraditional Employment for Women (NEW) program at Sierra College. The event connected young girls with mentors from various industries to encourage the pursuit of nontraditional education and careers that lead to high-wage […]