Structural Engineering

Often the best value that our Façade Structures team can contribute to a project is during the early stage of design. We help our clients explore conceptual design opportunities and support the design team by answering questions such as “Can we actually do this?” “What will this cost?” and “How can we optimize our systems?” Our team is able to assess the interaction between the building enclosure design, energy performance, and ventilation strategies to support the development of advanced and unique building façades. Once we have defined these elements of the project, we are able to better focus our services during the subsequent stages of work.

Our team reviews the basis of the project design shown in the construction documents to confirm its feasibility from a structural perspective, and together with the building enclosure consultant, confirm that manufacturers can meet the project requirements. The continuity of our capabilities in both façade structures and building enclosure science empowers our clients to achieve high-quality and creative building enclosures.

We work directly with fabricators to undertake the structural design of the fenestration system. Through this quality assurance process, we help to ensure that all project-specific requirements are met. With our added ability to prepare shop drawings, we further support fabricators by providing a fully comprehensive service model.

Our field review work supports the quality assurance process through regular and strategic observation to help ensure that the construction meets the design intent. Our field review personnel are qualified and experienced, having a track record of successful projects and an interest in working cooperatively and collaboratively in a team environment. We are solution-oriented with an interest in progress toward practical and cost-effective methods that meet performance expectations.

Our specialized team is often called upon to investigate failures of fenestration systems, including those of the insulating glass, support structure, and anchorage to the building. We provide substantial details on why the failure occurred, recommendations on how to remediate the issue, and techniques for future prevention.