June 2009
Early June - Project construction begins on a Durisol ICF building. This is our first project experience using the wood fibre and Portland cement based block.

Durisol is a proprietary material composed of specially graded raw wood shavings and chips, which undergo some processing before being bonded together with Portland cement. Hardened Durisol is lightweight, porous and very durable. Product literature states that "it does not rot nor decay, is vermin, termite and insect proof and does not support fungus growth." Durisol is a relatively environmentally safe product that is fully recyclable.

Durisol, in our opinion, is a relatively green product, however, it is dependant on the cement industry which is a creator of combustion emissions. To read more about the raw materials used in making cement, and the combustion emissions the cement industry is working to reduce, visit the PCA website.
May 2009
Bradley Engineering consults with Stewart Structural Engineering to provide structural design services for a 14,000 square foot medical clinic in Franconia, New Hampshire. The 2 storey building was designed with ICF foundations and load bearing walls throughout. The lower level is a slab on grade and the main floor was designed with Hambro composite open-web steel floor joists with a reinforced concrete deck. This floor system allowed the use of 18” deep joists spanning the full 40 foot wide building. The roof structure is designed using a variety of pre-engineered pre-fabricated wood trusses, and the central area is framed with heavy timber trusses. Large multi-ply girder roof trusses on 6 foot centres accommodate a large gable dormer and maximize natural lighting for the physical therapy area. Construction will continue through the summer and into the fall with interior work being done this winter.
April 2009
April 9th and 10th - Sara attended the Bau-Biologie Workshop in Durham, Ontario on the beautiful grounds of The Riverstone Retreat Centre. This workshop was hosted by Joshua Thorton and Ali Lam from Natural Building and was instructed by Paula Baker-Laporte, Architect and Stephen Collette, Environmental Consultant. Bau-Biologie promotes the use of healthy building principles to improve the spaces that we live and work in with the ultimate goal of promoting good health and well being for its occupants.
The principles behind a healthy building really aren't that hard to understand, so why don't we incorporate them into today's buildings? I beleive the main reason stems from a mis-understanding of building materials and skewed priorities. Does anyone questions why buildings aren't positioned on the building site to take advantage of passive solar. This simple act is FREE. Not only is incorporating this philosophy free, it will save you money and add comfort to the occupants will little design know-how.
This is just one very simple and easy to understand example of what Bau-Biology is all about.
It is our intent at Bradley Engineering to incorporate as many of these principles, and other sustainable, low-embodied energy ideas into our designs regularly.

Arpil 25th - Sara attended the Green Expo in Peterborough. Great exhibitors and speakers! You can visit www.greenexpo.ca to see a listing of exhibitors.

March 2009
March 8th - Sara attended the Ontario Straw Bale Building Coalition AGM (www.OSBBC.ca), and Bradley Engineering became a Professional member.