There’s money to be made in reconstruction. Based on our annual Giants 300 survey, we estimate that the top 300 AEC firms generate about 20-30% of annual revenues from reconstruction, and for design firms that specialize in historic preservation and adaptive reuse, that percentage can quickly go north of 50% of total revenues. If your firm is doing less than the industry average, you may be missing a great opportunity.
A reconstructed building is the ultimate green building. It is generally the case that “saving” an existing building is the most sustainable thing you can do, for obvious reasons. Whether it’s a renovation that simply extends an existing use, or one that takes an existing building and transforms it to another use, much of the embodied energy in that building is staying put.
Furthermore, reconstruction offers the opportunity to take an energy hog and make it much more efficient. Just doing the basics—sealing the envelope, insulating, upgrading lighting and lighting controls, etc.—should yield a 20% improvement in energy efficiency. Stretch a little and 30% energy savings should not be unreasonable. That’s good for the building, the occupants, and the owner—and it’s the right thing to do.
Reconstruction can turn ordinary buildings into great buildings. Look at how the Building Team for the Mid-Ohio Foodbank took an old mattress factory and turned it into a LEED Gold facility that helps provide 55,000 meals a day to the hungry and involves 10,000 volunteers a year. Owen Hall at Michigan State University and the new Cell and Genome Sciences Building at UConn are additional examples of how the ordinary can be transformed into the extraordinary.
Reconstruction challenges your imagination. The Building Team for Duke University could have taken the easy road and junked Duke’s old coal-burning power plant. Instead, they came up with a creative way to use new technology to convert the plant to 70% natural gas power generation, while enhancing the early 20th-century structure. Look how the Building Team converted Memorial Field House—essentially a big barn—into modern classroom and student space at the University of Toledo. These kinds of jobs take real imagination.
Reconstruction can bring communities together. People like to preserve and enhance the things that are important to them. The people of Cuyahoga County, Ohio, cared about the monument to their Civil War veterans, and they went out and raised $2 million to restore it to perfection. Ditto for the people of Northeast Central Durham, N.C., who fought to turn a broken-down school building into a thriving multi-purpose community center. Tap into that wellspring of community involvement. It will yield projects whose rewards go far beyond the bottom-line considerations.
Reconstruction work is fun. Building a fancy high-rise on a greenfield site in some exotic part of the world must surely have its pleasures, but digging into the bowels of an older building also has its mysteries—and surprises. Who knows what lurks behind that gypsum board? Matching your wits against the original designers and contractors is the ultimate chess match.
Related Stories
Cultural Facilities | Feb 6, 2015
Architects look to ‘activate’ vacant block in San Diego with shipping container-based park
A team of alumni from the NewSchool of Architecture and Design in San Diego has taken over a 28,500-sf empty city block in that metro to create what they hope will be a revenue-generating urban park.
Multifamily Housing | Feb 6, 2015
Fannie Mae to offer lower interest rates to LEED-certified multifamily properties
For certified properties, Fannie Mae is now granting a 10 basis point reduction in the interest rate of a multifamily refinance, acquisition, or supplemental mortgage loan.
Airports | Feb 6, 2015
Zaha Hadid-designed terminal in Beijing will be world’s largest
The terminal will accommodate 45 million passengers per year, and will be a hub for both air and rail travel.
Codes and Standards | Feb 6, 2015
Obama executive order requires federal construction projects to consider flood damage caused by climate change
To meet the new standard, builders must build two feet above the currently projected elevation for 100-year floods for most projects.
HVAC | Feb 6, 2015
ASHRAE, REHVA publish guide to chilled beam systems
The guide provides tools and advice for designing, commissioning, and operating chilled-beam systems.
Cultural Facilities | Feb 6, 2015
Under the sea: Manmade island functions as artificial reef
The proposed island would allow visitors to view the enormous faux-reef and its accompanying marine life from the water’s surface to its depths, functioning as an educational center and marine life reserve.
Contractors | Feb 6, 2015
Census Bureau: Capital spending by U.S. businesses increased 4.5%
Of the 19 industry sectors covered in the report, only one had a statistically significant year-to-year decrease in capital spending: the utilities sector.
Warehouses | Feb 5, 2015
Self storage facility designed to blend in with Miami Beach's party scene
The plans by architect Gutierrez & Lozano are of a sleek, boutique-looking, 22,500-sf facility at the gateway to the city.
Sponsored | Designers | Feb 5, 2015
3D printing has people in the building and construction industry talking
How can 3D printing affect the building design and construction industry?
Cultural Facilities | Feb 5, 2015
5 developments selected as 'best in urban placemaking'
Falls Park on the Reedy in Greenville, S.C., and the Grand Rapids (Mich.) Downtown Market are among the finalists for the 2015 Rudy Bruner Award for Urban Excellence.