U.S. National Institute of Standards and Technology code revision recommendations in the wake of the World Trade Center terrorist attacks are being implemented in new high-rise construction, including One World Trade Center, the lead building of the new World Trade Center complex.
New requirements include:
- Buildings taller than 420 feet are now required to include an extra exit stairwell or a specially designed elevator that occupants can use for evacuations
- Stairwells in buildings more than 75 feet high must now have glow-in-the-dark markings that show the exit path even when lighting is out or dim
- Spray-applied fire-resistive materials must perform four times more effectively than current requirements in buildings 75 to 420 feet tall, and more than seven times better in buildings taller than 420 feet. BD+C
Related Stories
Resiliency | Sep 30, 2022
Designing buildings for wildfire defensibility
Wold Architects and Engineers' Senior Planner Ryan Downs, AIA, talks about how to make structures and communities more fire-resistant.
| Sep 30, 2022
Lab-grown bricks offer potential low-carbon building material
A team of students at the University of Waterloo in Canada have developed a process to grow bricks using bacteria.
| Sep 27, 2022
New Buildings Institute released the Existing Building Decarbonization Code
New Buildings Institute (NBI) has released the Existing Building Decarbonization Code.
| Sep 22, 2022
Gainesville, Fla., ordinance requires Home Energy Score during rental inspections
The city of Gainesville, Florida was recently recognized by the U.S. Dept. of Energy for an adopted ordinance that requires rental housing to receive a Home Energy Score during rental inspections.
| Sep 19, 2022
New York City construction site inspections, enforcement found ‘inadequate’
A new report by the New York State Comptroller found that New York City construction site inspections and regulation enforcement need improvement.
| Sep 16, 2022
Fairfax County, Va., considers impactful code change to reduce flood risk
Fairfax County, Va., in the Washington, D.C., metro region is considering a major code change to reduce the risk from floods.
| Sep 13, 2022
California building codes now allow high-rise mass-timber buildings
California recently enacted new building codes that allow for high-rise mass-timber buildings to be constructed in the state.
| Sep 8, 2022
U.S. construction costs expected to rise 14% year over year by close of 2022
Coldwell Banker Richard Ellis (CBRE) is forecasting a 14.1% year-on-year increase in U.S. construction costs by the close of 2022.
| Aug 29, 2022
Montana becomes first U.S. state to approve 3D printing in construction
Montana is the first U.S. state to give broad regulatory approval for 3D printing in building construction.
| Aug 25, 2022
New York City’s congestion pricing aims to reduce traffic, cut carbon
Officials recently released an environmental assessment that analyzes seven different possible pricing schemes for New York City’s congestion pricing program.