Source: Precast/Prestressed Concrete Institute, Chicago

PCI Sustainability Council Chair Jim Lewis, LEED AP will present “Design Build Team Passes the Test at Catholic University” during the 2009 Design-Build Conference and Expo, November 5-7 at the Gaylord National Convention Center in Washington, D.C. He and two other project principals will assess the insulated architectural precast panel-clad Opus Hall, a LEED certification-geared resident life facility on the Washington, D.C., campus.

Lewis, director of Architectural Systems for Jacksonville, Fla.-based Gate Precast Co., will be joined by lead architect Beth Buffington, AIA, of Little Diversified Architectural Consulting in Arlington, Va., and Catholic University Vice President of Facilities Operations Carl Petchik. They will discuss the Opus Hall design-build process and how it contributed to meeting the integrated, sustainable design goals to comply with the U.S. Green Building Council’s LEED new-construction guidelines.

 “The design-build community has a keen interest in accelerated construction techniques, making precast a logical material choice. As LEED projects continue to grow, it’s also important to understand how the design-build process and LEED project-management practices are compatible,” Lewis affirms.