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| Relevant code industry news from across the country and around the globe |
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| The Americans with Disabilities Act Celebrates Nearly a Quarter Century of Accessibility International Code Council proud of the role it has played in this landmark legislation. The International Code Council is proud of the role it has played in this landmark legislation. Today's buildings and community venues are far more accommodating of occupants needs and accessible to a greater segment of the population; all thanks to something that happened 24 years ago. The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), signed into law July 26, 1990, by President George H.W. Bush, provides civil rights protections to individuals with disabilities in the areas of employment, state and local government services, public accommodations, transportation and telecommunications. The U.S. Access Board revised the original 1990 ADA Accessibility Guidelines, and the new regulations are known as the 2010 ADA Standard for Accessible Design. The 2010 ADA Standard references the International Building Code (IBC) for accessible means of egress. Many provisions in the 2010 ADA Standard, IBC and ICC A117.1 Accessible and Usable Buildings and Facilities have been extensively coordinated to simplify compliance for builders and code officials. The ICC A117.1 is a nationally recognized standard of technical requirements for making buildings accessible. In 1987, at the request of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), ICC assumed secretariat responsibility for the ICC A117.1 and has been responsible for the standard ever since. "The International Code Council has a history of expertise in addressing issues of public health and safety," said Code Council Chief Executive Officer Dominic Sims, CBO. "We are exceedingly proud of the role ICC has played, in creating opportunities for full participation and access for people with disabilities to public and private accommodations." |
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| How to Become a Good Building Inspector Building inspectors shoulder the responsibility of checking the overall safety and structural quality of various buildings. They also make sure whether the building under observation has been constructed according to the zoning regulations and the municipal codes. If not, they mark the building in their report for further evaluation. The inspectors also play a crucial role at the time of selling a house by certifying the saleable value of the house. Moreover, site engineers often take the help of the inspectors in order to resolve critical issues like civil design alterations, structural design strategies, and storm-water related problems. So, the role and scope of a building inspector are immense! Now, if you are thinking of becoming one, you can follow the model of a good building inspector. |
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| EPA Unveils Tool for Flood Resilience The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) released a new tool to help communities prepare for, deal with, and recover from floods. The Flood Resilience Checklist offers strategies that communities can consider, such as conserving land in flood-prone areas; directing new development to safer areas; and using green infrastructure approaches, such as installing rain gardens, to manage stormwater. EPA will host a webinar on lessons learned from the Vermont project on Wednesday, August 13. |
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| Smoke Control in Very Tall Buildings: Past, Present and Future In comparison to low-rise buildings, very tall buildings have several inherent attributes that increase the variety, probability, and severity of potential fire events, including: higher occupant loads; longer evacuation times; access issues for responding fire departments; potential water pressure/availability issues; pronounced stack effect; the potential for multiple concurrent occupancies to be present; and their iconic, high-visibility nature. Specifying adequate smoke control provisions during the design of very tall buildings plays a key role in addressing several of these issues. |
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| Guide: Which Caulk and Sealant Will Fill Your Inside Straight? Caulks and sealants are used in metal construction to fill gaps and cracks. They are a barrier to prevent the passage of air, water, moisture, gas, noise, dust and smoke. Generally representing less than 1 percent of a building's cost, they are extremely important to the water/airtightness of the building. For this reason, correct selection based on properties and applications is important to the weather tightness of the building envelope. |
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| The following links take you outside the Code Council's website. We are not responsible for the content and privacy practices of outside websites. |
| INDUSTRY NEWS |
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| Let the Sun Shine In: Passive Heating and Cooling Design |
| ZoningCheck Puts Computable Municipal Codes to Good Use |
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