Stomping out hunger, one can at a time. – Canstruction Mission Statement Barton Associates’ State College office won the People’s Choice award for their design entry, CAN-Bert, at the 1st Annual Canstruction State College Competition, held at the Nittany Mall in State College, PA. Canstruction is a global, not-for-profit anti-hunger project founded by the Society … Read more
The U.S. Pharmacopeial Convention (USP) Chapter 800 related to handling of hazardous drugs in healthcare settings will officially take effect on December 1, 2019. Chapter 800 will supersede the current Chapter 797 requirements for compounding of hazardous drugs. Several of the requirements in Chapter 800 may prove challenging to meet for facilities with aging mechanical infrastructures. … Read more
Since 2009, the lighting industry has made remarkable improvements in LED technology for exterior lighting. Manufacturers have been able to significantly increase light output, improve the color quality and reduce electrical usage all while lowering upfront costs. These advancements have made upgrading to exterior lighting to LED sources a viable way to create a positive, … Read more
Barton Associates is pleased to announce that Zackery Zimmerman has been hired as an intern in our Pittsburgh office. Zachary is currently in his final year at Robert Morris University majoring in Mechanical Engineering and is also currently obtaining his Masters in Engineering Management with his anticipated graduation in May 2017.
When designing a building, some things are pretty straightforward: plumbing fixtures need a water supply and a drain; you need lighting to see; power for that lighting and other equipment; and you may also want some telecommunications and life safety/security systems – the things that Make Buildings Work. The fixture types that you choose are … Read more
Building Information Modeling (BIM) has rapidly changed the construction industry in recent years. One of the most powerful uses of BIM is the ability to integrate models from the architect, structural engineer, MEP engineers, and others to discover and resolve potential conflicts in constructability before the project moves into construction. This allows the design team … Read more
Barton Associates is pleased to announce that Lawrence Zdinak, Jr., PE recently joined the firm as the Director of Operations in our Pittsburgh office. With a career spanning over 21 years in engineering, management, and sales/business development, Larry brings extensive experience in higher education, K-12, public safety, correctional, sports/recreation, commercial, and healthcare to Barton, including … Read more
Hospitals are among the most challenging buildings to design, construct, and maintain. One of the most distinctive and code-heavy aspects of hospitals is that power supplied to the building must be split into separate “branches” of power. Sorting through applicable codes to determine what is allowed on each branch, however, can get tricky. In typical … Read more
When designing plumbing systems in psychiatric facilities certain considerations must be made that differ from typical plumbing design. For an inpatient facility, the first step is to refer to the most recent edition of the Facility Guidelines Institute (FGI) Guidelines for Design and Construction of Hospitals. Within these guidelines is a section dedicated to the … Read more
If you are responsible for archival storage you may find yourself faced with a mountain of questions and a shortage of answers. Historical items that we deem most valuable are often the most fragile and susceptible to deterioration over time. Items such as books, video, film, paintings, furniture, and metals are all sensitive to the … Read more
Barton Associates is proud to announce that Joshua Lange will work as an Electrical Designer in our State College office and Ryan Davie will work as a Mechanical Designer in our York office. Both employees served an internship with us this past year. Ryan is a recent graduate of Penn State University with a Bachelor of … Read more
Over the past ten years, LED products have taken the lighting world by storm. They are flooding the market, but not all of them stack up. This is true especially when it comes to their ability to mitigate electromagnetic interference. Electromagnetic Interference (EMI) is often referred to as ‘static’. It is a disturbance to an … Read more
With longer days and warmer temperatures, the chill of winter is behind us this time of year. While your HVAC system heating performance is likely not on your mind right now; this is the time to consider any changes your heating coils need in order to work next winter. Like the people who use them, … Read more
When evaluating the design criteria for an electrical distribution system in a facility of significant magnitude, vast complexity, or of critical operations, such as a hospital, a centralized uninterruptible power supply (UPS) system backed up by the emergency standby power source should be considered. There are numerous benefits associated with utilizing a central UPS system … Read more
Barton Associates is proud to announce and welcome Jennifer Harrington, PE, LC, LEED AP as the new Director of Lighting Design Jennifer brings over 13 years of experience creating aesthetically pleasing, highly functional and energy efficient architectural lighting designs for buildings. She graduated from Penn State University with a Bachelor of Architectural Engineering specializing in … Read more
Central utility plants are traditionally used in campus settings to generate and distribute steam to multiple buildings. While central steam plants are an effective way to provide heat for a campus layout, these plants are also complex and can be expensive to operate. Some owners are finding that investing in and employing advanced steam plant … Read more
The ownership of Barton Associates is pleased to announce three new shareholders in our firm. “We are very excited to have such an exceptional team of talented and committed individuals that have been and will continue to be significant contributors to the fulfillment of our firm’s vision,” said Michael Rader, PE, who serves as the … Read more
Ventilation load can be a significant portion of a building’s heating and cooling load and subsequently a building’s utility costs. Finding ways to reduce the energy use associated with ventilation load can greatly reduce these costs. Two methods of reducing these energy costs are to utilize energy recovery ventilation equipment or demand control ventilation. Energy … Read more
Energy/utility savings are becoming more prevalent in building managers’ roles in reducing their facility’s operational costs. Water consumption savings are attractive with the latest in low-flow plumbing fixtures, and the consumption savings trickle into reduced water heating capacity too. Although it may seem like a simple task in specifying low-flow fixtures or even replacing plumbing … Read more
Why Do I Need To Be Concerned With Arc Flash Hazards? An arc flash is a sudden, massive release of energy from a piece of electrical equipment caused by a fault in the system. The fault can be caused by anything from failing insulation to moisture in equipment to a worker accidentally dropping a screwdriver … Read more
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