News & Insights

Matthew Torello Hired as Mechanical Designer

We are pleased to welcome Matthew Torello to our team as a full-time Mechanical Designer in our York office. He recently served an internship with us for the past two years. Matthew is a recent graduate of Penn State University with a Bachelor of Architectural Engineering with a focus on Mechanical Engineering. During his internship … Read more

Joseph Pawell Wins IES Illumination Award

We are pleased to announce that Joseph Pawell of our State College office has received a 2017, Philadelphia Section, Philaments IES Illumination Award for the lighting design at Penn State’s Morgan Academic Center at University Park, PA. The Illuminating Engineering Society’s Illumination Awards recognize projects for their ingenuity and originality, as well as their contributions … Read more

UPMC Pinnacle Selects Barton Associates to Design New Memorial Hospital

UPMC Pinnacle has selected Barton Healthcare to be provide mechanical, electrical, plumbing and fire protection engineering services for a new, five-story, 275,000 square-foot replacement hospital for Memorial Hospital in York, PA. The new 130-bed hospital is being built on the former Hawk Lake Golf Course in West Manchester Township. The project will construct a new state-of-the-art … Read more

Edward Ritter Earns LEED AP Accreditation

We are pleased to announce that Edward Ritter, PE, CxA has achieved LEED AP (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design Accredited Professional) BD+C accreditation. Administered by the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC), the LEED AP BD+C credential denotes professionals with expertise in the design and construction phases of green buildings serving the commercial, residential, education … Read more

Construction Begins on New Research Building

Groundbreaking commenced on a 30,000 square-foot new research building located at 310 Innovation Boulevard, State College, PA. With estimated completion set for the winter of 2017, the new facility will include the 10,800 square-foot Morgan Advanced Materials’ Carbon Science Center of Excellence. Morgan Advanced Materials, a U.K.-based global leader in engineered carbon and ceramic materials, … Read more

Barton Associates Participates in 2017 Canstruction Food Drive

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

Will your Pharmacy be USP 800 Ready?

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

We’re Speaking at the Spring 2017 KAPPA Conference!

Please join Ed Ritter, PE, LEED AP, CxA, Barton’s Commissioning Manager, and Scott Lokey, Facilities Director at the Pennsylvania College of Health Sciences as they present at the Spring 2017 KAPPA conference hosted by Millersville University and partnering with the DVAPPA chapter. Ed and Scott’s presentation, “Industrial Goes Back to School — Commissioning Two Industrial Buildings Converted to … Read more

Exterior Lighting Upgrades

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

Zackery Zimmerman Hired as an Intern in Pittsburgh

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.

HVAC System Selection Considerations

When designing a building, there are some things that are pretty straightforward: plumbing fixtures need water supply and 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 … Read more

Using BIM to Coordinate Designs

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

Lawrence Zdinak Hired as Director of Operations in Pittsburgh

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 an extensive list of experience in higher education, K-12, public safety, correctional, sports/ recreation, commercial, and … Read more

Energy Savings with Variable Refrigerant Flow (VRF) Systems

Building owners are becoming more and more concerned about their building’s energy usage. Reducing the amount of energy a building uses can both help reduce annual costs for the building owner and reduce the building’s environmental impact. The largest piece of the pie for a typical commercial building’s energy is used by the heating, ventilation, … Read more

Effective Utilization of Branches of Power in Hospitals

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

Plumbing Design of Psychiatric Facilities

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

The Challenges of Archival Storage Facilities

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

Joshua Lange and Ryan Davie Announced as New Hires

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

Alex Ho Hired as an Electrical Designer in York

Barton Associates, Inc. is proud to announce and welcome Alex Ho, EIT as an Electrical Designer to work in our York office. Alex is a graduate of Penn State University in Architectural Engineering with a focus in electrical/lighting. He has over 3 years of experience in electrical system design with a focus on healthcare projects. … Read more

Don’t Take Any Static: The Issues with Electromagnetic Interference of LED Lighting

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