JL Architects

commercial architect

Biophilic Design, What is it, and Why is it Important?

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Biophilia, as author Edward D. Wilson in The Biophilia Hypothesis describes, “is the innately emotional affiliation of human beings to other living organisms”. As architects we are called to create this emotional affiliation in the spaces we design. Utilizing biophilic design, we pull in elements of our ecosystem that can bring us a sense of calm, enhance our creativity, and energize us all at the same time.

Through various passive strategies, we are capable of mimicking surrounding ecosystems. Using natural ventilation and natural light, increasing the amount of vegetation and natural/local materials we use, we are designing in a more sustainable manner.

Here are some questions we must ask ourselves when designing in this manner:

What are Direct Experiences of Nature?
• Light
• Air
• Water
• Plants
• Animals
• Natural Landscapes and Ecosystems
• Weather

How Can We Create Indirect Experiences of Nature?
• Images of Nature
• Natural Materials
• Natural Colors
• Simulating Natural Light and Air
• Naturalistic Shapes and Forms
• Natural Geometries
• Biomimicry

By satisfying our inherent inclination to associate with nature, biophilic design fosters emotional attachments to settings and places. These emotional attachments enhance performance and productivity, and prompt us to identify with and sustain the places we inhabit. “In the healthcare field, a wide range of studies have reported exposure to nature can reduce stress, lower blood pressure, provide pain relief, improve illness recovery, accelerate healing, enhance staff morale and performance, and lead to fewer conflicts between patients and staff,” (Stephen R. Kellert & Elizabeth F. Calabrese, authors of The Practice of Biophilic Design).

As a GBI Fellow, John Lister, the principal of JL Architects leads his team to support a healthier approach to architectural design. With organizations such as Green Globes and LEED, JL Architects aim for high standards, incorporating innovative designs that improve the surrounding ecosystems, as well as the working environment and the health and well-being of those within.

-Franklin Rodriguez, Architectural Designer

“The old people came literally to love the soil and they sat or reclined on the ground with a feeling of being close to a mothering power. It was good for the skin to touch the earth and the old people liked to remove their moccasins and walk with bare feet on the sacred earth. . . . The soil was soothing, strengthening, cleansing, and healing. . . . Wherever the Lakota went, he was with Mother Earth. No matter where he roamed by day or slept by night he was safe with her.”
– Luther Standing Bear, Land of the Spotted Eagle (Lincoln, Nebraska: University of Nebraska Press, 1978, 192-193)

Can Solar Panels Benefit your Business?

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All businesses, and of any kind can benefit from solar energy! Determining the array size and effectiveness is step one. Here is what you need to know:

1. Your solar array can be as small or as large as your structure / property will allow.

2. The amount of energy produced is attributed to many factors:

• The location of the property geographically. (North or South)
• Tree / obstacle coverage.
• Suns orientation to the building’s location.
• Surface area of roof top / ground that the array can be placed.
• Weather patterns, a more damp / cold environment will yield less energy due to rain / snow and cloud coverage.

There are 4 main types of panels. Here is how to select the best one:

1. Solar Shingles

• Pros: Low impact to design, can cover a vast amount of roof
• Cons: Limited to orientation of the roof so not all sides may get the shingles

2. Polycrystalline Solar panels

• Pros: Cost affective, very efficient energy production.
• Cons: Lower efficiency due to lower silicon purity. Need more coverage to produce same a other types.

3. Monocrystalline Solar panels

• Pros: Highest efficiency rate of all the types, space efficient.
• Cons: Higher Cost, extreme heat energy production is reduced.

4. Thin Film Solar panels

• Pros: Simple and cost effective to produce, can be made flexible, high temps and shade have less impact.
• Cons: Will degrade faster, Low space efficiency means higher cost for support structure / wiring

As you can see, each panel has its own unique benefits. Depending on your building’s construction type and your property size you can decide which suits your project’s goals and energy savings best.

At JL Architects, we have the experience and knowledge to guide your sustainable design choices, understanding how they will impact your market and construction methods, in addition to how they can reduce your carbon footprint and energy costs. JL can also offer you the opportunity to gain LEED and Green Globes Certifications through our professionally certified staff. Let us know how we can help, info@jlarchs.com.

Properly Selected Architects Provide Added Value to Building Projects

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Architects are too often seen and treated as a commodity. And they are viewed as being all the same and providing the same result regardless of which architect is hired for the project. Therefore, with that mindset, the entity that seeks to hire the architect looks for the lowest fee because they think that the architects are all the same. That type of thinking is risky and definitely not strategic thinking.

The reality is that each architect brings different strengths and weaknesses to a project. If this reality is dismissed or completely ignored the result can be the selection of the wrong and not best suited architect for the project. And the selection of an ill-suited architect can result in unhappy clients and unhappy future occupants of a building.

The value of an architect goes far beyond drawing and design skills. Critical and creative thinking along with research skills are brought to promote efficiency and safety, which will result in a building that is tailored to cost-effectiveness with high quality, safety, functionality.

An experienced architect will design the project with strategy and planning guidance in mind, anticipating planning requests and review comments, saving time and money by resolving the planning issues as part of the design development process.

It’ is hard to measure cost savings and put an economic value on investing in good architecture and design. Good design and the values the properly selected architect brings does not always translate into actual tangible dollar savings immediately. Two of the ways architects add value focus predominantly on qualitative values, ones that are harder to measure, but over the long haul, these can have significant impacts.

Here is a list of 5 ways a properly selected architect can add value and save money to a building project.

1. Improved Quality of Life, Well-Being & Health
2. Improved Productivity, Functionality & Efficiency
3. Lower Construction Costs
4. Lower Life-Cycle Costs
5. Higher Market Values, Resale Value & Better Investment

On the other hand, selecting the wrong architect can result in higher construction costs, longer project schedules, lower energy efficiency, higher life-cycle costs and lower market value.

A great way to view the architect is as a composer and conductor of an orchestra and one who plays a major role within a team. It is important to choose an architect that understands how to conduct and coordinate multiple partners and players in order to design a beautiful and functional building.

Architects are not just trained in Design, they are also study and learn a large range of subjects during their training, including: Project and Contract Management, Planning Regulations, Conservation, Sustainability, Structures, Building Regulations, Acoustics, Health and Safety, Environmental Control and Ethics. This well-rounded training prepares architects to be well suited to place at the heart of a Design Team.

The building process is complicated and expensive and too many times there is a great temptation to cut costs by selecting an architect that offers low prices, rather than the architect that is best suited for the project. Selecting an architect based on lowest price is very short-sighted and risky because money may be saved in the short term, but the risk greatly increases for higher costs of the ongoing operation and maintenance of the building, as well as other long-term issues.

-Glenn Ebersole, Director of Business Development

The Importance of Acoustic Flooring in Your Commercial Property

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Have you ever been in a hotel or lived in an apartment where you heard people stomping around above you? How about working in an office and hearing all the chairs moving and feeling doors slamming on different floors? Turns out, there is a way to lessen that noise and vibration to allow for peace and comfort on every floor. It all comes down to the flooring.

Acoustic flooring is a great way to control noise and vibration in commercial properties. Whether from foot traffic, carts or vibrating machinery, floors bear the brunt of impact within your building. The sound and vibration generated by this impact can be transmitted through the structure of your building, disturbing its occupants. Acoustic flooring is designed to insulate noise, preventing its transmission from your flooring into the rooms below. Airborne sound typically stems from people, speakers, and instruments. Like impact sound, airborne sound can transmit through your flooring into other parts of your structure. Depending on the material, acoustic flooring can absorb airborne noise and prevent its transmission.

While acoustic flooring materials are not one-size-fits-all, there are some materials that are better at preventing sound transmission than others.

• Carpet is known for mitigating impact sound, making it a perfect choice for hotels, classrooms, and offices. Higher pile carpets or carpets with a thick pad underneath, are especially good at absorbing sound and reducing transmission.

• Cork flooring is a sustainable, comfortable, and sound-absorbent flooring option perfect for many commercial applications. It is often used as an underlay to provide acoustic insulation.

• Wood Plastic Composite (WPC) is durable, waterproof, easy to maintain and provides great acoustic benefits, especially when it comes to mitigating the impact noise such as high foot traffic. Its acoustic benefits are largely drawn from its backing layer, which not only provides sound insulation, but also protects against mold and mildew.

• Commercial rubber flooring is known for its sound absorbent qualities. More than that, it is slip, mold and mildew resistant. It is a great choice for hospitals, schools, gyms, and kitchens looking for a durable acoustic flooring material.

• Vinyl tile, especially luxury vinyl tile (LVT) installed with a sound-insulating underlayment, is a great resilient flooring option used for sound treatment. It is selected by many facilities due to its design versatility, durability, and relatively low maintenance costs.

To reduce noise and vibration in residential or commercial buildings, application of soundproof subfloors, underlayment, and pads when installing flooring significantly decreases sound transmission from one space to another. The ability to provide a quiet working or living environment with proper acoustic floor insulation is a major benefit for all.

Finding Restaurant Success in Today’s Market

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Are you a restaurant owner searching for ways to keep your business afloat? In today’s hospitality market changes are necessary to stay profitable and keep customers coming back. Below are trending solutions to a market that has evolved to meet the needs of Covid and the demands of your targeted customer.

Transformational Success
• Generation Z wants customization to be the norm
• Menus that allow for add-ons and sides are gaining in popularity. Options are desired and the additional cost to the customer is tolerated.
• The customization available through online or kiosk ordering allows the customer to create exactly what they want, whether that is healthy and organic or sweet and savory.
• 3rd party delivery is still crushing it.

Help Wanted!
• This industry is struggling to fill all positions in the back of house. The key to success with limited help is to find the best and treat them the best. Offer them a competitive wage, and health benefits to long tenure employees.
• Remove the traditional cookline with a person at each station. Fold in the cookline so multiple stations are accessible to one person without having to leave their designated area of work.
• Robotics can help fill staffing shortages when needed. They can also help preserve inventory with exact portioning and track current inventory.
• Lowering overhead is key. If you find a smaller kitchen is working for you maybe you can relocate to a smaller footprint and a smaller monthly lease.

Be a Part of your Community
• Participate in community events. Exposure is key to the reoccurring customer within a specific radius of your business.
• Many communities are trying help the local business and economies by closing streets to allow business to expand their footprints. Make your business the one everyone is curious about. This can be done by design and by gesture.

In summary the good news is dining out is in again. The even better news is there are new ways to create success with less. If you would like assistance in the design process of a compressed kitchen or that ideal space you just leased, contact us here at JL Architects. Our 30+ years of expertise in restaurant design can help your dream become your success.

-Nate Houser

The Wide and Wild World of Warehousing

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Very few people, if anyone could have imagined today’s world of warehousing prior to the launch of e-commerce. Today’s warehousing industry is wide and wild.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics estimates that there were about eight million people employed in the Warehousing & Storage Industry Group in 2020.

The public storage & warehousing market size in the US is $30.9 billion in 2022. The market has experienced an annualized growth of 5.8% in 2022, after an annualized market growth of 3.3% between 2017 and 2022.

A new JLL report states that demand for warehouse space is skyrocketing, as witnessed by a 22% year-over-year growth. Increased e-commerce operations and the demand for home delivery are driving the need for expanded warehouse space across the United States.

The continuation of the e-commerce market boom is causing distribution centers to be stretched to carry more SKUs. Warehouse space is expensive and therefore construction of a new warehouse is often out of the question. Rents also have continued to rise, and vacancy rates are low.

The largest users of warehousing include:
• Manufacturing.
• Consumer goods and retail.
• Food and beverage.
• Third-party logistics (3PL) companies.
• Wholesale distributors.
• Health and hospital care.

Warehouses are crucial assets for many businesses as long-term storage for surplus goods, which customers and clients do not need immediately. Most companies usually produce goods in anticipation of demand. Adequate storage is needed for their surplus goods until their customers and clients start putting in orders.

The shortage of commercial warehouse and industrial space is also the fallout from a paradigm shift from the “Just-In-Time” delivery model to the “Just-In-Case” delivery model coupled with the pandemic-fueled growth in online shopping.

Future warehouses must be more advanced and efficient to manage the increased demand. This requires the deployment of innovative technology to transform the warehouses to improve productivity, reduce costs and make order fulfillment more efficient.

Industrial warehouse technology has seen exceptional advancements in recent years. Advanced technology has transformed labor-intensive manual tasks such as processing payments, dispatching orders, and updating tracking information into automated actions occurring within seconds.

Maintaining accurate inventory was another challenge for warehouses across all industries in the past. Automation will be seamlessly integrated into all warehouse processes. Today, very high-end futuristic warehouse technology can track inventory and provide up-to-date numbers to business owners and warehouse managers wherever they are located around the world.

Technology will be at the center of the warehouse of the future and warehouse management systems will continue to evolve and become even more efficient than can now be imagined.
Warehouse inventory technology and supply chain automation are expected to grow exponentially in the next five years. Estimates suggest that the $700 billion spent in 2020 on Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) by growing companies will increase to $1 trillion by 2023.

Artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) are changing how the supply chain industry works. They are now optimizing processes beyond what humans can deliver, and at previously unfathomable scales. This means all warehouse duties will be completed more efficiently, freeing time and resources for more specialized tasks.

Leveraging AI is so beneficial because it optimizes capacity planning, improves productivity, and boosts efficiency by helping with higher quality output at a lower cost.

Some of the main benefits of the latest technology used in warehouses, including AI technology, include:

On-Demand Warehousing
An on-demand warehousing platform enables sellers to store inventory in warehouses offering their extra space. These warehouses of the future are different from traditional warehouse storage and enable new activities in distribution centers.
Sellers can opt for on-demand warehousing to increase their stocks during a specific season where the demand is higher than usual. AI facilitates these processes and makes it possible for modern warehouse management to improve profits and turnover rates.
On-demand warehousing is beneficial to warehouse owners and renters alike. Renters are free to access warehouse space without the need to sign long-term leases, and they can boost their inventory and inventory management on an as-needed basis. Warehouse operators simultaneously can tap into a previously untouched clientele and will not have to worry about empty spaces in their facilities.

Inventory Management
AI provides accurate numbers regarding inventory levels, and all its related variables in an instant. It also can calculate demand forecasting and planning with the basis of calculating data from previous stock inflow and outflow. Real-time stock updates are available, along with storage optimization recommendations with the help of AI integration.

Improved efficiency
AI and machine learning help improve efficiency by reducing the costs and resources required in processing orders and running a functional warehouse facility. This is achieved by reducing the amount of time and effort spent to manually input, update, and check data while providing a smooth and seamless experience. In the span of minutes, AI and ML can gather data from multiple sources and offer indispensable recommendations.

Prompt and punctual processing
AI is extremely prompt and seamlessly smooth from accepting orders and processing payments to updating packing and dispatching information, which ensures faster and punctual deliveries to customers and retailers.

Smoother, cheaper operations
AI warehouse operations can function day and night, ensuring that all warehousing processes are taken care of, such as customer service and order tracking. This reduces the amount of work required of employees, thus improving productivity while lowering costs. Minimal chances of errors also are achievable because AI systems perform quality checks at every stage of the process. The quality of work is elevated, thus enhancing accuracy and precision in managing all the important details.

Closing Thought
The warehouse of the future is already here. The future of warehousing is bright, and momentous changes are happening in the industry. Technology continues to improve supply chain and logistics. Retailers and sellers can boost their competitive advantage by future-proofing warehouses with the help of modern technology and the latest innovations.

“Without change there is no innovation, creativity, or incentive for improvement. Those who initiate change will have a better opportunity to manage the change that is inevitable.” William Pollard, American physicist and Episcopal priest.

-Glenn Ebersole, Director of Business Development