More tools than ever are now available to help building owners operate next-gen facilities that are as productive and safe as they are cost-effective and comfortable. Cisco Systems' new product line of digital smart building switches may have raised the bar.

Owners can—and should—optimize BIM, the National Institute of Building Science says, and its new manual points out steps they can take during every project phase, including post-occupancy. 

In the last year, our original video series brought together the built environment’s most impactful firms and powerful thought leaders. As we wrap up 2016, we look back at the top 10 videos we produced.

Among 'off-highway vehicles,' construction accounts for more than 6o percent of the market, according to a recent study. Among the reasons: increasing demand from equipment rental companies. 

Remember the buddy system? Caterpillar does. And the equipment giant recently hired a Canadian expert in augmented reality to help it develop a remote, interactive app being unveiled today in Peoria IL. Two weeks ago, BW got an exclusive sneak peak.

Light bulbs that replace themselves? Sure. At least that's one of the goals for Site 1001, a startup that just raised millions in venture funds to build out a new app that aims to help owners operate and maintain increasingly complex 'smart' buildings.

Broad digital shoulders. Chicago's public-private innovation accelerator, UI LABS, has unveiled a new tech platform via its City Digital partners that may change how urban infrastructure everywhere is built and maintained more efficiently and cost-effectively.

Well, well, well. Those headed to LA for Greenbuild 2016 would do 'well' to review the 7 criteria offered by the new WELL Building Standard, which puts health and wellness at the heart of commercial design. Here, one sustainability director discusses what that means.

Knowledge is power. How well does any city really work nowadays? How do we review that performance, and where do we gather the data? Those questions and more are on the table this fall as the nation's first Array of Things sensors are deployed throughout Chicago.

The applications of drone technologies in the built environment are vast. However, until the FAA's Part 107, companies who wanted to fly drones had to, first, tackle a few challenges. So how have the new drone regulations changed the industry? 

Learning to fly. What super on any large project hasn't wanted that extra set of well-placed eyes to gain a better perspective on the work at hand? Well, three University of Illinois profs now appear to have created just such a jobsite super hero.

The UK's highly anticipated mandate for the use of building information modeling on all government projects is now in effect. Bechtel's Stephen Smith explains how all the new 'big data' sensors will make cities like London not just smarter, but better.

As if we hadn't heard, ASCE has issued yet another report chronicling how deficient U.S. infrastructure is. But this national Infrastructure Week, just back from NYC, our own Rob McManamy fears some big public spending may be sending the wrong message.

If you can measure it, you can manage it. If you’re practicing lean construction, you know you’ll get the most from it when you generate the following three key metrics. 

When a Denver-based MEP firm focused on the healthcare market needed a scanning solution two years ago, it happened upon an article about the 3D services being offered by Gainesville FL-based Paracosm. CEO Amir Rubin describes what happened next.

Safety first? Actually, according to an important new study released this month, safety appears to be gaining even more importance as AEC firms embrace new technology and practices to attract skilled workers and win new work. Download the report. 

April showers may bring May flowers, but PlanGrid is hoping that the beta release of its new native app for Microsoft Windows will yield rich feedback year-round. The move follows other recent releases from Windows app partners like Facebook and Netflix.

Thousands of miles separate Kolkata and Chicago, but in recent weeks, the two cities have shared tragedies that underscore how dangerous this industry still is, and how site safety is hardly a Third World concern.

OSHA last week drastically reduced the permissible level of silica dust particles that U.S. construction workers may be exposed to over the course of a normal work day. Now, as labor celebrates, contractor groups have taken OSHA to court to block the new rule.

Healthy buildings, healthy minds... An important new USGBC-led study looks at America's education infrastructure and finds it just as wanting as our aging roads and bridges. For a state-by-state analysis of where funding gaps rule, read on...

Burnham Nationwide's Solar Series blog looks at the State of Oregon’s new Clean Energy and Coal Transition Act, a groundbreaking law that supports the adoption of renewable energy statewide and creates a framework for community solar.

Safety matters. Period. If you were unable to attend BuiltWorlds' well-received SAFE INSIGHT program earlier this year, here are the full presentations from Capital Construction Solutions, Boeing, BE&K Building Group, Safesite, and Solo Insight.

Every job is different, so it’s hard to deliver consistent quality on time, within budget. The key is to avoid woes before they arise and to implement as many best practices as possible. That requires business intelligence, says Lantern Data's Marc Krichman.

Burnham Nationwide's new Solar Series blog looks at the legal chaos surrounding the EPA's new Clean Energy Plan, the unusual temporary stay the Supreme Court enacted prior to Justice Scalia's death and the impact on photovaltaic installation.