Category: Uncategorized

OSHA released the Top 10 OSHA violations of 2019 at the NSC Congress & Expo in San Diego. Since 2018 violations have dropped by 15% but Fall Protection remains the #1 OSHA violation.

Builders License Training Institute has chosen a new scholarship winner! Ty G. Heiss applied for our Military Pre-Licensure Training Scholarship, and we are excited to announce this 4-year Army Veteran and Army Commendation Medal recipient as a new student in our Michigan 60-hour pre-license course.

Those selecting details of building assemblies must consider many variables, not the least of which are reasonably expected weather and climate conditions. Expected temperatures, humidity normally experienced, average amounts of rain and snow, the prevailing directions from which these come and where drifts normally occur are all pieces of predictable weather conditions. Depending on available financing, unusual occurrences like tornadoes, hurricanes, 50-year and 100-year floods can also be planned for during the design process. The direction each wall will face and existing drainage patterns on the site, which hopefully direct water away from the building, will affect design choices for exterior wall detailing. Even where vapor barriers need to be specifically located within wall and roof systems will vary based on prevailing climate conditions.

There are straightforward steps that can be taken to reduce the chance of water intrusion. Specifying and using building materials that neither accept nor hold moisture is one practical solution. For example, rigid insulation will not hold moisture, whereas cellulose insulation will absorb the same. Metal siding will repel water, but wood siding becomes saturated unless protected. Single ply membrane roofing offers no lapped joints wherein moisture can reside, but that is not true of asphalt shingle roofing. Sandwich panels containing insulation faced with steel or aluminum sheeting are another prime example of materials which by their nature, repel moisture.