Often what you can’t see in building can be more telling than what you can see. That’s the idea behind infrared thermography, a diagnostic tool used to monitor building conditions that can’t be identified in a visual-only survey. In RAND’s…
The roof is one of the most critical elements of a building in preventing leaks. Many property owners and managers will at some point find it necessary to replace the roof of their building to keep it watertight. In RAND’s…
Last Thursday night RAND employees, along with their family and friends, gathered at RAND’s office in Chelsea to celebrate becoming proud owners of the company—the first time since RAND’s founding in 1987 that shares of the company have been offered…
Split air conditioning systems get their name from the fact that their two main units are separated from one another, with an air-cooled condenser unit typically installed outside the building, and an air handling unit installed within the space being…
To gain a better understanding of your building’s needs and how to best allocate short- and long-term expenditures, a physical condition survey is an invaluable tool. A survey report provides property owners with a comprehensive description of their building systems…
In the midst of a rainy week, the skies cleared on Wednesday, June 3, as 26 RAND employees ran, jogged, walked, and strolled through the heart of Central Park in the 39th annual J.P. Morgan Corporate Challenge. It was RAND’s…
Even with the recent drop in oil prices, many co-op and condo boards are considering converting their building’s heating plant from an oil-burning system to one that burns gas, or to a dual-fuel system, which burns gas most of the…
If there’s a construction site next to your building, you know firsthand the potential problems: Not only are there noise and dust, but you may also be facing facade cracks, shifted walls, deflected floors, foundation settling, and structural instability. In…
Last Thursday night my RAND colleagues and I joined more than 500 people to celebrate the beauty and grandeur of historic restoration at the 25th annual Lucy G. Moses Preservation Awards. We’re proud to say that a RAND project was…
We’re happy to announce that Jeffrey Stein, former Senior Director of Advertising Sales and Marketing for Habitat magazine, has joined RAND as Business Development Manager. Jeff has more than 20 years of experience in the New York and New Jersey…
Those of us in the engineering and architecture industry in New York City are fully familiar with the Facade Inspection and Safety Program (FISP), formerly known as Local Law 11/98 and in its original form, Local Law 10 But while…
Retaining walls are subject to a DOB inspection law similar to facades.
One of the many things I love about RAND is how it offers ongoing education for its employees, from lunch-and-learn seminars to topical movie viewings to company-sponsored field trips. A group of my RAND colleagues and I recently took advantage…
Based on the popularity of our UP Band competition last spring, RAND recently held another Step It UP competition—this time as a RAND Gives Back fundraiser for our favorite charities. Each participant had a daily step goal (10,000 steps minimum;…
Parking garages are a reliable source of revenue for a building, as well as a useful amenity to residents who park their cars there. But parking garages are also exposed to toxic fumes, snow, ice, rain, and cold temperatures, all…
Five times we’re charmed. As recognition of a firm that supports, inspires, and empowers its employees, RAND Engineering & Architecture, DPC was named one of the 2014 Best Places to Work in New York City by Crain’s New York Business…
Short-term fixes rarely bring long-term relief, especially when it comes to building maintenance. Case in point: the Kensington House, a 195-unit co-op at 200 West 20th Street in Manhattan, which had been doing patchwork repairs for years in a futile…
Rarely does a repair project go exactly as planned, which is why it’s critical to have a contingency plan. And sometimes the contingency plan itself needs a contingency plan. Such was the case on a structural rehabilitation project that RAND…
Water is a formidable foe, and keeping it from infiltrating a building is a constant battle, as one New Jersey cooperative knows all too well. RAND recently completed a major exterior repair program at Northbridge Park, a 14-story residential co-op…
Last week RAND held its second annual blood drive in partnership with the American Red Cross. Following the success of our first ever blood drive last year, at which we collected a respectable 19 units, this year we opened up…
Two weeks after I joined RAND as a Senior Structural Engineer this summer, I received an email from our human resources manager announcing this year’s New York Canstruction competition and inviting RAND staff to participate. Canstruction is a design and…
With the high price of oil relative to gas and the phasing out of No. 6 heating oil by 2015, more and more property owners are converting their building’s heating plants from oil to gas-burning systems. Owners and managers are…
Today is SteelDay, an annual event sponsored by the American Institute of Steel Construction to educate the public on how the structural steel industry contributes to building America. As an engineering student in college, every day was steel day for…
All of you New York City Art Deco fans, here’s a pop quiz to test your knowledge. Identify the following buildings: This residential cooperative was built in 1929 but its starring role in a 1984 movie made it a New…