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/ BUILDING DIALOGUE / SEPTEMBER 2016
T
he only thing constant
in the building industry
is change. As facilities in-
tegrate new technologies, strive
for greater energy efficiency,
and seek to improve health and
wellness, project teams are tasked
with integrating these innovations.
Change creates great opportunity, but
they also can pose risks for designers,
builders and owners.
Enter building science, an evi-
dence-based approach to understanding
the physical behavior of the building as
a system. This diverse field brings great-
er certainty to the building process with a
collection of scientific research, analytical
tools and testing methods for the physical
phenomena affecting buildings and the
people who occupy them.
Until recently, most building science groups fo-
cused only on building enclosure and system per-
formance. Today, the field has expanded to take on
a greater role in an evidence-based design process,
looking at how the built environment can influence
well-being and promote occupant satisfaction.
“Implementing a research process as part of a
building project picked up momentum in the health
care market when evidence clearly showed that the
physical environment influenced healing outcomes.
This is now being applied to learning and workplace
environments,” said Marcel Harmon, project execu-
tive of Forte Building Science, a division of M.E. Group.
Pete Jefferson,
PE, WELL AP,
LEED AP, HBDP
Vice
President
and Co-
founder,
Forte
Building
Science, a
division
of M.E.
Group
ELEMENTS
Best Practices
A Forte Building Science commissioning agent documents the
construction of a warehouse for Prologis.
