Terrazzo is a composite surfacing material made from chips of marble, quartz, granite, or recycled glass set into a binder of epoxy resin or cement, then ground and polished to a smooth finish. Architects use terrazzo for floors, stairs, walls, and countertops in airports, schools, hospitals, and homes where durability...
Corten (weathering) steel is a group of low-alloy steels that form a stable, rust-colored patina when exposed to the weather. Small additions of copper, chromium, nickel, and phosphorus let this protective oxide layer seal the surface, so the metal resists further corrosion without paint or coatings in most inland climates....
ETFE (ethylene tetrafluoroethylene) is a fluorine-based plastic foil used as a lightweight, transparent skin for roofs and facades. It is used in stadiums because it weighs roughly one percent of glass, transmits high levels of daylight onto pitch grass, spans wide distances with minimal steel, and shrugs off weather and...
Low-E glass vs standard glass comes down to how each handles heat. Low-emissivity glass carries a microscopic metallic coating that reflects infrared energy while letting daylight through, so a building stays warmer in winter and cooler in summer. Standard glass has no coating and allows far more heat to pass...
A structural insulated panel (SIP) is a load-bearing building component made of a rigid foam insulation core bonded between two structural skins, usually oriented strand board (OSB). According to the U.S. Department of Energy, SIPs replace studs, sheathing, and insulation in one factory-made panel for walls, floors, and roofs. For...
Autoclaved aerated concrete (AAC) is a lightweight precast building material made from sand or fly ash, lime, cement, water and a small amount of aluminium powder, then cured in a high pressure steam chamber called an autoclave. Roughly 80 percent of a finished block is trapped air, which gives AAC...
