Masonry Magazine April 2004 Page. 40
Further Learning
For professionals, the construction sequence can be rehearsed and improved by attention to opportunities built through industry partnerships, pre-project planning meetings, and direct craftworker and contractor involvement.
Esteemed architects have earned their reputations by understanding that physical material components in an ordinary wall section deserve as much respect as the programmatic components that drive spatial requirements. Yet the road from the world of education to the world of applied practice relies on little more than a leap of faith that we will - someday, somehow - achieve material understanding.
Just Ask
WHAT IS LEFT UNSAID in school is the value of finding and developing industry resources that can enhance our architectural design abilities, and filling in those gaps of material expertise.
At the Hillier Group in Princeton, N.J., firm directors realized the importance of teaching their young architects proper technical and masonry knowledge. So Hillier turned to IMI for a concentrated "crash course." IMI's unique combination of craftworkers, contractors and technical consultants combined forces for a custom "Masonry Day" that included lectures and hands-on exposure to masonry materials, plus the opportunity to see skilled craftworkers in action.
WHAT DO YOU WANT TO KNOW?
The thirst for masonry education continues well after school. A sampling of requests made to IMI technical services staff provides a window into the issues Interesting to today's practitioners. These include:
• Air barriers
• Allied craft materials and installation issues (tile marble, stone, terrazzo, plaster, cement)
• Codes
• Flashing and water penetration
• Fire safety
• Mold
• Movement joints
"I don't see any other trade working as hard to improve skills." -Ken Livingston, AIA.
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38 Masonry April 2004 CIRCLE 180 ON READER SERVICE CARD www.masoncontractors.org