| R&C
began using fly ash in concrete in the early 1980s for the Monterey
Bay Aquarium, where fly ash was incorporated into the concrete mix
designs to improve concrete properties. The success of its use led
R&C to specify fly ash in almost all of the firm’s projects.
The R&C “green” approach today includes close coordination
with other building systems and selection of structural systems
to achieve sustainable goals, the continued use of fly ash (as high
as 50% content) and slag to replace cement, the appropriate use
of salvaged structural materials, and specifications that reflect
project sustainable goals and construction practices.
Individuals at R&C have led the industry in
sustainable design. Structural Engineering Strategies Towards
Sustainable Design was co-authored by Alan Kren of R&C in
conjunction with the Structural Engineers Association of Northern
California. The paper provides numerous strategies the structural
engineer can employ to achieve sustainable structural design.
Alan authored and presented “The Case for Sustainable Design”
at the 2007 Structures Conference in Long Beach, California.
R&C’s
green projects to date include the New de Young museum in Golden
Gate Park, the UC San Diego Supercomputer Center, the UC Merced
Science & Engineering Building, the new Exploratorium museum
on the San Francisco waterfront, the Carnegie Institute Global
Ecology Center at Stanford University, and the San Jose Southside
Police Substation.
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