Blogs

Some structures are instantly recognizable. You can see a massive cooling tower from miles away. Wide at the bottom. Narrow through the middle. Then wider again near the top. It looks a little like an enormous concrete hourglass. And if you've ever driven past a power plant and seen one releasing a giant white cloud into the sky, you may have wondered two things: Why is it shaped like that? And what exactly is coming out of it? The answers are connected. That strange shape isn't just architectur …

Most buildings look like they're sitting on the ground. Sometimes that's a little misleading. The building you see above ground may actually be supported by foundations extending dozens of feet below it. Sometimes much farther. They're called piles, and while they disappear underground once construction is finished, they may be doing some of the hardest work in the entire building. So why go through all that trouble? Why not just build a foundation, put the building on it, and call it a day? Bec …

If you've ever been near the top of a skyscraper and thought you felt the building move, you probably did. Before you start looking for the stairs, that's usually a good thing. Skyscrapers are designed to move. It sounds completely backward. We spend our careers making structures strong, stable, plumb, and secure. The last thing most people want to hear while standing 70 stories above the ground is, "Don't worry. The building is supposed to be moving." But when you're building hundreds or even t …

Construction is full of things that look wrong until you understand why they're right. A skyscraper moves in the wind. A bridge has gaps in it. Concrete is intentionally cut after it's poured. Old brick walls let moisture move through them. A crane lifts enormous loads while a giant stack of weight hangs off the other end. Roads buckle when it gets hot. And somewhere along the way, somebody decided manholes should be round. Most of us walk past these things every day without giving them much tho …