We are Hiring: Lecturer (full-time) in Digital Design & Professional Communication

We are Hiring: Lecturer (full-time) in Digital Design & Professional Communication

We are excited to announce the availability of a full-time (12 month) Lecturer position in our BCT program, focused on Digital Design & Professional Communication in the AEC field. Reviews begin in early April with a job start date of September 1, 2024. See below for details: APPLY NOW Job no: 522021 Work type: Faculty Full Time Location: UMass Amherst Department: Environmental Conservation Union: MSP Categories: Faculty, College of Natural Sciences About UMass Amherst UMass Amherst, the Commonwealth's flagship campus, is a nationally ranked public research university offering a full range of undergraduate, graduate and professional degrees. The University sits on nearly 1,450-acres in the scenic Pioneer Valley of Western Massachusetts, and offers a rich cultural environment in a bucolic setting close to major urban centers. In addition, the University is part of the Five Colleges (including Amherst College, Hampshire College, Mount Holyoke College, and Smith College), which adds to the intellectual energy of the region. About the Department and the Program Building and Construction Technology (BCT) is one of the programs in the Department of Environmental...
Read More
Hammer Time: How Students, Faculty, Local Businesses and Holyoke’s Community Development Corporation Are Teaming Up to Fight the Housing Crisis

Hammer Time: How Students, Faculty, Local Businesses and Holyoke’s Community Development Corporation Are Teaming Up to Fight the Housing Crisis

They call it “Paper House”: a modular, 500-square-foot, high-performance, net zero, low carbon house designed and built by the students in UMass DesignBuild, a joint effort between the Building and Construction Technology Program and Department of Architecture at UMass Amherst and the Five College Architectural Studies program. DesignBuild is in its second year, and it seeks to address major problems, both in the educational world, and in the broader world at large. “A builder might go through their whole education and never see the work involved in designing a house,” says Carl Fiocchi, a lecturer and professional master’s program coordinator in the Building and Construction Technology Program. “The reverse is true for architects, too, who might never get any experience actually building their designs.” The DesignBuild class seeks to bridge this gap between the builders and designers with a two-semester sequence. In the spring semester, students are given a set of design parameters—the house’s overall footprint, budget, materials, etc.—and with those in place, design the...
Read More
Washington Post Article on MassTimber Features the Olver Design Building and BCT’s Research

Washington Post Article on MassTimber Features the Olver Design Building and BCT’s Research

Today, the Washington Post published an article about the rise of MassTimber buildings (which are predominantly made using glulam and cross-laminated timber). The article featured exemplary projects throughout the country with the John W. Olver Design Building at UMass as a prominent example. BCT's research into Eastern Hemlock CLT is being described in the article through interviews with Prof. Peggi Clouston and Conrado Araujo, a BCT undergrad student who has been involved in this research for the past year. Forget the log cabin. Wood buildings are climbing skyward — with pluses for the planet – Washington Post (12/12/2019) Reposted from: https://bct.eco.umass.edu/news/washington-post-article-on-masstimber-features-the-olver-design-building-and-bcts-research/...
Read More
Clouston and Schreyer discuss Mass Timber on Mass Construction podcast

Clouston and Schreyer discuss Mass Timber on Mass Construction podcast

Joseph Kelly of MassConstruction.org visited BCT last week for a tour of the Olver Design Building, our award-winning home at UMass. He also brought along his microphone and taped a podcast with Professors Clouston and Schreyer about the Design Building and the current wave of new MassTimber buildings. You can listen to the podcast below (just click "play") and find the complete podcast archive (and subscribe to his series) here or on iTunes. Reposted from: https://bct.eco.umass.edu/news/clouston-and-schreyer-discuss-mass-timber-on-mass-construction-podcast/...
Read More
Design Building at UMass Amherst Named for Former U.S. Rep. John W. Olver

Design Building at UMass Amherst Named for Former U.S. Rep. John W. Olver

As those walking through our building today may have noticed, there were some new letters visible on the facade. At a ceremony this afternoon, the Design Building was officially named in honor of a good friend of the BCT program and ECO department, former U.S. Rep. John W. Olver. It is now the "John W. Olver Design Building". BCT and ECO would like to congratulate U.S. Rep. Olver for this well-deserved honor. If it hadn't been for his support, our new home would not be the landmark, showcase example of sustainable mass timber construction it is today. Interested in learning more about the John W. Olver Design Building? We have an extensive collection of articles, photos, videos etc. here. Below is the official press release: October 27, 2017 AMHERST, Mass. – The new Design Building at the University of Massachusetts Amherst has been named the John W. Olver Design Building in honor of the retired congressman and former UMass Amherst chemistry professor. A ceremony marking...
Read More