This course is part of the Metal Architecture Academy

Below are a set of links to building type studies from Architectural Record, which are in-depth analyses of particular kinds of buildings, with photos, drawings, specifications, detailed descriptions, and design solutions. Click on each link below, read the article then complete the quiz to earn your credit and certificate of completion.

Insulated metal panels are exterior wall and roof panels with steel skins and an insulating foam core. They provide a multitude of solutions for construction as air, water vapor and thermal barriers. This course looks at how IMPs integrate easily with solar panels and minimize a building’s energy use, which can help reduce costs, gain LEED points, exceed codes and provide important climate change solutions.

Insulated Metal Panels and LEED
Insulated metal panels (IMPs) combine multiple building components into a single product. Available in a variety of thicknesses, IMPs are factory-fabricated with a continuous insulating core that, along with its metal skin, acts as an air, water vapor and thermal barrier. By providing high R-values, IMPs offer a complete package that can be installed quickly, offering highly efficient insulation that minimizes a building’s energy use and minimizes construction costs.
Marcy Marro

Innovative Metal Solutions for the Built Environment: High-performance metal products achieve sustainable, cost-effective results
From exterior building envelope walls and roofing to interior ceiling systems, metal offers a variety of innovative products, composites, and sustainable design solutions suitable for any climate and building type. Metal wall and roofing panels are proven, energy-efficient systems that are constantly updated and refined to meet emerging technology, building codes, sustainability, and project needs.
Barbara A. Nadel

Using Metal Building Systems to Meet and Exceed the Energy Code
The definition of a well-designed building includes the ability to achieve energy performance levels that reduce the need—and associated cost—for purchased energy to operate the building. Achieving building designs that meet targeted energy-performance levels—or exceed them—can be realized using many different construction methods and building systems.
Peter J. Arsenault, AIA

How Solar Power Works for Steel Buildings
Solar panels are one of the fastest-growing energy systems in the United States. Studies completed by the Solar Energy Industries Association show that the solar market is expected to become a 4.5-billion-dollar market by 2023, doubling in size. As solar power has increased in popularity, innovative methods for accessing solar energy have been developed. This article discusses three mainstream solar power options that offer accessible, robust systems with the technology to heat metal buildings efficiently.

Photo courtesy of AWIP