News Media Coverage Expert Insights Blog/Events Press Releases

Join McLaren Senior Associate and Pratt Professor Jesse Chrismer, PE on April 29th, as he discusses “Affordable Housing’s Response to the Pandemic.” While health concerns are now a global priority, this virtual event will consider how an economic downturn may exacerbate shortages of affordable housing.

Jesse and his fellow panelists hope to shed light on a healthy way for our communities to emerge from the pandemic by exploring the tenets of such practices as co-living, public-private partnerships, and placemaking.

The Pratt Institute School of Architecture is partnering with the Brooklyn Chapter of the American Institute of Architects (AIA Brooklyn) to offer free AIA-accredited courses that relate to COVID-19’s impact on architecture. Jesse’s panel will kick off the Executive Education Series that will focus on how architecture is changing with COVID-19 and ways the industry can be involved in recovery efforts. Participants will learn about:

• Current affordable housing policy and practice
• How the COVID-19 pandemic is influencing current affordable housing projects
• How the COVID-19 pandemic will influence the future landscape of affordable housing
• Resources for further developing their understanding of housing and public health

A Zoom meeting link will be emailed out to those who register prior to the event. Register through the eventbrite link on the left.

From helping build 170 KW of solar around the country to engineering a prototype for floating wetlands in an inner-city, converting failing piers into living shorelines with open space to putting a green roof on an adaptive reuse project, providing geotechnical engineering for a geothermal renovation of a historic structure to expanding the offshore wind industry, McLaren is are honored to be a part of the hundreds of sustainable solutions our clients are implementing around our world.

How will the building industry evolve in order to adapt to a post-pandemic world? After Hurricane Sandy, we engineered with resiliency in mind. Following 9-11 we helped construct added security measures. But, how will the AEC community need to respond after COVID-19? Will today’s social-distancing measures forever change the way we build and modernize facilities where people gather? If so, what changes will healthcare facilities, retail establishments, theaters, schools, parks, etc. need to make? Share your thoughts on LinkedIn.

The AEC community, typically responsible for building the world around us, is now tasked with helping to keep our cities, states and countries running during these unprecedented times. From supporting our healthcare community with the building of temporary structures and retrofit spaces, to performing essential construction work on infrastructure projects, we are all working together along the path to recovery.

McLaren has historically led the industry through momentous events like 9-11, Superstorm Sandy and Hurricane Irene, and we will continue to engineer the proper emergency response, recovery and resiliency measures as we get through this, stronger than before.

Engineering Resiliency…Whether working from home or 6+ feet apart in the office, McLaren teams across the nation are, as always, fully operational and connected. While we continue to build our communities and keep them safe, we are doing our part to flatten the curve. Check out some of our expanded work from home office locations – a few already equipped with new “in-house assistants.” See more photos on how people in the industry are working.

As building codes and city needs change, waterfront projects like adaptive-reuse, waterborne transportation, new construction and waterfront parks will need to be engineered with resiliency in mind—especially as climate change and the severity and frequency of storm events increase. Certified Floodplain Managers (CFMs) are mitigating efforts to alleviate the cycle of damage-rebuild-damage and their Flood Insurance Rate Map (FIRM) and P-FIRM knowledge is at the forefront of building safe and sustainable infrastructure.

McLaren has three Certified Floodplain Managers, Coastal Engineer and Resiliency Sr. Associate, Bethany McClanahan P.E., ENV SP, CFM, WEDG, Senior Engineer, Long Xu, P.E., CFM, M.ASCE, and Marine Technical Designer, Kaitlyn Frega, ENV SP, CFM, WEDG along with dozens of other FEMA experts who are working to protect coastal developments from damage and flooding.

Are you looking to build your career in facades? McLaren has an opening for a Facade Structural Engineer in our New Jersey office.

At McLaren, our façade structural engineers can be found designing the glass, aluminum, and stainless-steel cladding for several award-winning buildings across the country. The Facade Structural Engineer will be responsible for the design and detailing of building envelope systems, running structural and thermal analyses, reviewing building movements and their interactions with the façade systems and coordinating project work with our exciting and dynamic team. Our ideal applicant has 2 to 5 years of experience in the structural design and detailing of facades in commercial projects. Come build your future with us! Apply here.

We are each an equal part of a collective whole. Together, we celebrate the individual, diverse perspectives that foster McLaren’s collective creativity and innovation – today and every day. Our New York City and Woodcliff Lake, New Jersey offices hosted internal networking events, celebrating International Women’s Day. Stay tuned to see what our other offices are doing during Women’s History Month.

Who lives in a pineapple under the sea? For this year’s Capital Region #CANstruction, McLaren’s Albany office teamed up with Hyman Hayes Associates and turned 3,737 cans into “SpongeBob CANpants,” sitting on a crabby patty next to his pineapple house.

CANstruction is an annual exhibit and design competition that connects talented architects, engineers, contractors, and students to imagine and create colossal structures built completely out of canned food items. SpongeBob CANpants will be on display at the New York State Museum in Albany until March 18th, then all the canned goods will be donated to 56 local food pantries. There is still time to donate canned goods and help pick a winner – so if fighting local hunger is something you wish, then stop by our structure and donate a dish. Do you see the secret formula?

Fitwel Certification — Committed to Building Health for All™. Built with a goal of optimizing the health and wellness of its occupants, Bank of America at Capitol Tower in Houston, Texas achieved a 3-star Fitwel Certification System classification. For the 35-story, high-end office space, McLaren’s glass and glazing team worked on the lobby and entrance façade, helping the building achieve a feeling of wellbeing with a modern, light-filled space. It is the first project in Houston to receive any certification under Fitwel, and among the largest with a three-star Fitwel rating, is second only to the Bloomberg headquarters in New York City, read more.