FEATURES
28 Center Stage
By Jennifer Greenawalt, SE, PE, and Michael Cropper, PE
Capital One Hall takes the stage in suburban D.C. with a signature sawtooth façade supported by long-span steel trusses.
36 High Gear
By Kerri Molitor
Early fabricator and erector involvement help a steel-framed vehicle performance and electrification facility navigate heavy traffic on a congested job site.
42 No Paint? No Problem
By Geoff Weisenberger
While supply chain shortages have affected paint and primer products for structural steel applications, there’s no need to panic—because a significant portion of structural steel doesn’t need to be painted or primed.
44 Facilitating Faster Framing
By Erin Conaway
The winners of AISC’s SpeedConnection Challenge work to push the erection envelope and allow steel frames to come together faster.
48 Building Bridges in Blacksburg
By Geoff Weisenberger
The Student Steel Bridge Competition was back in full force at Virginia Tech, marking the first in-person National Finals since 2019.
56 Shared Space
The winner of this year’s AISC Forge Prize visualizes an attractive, ambitious new take on public housing.
COLUMNS
SteelWise
16 Composite Beam Possibilities
By J.R. Mujagic, SE, PE, PhD, and Christina Harber, SE, PE
The soon-to-be released 2022 version of the AISC Specification brings flexibility and innovation to composite beam design with the introduction of a performance-based alternative for shear connections.
Data Driven
20 Historic Rhythms
By Joe Dardis
As GDP recovery goes, so typically does construction—12 to 18 months later—making it a useful, if not perfect, economic indicator to keep an eye on.
Field Notes
22 The Sky’s the Limit
Interview by Geoff Weisenberger
This year’s Forge Prize winners discuss their Common Sky concept, which has the potential to take urban housing projects to new heights, both figuratively and literally.
Business Issues
24 The Inner Journey
By Dan Coughlin
Achieving long-term success as an organization is sometimes a matter of looking inward.