Posts Tagged ‘climate’

Duluth Graduate Design Studio

Posted by Cynthia Lapp

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How does Duluth create more resilient physical, economic and social infrastructures? What might Duluth need in the next 20, 50 or 100 years? These are a few of the complex questions a group of graduate students from the UMN Minneapolis campus will address this semsester as they use Duluth as their design focus.

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We hosted the group of 36 students and three instructors from Landscape Architecture and Architecture during their three-day visit of the city and environs. They toured the landscape and structure of the city, and heard presentations from the Port Authority, city officials including Mayor Don Ness, UMD campus planning, and about the underlying geomorphology of the area.

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The students have much to think about for their upcoming analysis of Duluth. This information will then be used in teams on selected projects and sites within Duluth, culminating in design presentations at the end of the semester. We are looking forward to seeing what they create!

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Thanks to all the presenters and folks who assisted in organizing the visit. At the City: Mayor Don Ness, Jessica Tillman, Chris Kleist, DyAnn Andybur, Chuck Froseth, Steven Robertson, Pakou Ly. At the Port Authority, Ron Johnson and Adele Yorde. At UMD, John Rashid, John Green, Erik Brown and Christine Strom.

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Gravity Wins

Posted by Cynthia Lapp

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Back in October last year, we installed a new sign in front of the shop with a technique that printed on a sustrate that was then bonded to glass. We heard great things about the technique so thought we'd try it out in Duluth.

A couple months into the test, we noticed some discoloration in the white areas of the sign. Some browning was happening, but structurally it looked o.k.

This Spring we noticed some areas starting to delaminate, where the printed substrate was pulling away from the glass. Last week the sign disappeared--clear glass was all you could see. The printed substrate had completely separated from the glass. Gravity wins!

We will be looking for more robust methods of printing on glass when we travel next month to Glasstec, the biannual global trade show for all things glass in Düsseldorf, Germany.

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A New Sign for Meteek & Co

Posted by Cynthia Lapp

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This week we installed a new sign in front of our building. The sign is made out of 1/2" glass printed with our name and logo, set into an aluminum u-channel and mounted on a boulder.

The printing was done in Minnesota. We have not used this company or system before, so we thought we'd give it a whirl and see how it responds to our climate.

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“Hot Box” for Materials Testing Co-Developed with UMD Students

Posted by Cynthia Lapp

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The performance of windows and wall sections has been our focus with projects that we build, remodel, or supply. With an annual temperature variance of at least 120°F,  our climate challenges the best materials on the market. When we can't find a material that will stand up to conditions, we create solutions to fit the job.

Working with five students in Civil Engineering at the University of Minnesota Duluth, Meteek offered the assignment of buidling a "hot box" to test the thermal qualities of window and wall sections, as well as individual materials. These students took the idea and ran, building, wiring and writing the programming for this testing instrument as their combined senior projects. 

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We attended their project presentation this week and were treated to a demonstration. The material to be tested is clamped into place. A program runs a freezer on one side and an oven on the other create the thermocline necessary for the test. Results are recorded for each testing cycle. 

A win-win project, the Hot Box was a success for the students who built a "real-life" project for an actual client, and a success for Meteek to continue innovating solutions for our tough climate. Congratulations!

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