By Dan Brewer

According to CBRE’s latest senior housing investor survey, investors identified independent living as the best investment opportunity in the senior housing market. On the surface, that makes a lot of sense. As the largest wave of boomers continues to age upward, looking to downsize their homes or move closer to adult children, a shift to independent living would seem to be the first logical step. But is independent living the best bet in senior housing? Don’t whip out your checkbooks yet.

The two main strengths of senior housing investing are 1) demographics and 2) recession-resistance. The first, demographics, ensures that there will be a steady demand for senior housing for the next two+ decades. All segments of the senior housing market can benefit from this senior rush.

The second, recession-resistance, does not apply to each segment of the senior housing market equally—and that’s where many investors, if they are not careful, could get burned. Not all segments of senior housing are equally “needed” by aging Americans. And in times of recession, unnecessary expenses are often the first to go. [Read more…]

Healthcare does not operate in a bubble. It intertwines itself with other industries not commonly mentioned, such as real estate. In this niche market, medical real estate refers to all the facilities that the healthcare community uses. That includes buildings and campuses that member and organization in public or private sector lease or buy. It also includes other facets within the system including a New York or Vancouver personal injury law firms that might own an office within a medical facility. There has however been a growing trend among this community to instead work with a third-party entity to manage the real estate side of the business to allow healthcare practitioners to focus solely on their profession and patients.

A niche market

Healthcare real estate is in a class of its own due to the regulations that govern the owning and operating. Aspects such as sterilization, heating, and cleaning are different in this field. Due to the already demanding nature of running a medical facility, heads prefer to leave running the space to organizations that profit from the business of providing space and services. The services included property management, tenant advisory, leasing, and construction. These third-party organizations find it lucrative as it is a growing industry. [Read more…]

Damp is the greatest nightmare for almost every homeowner. It can take many different forms and manifest itself in the least suspicious areas, sending the inhabitants into sheer terror and panic. It can gradually destroy any building it has taken hold of, so measures to take control of the situation are a must.

Unfortunately, many companies who specialize or at least claim to specialize in damp proofing and fixing rotten wooden structures might lead you on, selling you expensive fixes for entirely different problems than the ones you are having. If you’d like to avoid getting ripped off or sold a useless solution for a wrong or non-existent problem, read on. Following are some tips on how to tell the real professionals apart, as well as pay for the services you really need.

First, Do Your Homework

Before you call anybody to come over and inspect your house, sit down and do some preliminary research on your own.

Damp can be divided into a few common types that usually plague homes everywhere. They are rising damp, condensation and penetrating damp. Each one requires a completely different treatment from the other two, so it is very important to determine which one you are dealing with. If you learn enough to be able to identify your problem, you will successfully avoid unscrupulous contractors trying to sell you a far more expensive and inadequate solution. [Read more…]

By Eli Schultz

The healthcare sector is changing – not only in the methods used to treat patients – but in the methods used to structure the healthcare sector as a whole. In the past, aside from a few small family practices, almost all medical treatment necessitated going to a large regional hospital and navigating through endless floors of medical offices and treatment rooms. 

The medical real estate sector is changing.

The focus of the healthcare industry is no longer on providing one large medical campus. It has turned creating smaller, patient-focused, medical office buildings or MOBs. Creating a mix of outpatient facilities and multi-specialty centers is improving the patient experience. Patients are flocking to these off-campus outpatient facilities. Rather than having to deal with a large and often confusing hospital campus, patients can come to a smaller medical center that groups similar services together in one easy-to-find package. Not only is this retail shift saving patient wait time, but it is reducing medical costs and streamlining treatment. [Read more…]

Plumbing involves the use of pipes, tanks, valves, plumbing fixtures and other devices to carry fluids.  Although waste removal, heating and cooling, and potable water delivery are related to plumbing, it comprises other applications as well.

Plumbing and heating are related to other sections of the construction industry, including the various supporting products, usually used for commercial intent. The current plumber is trained to work on both dry and wet pipes with heating systems included. Other workers in this field include pipefitters and boilers who work on piping, but their jobs include some aspects of plumbing.

History of Plumbing

During the Roman era, lead was the preferred material used for water pipes. Due to its pliability, it could be molded into the desired shape hence the word plumber.  This is where the word plumbing originated, a derivation from the Latin “Plumbum,” which means lead. In later years, there was a development in health concerns, which were related to the use of lead pipes.  The result was a high rate of stillbirths and infant mortality all attributed to the lead in these pipes, which found its way into the water supply.

However, in the early 20^th century, lead pipes were still being used in many homes.  The introduction of copper piping created a more improved and safer substitute to lead pipes. Furthermore, copper pipes were connected by tin alloy solder but in a modernized plumbing practice, tin-antimony alloy solder is used instead to get rid of lead hazards. In the industrialized world, plumbing substructure is vital to sanitation and public health and the growing awareness of lead poisoning has resulted in the use of other materials for pipes. [Read more…]

By Michael Smith, AIA

Along with their vulnerability and their fragility, children have another fundamental characteristic that makes it especially challenging for healthcare designers to create safe and appropriate spaces for them in hospitals and medical centers: Their curiosity.

Nothing comes more naturally to most kids than wanting to explore their surroundings in every way they can. Along with all the same considerations about safety and efficiency that drive creation of effective healthcare spaces, accommodating children’s curiosity is a critical driver in the design of pediatric healthcare delivery spaces that support quality care. At E4H Architecture, we’ve had many years’ of experience in several pediatric health systems across the country learning how best to use thoughtful design to create environments that alleviate stress, provide positive distractions, and promote healing.

Workflow, wayfinding, and service interactions

Designing spaces that accommodate parent(s), children, strollers, bags, and other necessary items per single patient visit is a daunting challenge regardless of the floor plan, budget, and operational flow. Achieving an ease of flow communicates the healthcare system’s thoughtfulness, consideration, and understanding of the patients’ needs. [Read more…]