MC is proud to be part of the design team alongside TCA Architects, James Posey Associates, and Fisher, Collins & Carter, Inc. for the new Talbott Springs Elementary School in Howard County, MD.  This new school will be replacing the current facility on-site and is 88,000+ SF constructed in a two-story, letter “H,” with the media center connecting the two wings.  Construction began in September 2020 and is on schedule to be completed later this year in December and achieve LEED Silver designation.  This project is special for us, as our Vice President, Tony’s daughter actually works for the school. 

Check out the video above to get a behind the scenes tour of the construction progress.

Last April, Governor Larry Hogan, declared the month of April to be Maryland Flood Awareness Month. Maryland Flood Awareness Month will raise awareness about the many flood hazards faced by individuals and communities across the state and provide information on what Marylanders can do to protect themselves, their property and possessions, their finances, and communities.  This effort will be accomplished via The Maryland Resiliency Partnership. The Maryland Resiliency Partnership is a collaboration of public and private partners to leverage funding, personnel, and projects to support efforts that integrate hazard mitigation, floodplain management, and coastal and climate resiliency.

Morabito Consultants has been prepared to contribute to this ongoing effort in Maryland as well as all states our firm currently provides floodproofing remediation in. MC is experienced analyzing and designing new and existing structures of all types in high-velocity wind and high-hazard flood zones. A significant amount of our floodproofing design comes from an ongoing partnership with a leading manufacturer of flood panels, windows, and doors. Through this partnership, MC has gained experience designing everything from 40-ft long aluminum flood wall gates to impact and flood resistant glass fenestration components.

In honor of Earth Day, MC would like to highlight the importance of sustainable design.  As part of our ambition to build structures that positively impact society, we incorporate sustainable design practices into each step of the engineering process.  Sustainable design allows us to manage resources with the greatest economy and to make choices with the health of both the environment and the end user in mind. We work with our clients to make appropriate decisions about sustainability including specifying the use of materials that are recycled, locally or regionally sourced, or low VOC.  MC takes pride in being a part of numerous projects focused on sustainability.  Some of our recent LEED Gold Certified projects include Somerset County Technical High School, Little Patuxent Square, and the Johns Hopkins University Brody Learning Commons.  We look forward to instilling sustainability in our future projects.  To learn more about how buildings are rated and given LEED Certification, visit the U.S. Green Building Council’s website.

Morabito Consultants is excited to welcome Emily Borunda to our team! Emily is stepping into the role of Office and Marketing Manager and brings with her over 5 years of business administrative experience. Outside of work, Emily enjoys going on road trips, visiting the aquarium, and watching baseball with her family.

Happy Easter Weekend! MC will be closed tomorrow and will resume with regular business hours on Monday, April 18th.

STRUCTURE Magazine recently ran a five-part series of articles summarizing significant structural code changes that the building industry will be seeing as jurisdictions begin adopting IBC 2021.  Part 5 of the series explores code changes and their significance for the following Chapter 23 topics related to wood construction:

• Wood Truss Bracing

• Type IV-A, IV-B, and IV-C Connection Protection

• General Design Requirements for Lateral Force-Resisting Systems

• Cripple Walls

It is so important that we, as structural engineers, are staying up to date on these changes.  You can find the article here for the final part of this series, but if you missed any of the previous week’s updates, you could find them on our blog to get caught up.

STRUCTURE Magazine recently ran a five-part series of articles summarizing significant structural code changes that the building industry will be seeing as jurisdictions begin adopting IBC 2021. Part 4 of the series explores code changes and their significance for the following Chapter 19 and 22 topics related to concrete and steel:

• Concrete Design and Construction

• Structural Concrete Tolerances

• Seismic Steel Moment Frame Prequalified Connections

• Cantilevered Steel Storage Racks

It is so important that we, as structural engineers, are staying up to date on these changes. You can find the article here, but don’t forget to join us next week for the final part of this series.

MC is wishing a very happy retirement to Maria Boller, who has worked with her brothers (Frank, Fred, & Tony) since the company was founded in 1983. Maria was the glue that held MC together for nearly 40 years. She has served as accounting manager, office manager, marketing department, and administrative assistant to name only a few of her prior roles. Words cannot describe her importance to the history of MC. In retirement, we hope she gets to spend as much time as possible gardening, traveling with her husband, and most importantly, spending time with her grandsons.

STRUCTURE Magazine recently ran a five-part series of articles summarizing significant structural code changes that the building industry will be seeing as jurisdictions begin adopting IBC 2021.  Part 3 of the series explores code changes and their significance for the following Chapter 17 topics related to special inspections:

• Structural Observations
• Precast Concrete
• Mass Timber
• Structural Integrity of Deep Foundations
• Steel Storage Racks

It is so important that we, as structural engineers, are staying up to date on these changes.  You can find the article here, but don’t forget to join us next week for part 4 of this series.

Today is Mom & Pop Business Owner Day and we would like to encourage everyone to support small and local businesses today, and every day.  MC is a family-owned, self-certified small business and over almost 40 years that we have been operating, we have designed many projects for small and local businesses.  Some of our recent projects include the Cunningham’s Café & Bakery addition in Towson, Stages Music Arts in Hunt Valley, and Hayfields Country Club’s – Redwood Grill in Cockeysville. How will you be celebrating the small businesses that make up your community?