On ☀️Solar Appreciation Day, Criterium Engineers 📐 celebrates our clients at Maine Solar Solutions, based in Freeport. Criterium provides structural evaluations for solar installation on residences and commercial buildings. . . . #solar #solarpower #solarenergy #energy #renewableenergy #solarpanels #solarpowered #gosolar #MaineSolarSolutions #structuralengineer #freeportmaine #structuralengineering #engineering #criteriumengineers #weknowbuildings
HOA News
Sound Off: Noise in Communities
Good friends of mine just retired and decided to move into an upscale condominium community. I asked if it was difficult to adjust to downsizing after leaving the “big” house, and interestingly enough, I was told the size of the living space was not the problem, it was difficult to adjust to the surrounding sounds…..
Reserve Studies vs. Condition Assessment
Q: Over the past few months, I’ve heard a lot of discussion about reserve studies and condition surveys. Are these the same, and, if not, how do they differ, and why and when should our association obtain one? A: This is a great question because it is not asked often enough. I cannot count the number….
Making Tough Decisions
Addressing Building Issues With Caution Have you ever noticed how fashion and entertainment trends seem to start on the “Left Coast” and work their way across the country before finally arriving in Maine? I call this the “End of Route 95 Syndrome.” Of course, YouTube and other digital social media has sped things up a….
The Challenge of Aging Buildings
The Surfside collapse and the resulting loss of life is tragic. In addition to dealing with the far-reaching impact of that collapse, many occupants, owners, and managers of most buildings are now asking whether something similar could happen to their building. The answer is that the structural health and future of any building depends on many variables….
The Water Did It
Since the tragedy this summer in Surfside, Florida, building managers and condo boards have been reviewing the cost of deferred repairs and their fiduciary responsibilities when it comes to facility safety and maintenance with greater scrutiny than ever before. But where to look first? There are many types of condos from high-rises to townhouses to….
Where Does Danger Lurk?
Most Common Areas of Concern As a member of the board or the property manager, what element of the condo complex poses the greatest danger to the unit owners and liability to the association? Slips and falls during the icy season? Decks collapsing from rot? Electrical fires? Well, if you picked “decks,” you are almost….
The Future is Now: Tech in Communities
By nature, Mainers are traditionalists. Images coming to mind include Bean rubber boots; grey shingled fishing villages; and plaid flannel shirts. Though these iconic elements reflect Mainer’s practical side, Maine’s condo communities are not immune to the beneficial changes building science and technology have to offer. Let us consider some of the new features and….
Reserve Studies & Funding Strategies: Trends & Best Practices
Criterium Engineers’ founder, Alan Mooney, P.E., R.S., was interviewed for an informative Condo Media article on reserve studies that we are sharing with you. Alan Mooney, P.E., R.S., will never forget how heated things got years after his firm did a reserve study for a Boston-area condominium. The good news? The association had the foresight….
The Orange Triangle in Our Logo
Criterium Engineers was founded in the days when building plans were meticulously designed and drawn by hand. The dedicated engineer’s talisman—the plastic drafting triangle—could once be found on almost every drawing table in our offices. And while a clear plastic triangle might easily be lost on piles of white paper, bright orange drafting triangles always….