Category: GS Sustainability
Our Journey to Net Zero
In the last few years, several ominous phrases have crept into our daily lexicon including “atmospheric rivers”, “quarantining”, “social distancing”, and “air-quality index.” Oxymorons are also taking over our headlines such as “stormy California” and “rainy Arizona.” Spurred by the pandemic and climate crisis, the world is changing faster than ever before – and our ...
Read More
2026: Building On Solid Foundations
January 30, 2026 GS Sustainability OnTrack Series
2025 was a real turning point at Glotman Simpson. Over the past year, we built a solid foundation for our sustainability work, particularly around how we measure and understand the embodied carbon of our projects. With 2026 underway we are ready to add another level of progress — expanding our efforts in measuring, reporting, and …
Read More
Sustainability at GS: 2025 In Review
December 16, 2025 General GS Sustainability OnTrack Series
In January, we set out a clear objective for the year: to establish a robust foundation for how we track, report, and ultimately reduce the embodied carbon intensity of our building structures. Embodied carbon – greenhouse gas emissions associate with material production, transportation, construction, and end-of-life – remains a critical lever in lowering the overall …
Read More
Lowering Cost + Carbon: The Power of Performance-Based Design
December 2, 2025 General GS Sustainability OnTrack Series
Innovation in structural engineering rarely comes from a single breakthrough – more so it is about building on ideas and connecting them in new ways. In our previous post, we explored how modern damping devices allow us to design more efficient structures, but what if there were an even smarter way to tame wind and …
Read More
Lowering Cost and Carbon: Structural Devices
October 30, 2025 General GS Sustainability OnTrack Series
How Structural Devices and Dampers Can Leverage Construction Value Innovation in structural engineering often follows a pattern of overlapping S-curves, where new technologies begin slowly, then accelerate in performance before eventually plateauing. Early-stage innovations may appear less efficient than established methods, creating a perceived performance gap. In fact, this gap represents an innovative space in …
Read More
Counting Rebar vs. Counting Carbon: Rethinking Our Metrics
October 1, 2025 GS Sustainability OnTrack Series
For years, the construction industry has leaned on rebar density as a quick and easy way to budget rebar costs. Estimate the total concrete on a project, apply a standard percentage, and you’ve got a rough rebar number. And, for a long time, it worked really well. But lately, things have been feeling off. Numbers …
Read More
Decarbonizing Construction Materials: Concrete, Steel, and Timber
August 26, 2025 GS Sustainability OnTrack Series
The construction industry has a reputation for being slow to change — “this is how I’ve done it for years” is a familiar phrase in project meetings. But from a materials perspective, things are shifting fast. We’re seeing steady reductions in the carbon footprint of concrete, steel, and timber, thanks to new technologies and smarter …
Read More